May 18, 2023
Today, it’s not enough to run on the trucking technology stack of a decade ago. Even the advancements of the last five years can make a significant difference between succeeding or struggling to keep up with competitors. With the complexity and volatility of today’s trucking industry, companies should have the components of a technology stack that enables optimization.
Technology is about more than making operations easier or simpler. In the age of trucking technology trends like AI, it’s also about enabling capabilities that are otherwise impossible to achieve by hand. This includes:
Technology like AI automation is well suited for large-scale tasks that require precision and repetition. This eliminates human error while easily handling areas of complexity and providing clarity where a person could not readily extract insights. At the same time, technology provides added benefits like streamlining and increased productivity, which help companies save time and money. With access to advanced capabilities and the support of greater efficiency, trucking companies can gain a competitive advantage.
A trucking company seeking optimization must build a tech stack with both types of solutions—those that improve their existing processes and those that add capabilities they otherwise did not have access to.
Many of the solutions below are considered essential for trucking operations, like a transportation management system. However, for each of the following nine categories, trucking companies should assess how the technology can best support their optimization goals. With a carefully constructed tech stack, companies can set themselves up for greater success in the areas most important to them.
Here are nine pieces of an enterprise trucking company’s technology stack:
Fleet management software keeps track of everything fleet-related, including maintenance schedules, compliance, insurance, fuel consumption, driver performance, GPS tracking, and route optimization. This helps managers monitor important information across the entire fleet efficiently.
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A transportation management system (TMS) allows trucking companies to manage their entire transportation operation, from rate analysis to delivery tracking. It assists with booking, dispatching, load planning, route planning, route optimization, tracking, billing, and more.
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Electronic logging devices (ELDs) are required devices that keep record of a driver’s hours of service (HOS), automatically collecting data from the truck to assist with compliance.
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Predictive maintenance tools can be used to anticipate vehicle maintenance needs, helping companies reduce downtime and avoid untimely vehicle failures.
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Telematics systems use sensors, GPS tracking, and other hardware and software components to monitor vehicle location, speed, fuel consumption, engine performance, and driver behavior.
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Customer relationship management (CRM) software helps manage interactions with customers, providing a centralized database for customer information including their working history together and past communication.
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AI and machine learning tools support operations by analyzing data and providing insights to optimize, predict downstream effects, and improve decision-making processes.
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Cybersecurity solutions protect companies’ data and systems from threats. This often includes a combination of hardware, software, and processes designed to identify and prevent unauthorized access, data theft, malware infections, and other cyber threats.
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Integrated communication tools streamline communication between drivers, dispatchers, and management.
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Addressing needs in any of these nine categories of trucking technology doesn’t have to be a complicated process. Using the business’ needs as a starting point and working through priorities, you can get the best match of solutions for your company.
Identify needs – Start by assessing the specific needs of your trucking company. Understand the pain points and inefficiencies that must be addressed.
Research and evaluate – Conduct thorough research on various technologies and solutions available in the market. Compare features, pricing, ease of use, and compatibility with your existing systems.
Prioritize – Rank the technologies based on their potential impact on your business. Focus on solutions that offer the highest return on investment (ROI) and address your most pressing concerns.
Customization and scalability – Choose technologies that can be customized to meet your specific needs and can scale with your business as it grows.
Integration – Choose solutions that can seamlessly integrate with your existing systems, ensuring smooth workflows and data exchange.
Vendor support and training – Partner with vendors that offer ongoing support and training to help you make the most of the technology.
Trial and implementation – Test the technology with a small-scale trial before implementing it across your entire fleet. This will allow you to gauge its effectiveness and make any necessary adjustments.
Trucking companies can position themselves for a competitive advantage simply by the way they build their technology stack. Optimal Dynamics provides AI and machine learning tools to multiply their competitive advantage through optimization.
With the Plan module, companies can optimize their freight networks and simulate the impact of different changes to their operations. They can then unite planning and operations within the Execute module, managing customer commitments, load acceptance and dispatching decisions, and tactical procurement for a balanced network. With the power of Artificial Decision Intelligence, trucking companies can gain clarity within operations to increase efficiency and achieve optimization.
Learn more about Optimal Dynamics’ platform for planning and execution.
For optimized operations and planning, enterprise trucking companies should consider nine categories of trucking technology for their tech stack.
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