Thank you for your hard work, continued partnership, and honest feedback as we celebrate 10-4 Day.

Improved trailer quality 

We heard from you that trailer maintenance while on the road can be a big hassle, so in June we launched an improved trailer inspection process in the Convoy app to give you access to a higher-quality fleet. By gathering more information at trailer pickup and delivery, we’re able to repair trailers faster, saving you time and reducing your chances of being blocked during your load. Learn more here. 

Faster bid responses

We’ve heard from many carriers, including AMA Transport, that you’d prefer to find out more quickly if you’ve won a load so you can better plan your schedule. This year we launched instant bid responses to make booking loads faster than ever. Bids are immediately accepted, countered, or rejected, helping you win loads faster at rates that work for you. 

Better work predictability with day rate contracts

Some carriers, like T F Trucking, asked us to make it easier for small carriers and owner-operators to have more income predictability through contract work. In response, we introduced day rate contracts so you can book full days or weeks of work in one click, without worrying about scheduling. Running a day rate contract gives you the ability to know you’ll get paid for a full day of work, and be able to return home every night. Interested in a day rate contract? Drop us a line with your preferred lanes and rates.

Easier access to Spanish phone support

In the past, our carrier phone service didn’t give you the option to hear the menu in Spanish, or be directly connected to someone who could speak Spanish. After hearing feedback about how frustrating this could be, we took action. Now, as soon as carriers call Convoy customer support, they will have the option to press “9” if Spanish is their preferred language, and they can be directly connected to one of our Spanish-speaking agents. 

More trailer flexibility

Did you know you can earn more and reduce empty miles when you haul power-only with Convoy and use our trailer for other work after your initial load? Based on feedback from carriers like ASBAT Transport, we increased the time you can use our trailers by up to two weeks! During that time you can use the trailer like it’s your own to haul loads—even those booked through other companies. Learn more here. 

More scorecard insights 

Many of you told us it would be helpful to better understand how your carrier scorecard is affected over time. In January, we launched the carrier scorecard on our web app to make it easier for you to find a detailed breakdown of quality scores, areas for improvement, and more. Also, you can now easily request a review of any shipment you want us to take another look at. 

Report trafficking in the Convoy app

You can make a huge difference in helping the efforts to stop human trafficking. This year we put a one-click feature in the Convoy app, allowing you to easily report suspicious activities related to human trafficking to the National Human Trafficking Hotline operated by Polaris. Learn more here. 

Tell us more

Have ideas for how we can make Convoy better? Let us know how we can improve your experience by selecting “Give Feedback” in the Services tab of the Convoy app.

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The Scheduling Standards Consortium (SSC) today announced the achievement of a landmark milestone — the publication of its Technical Standard for developing scheduling application programming interface (API) for transportation management systems (TMS). Now accessible on the open source community, GitHub, the Technical Standard will bring more cohesion and resiliency to the movement of goods, making it easier to book and manage appointments, optimize processes for carriers, shippers and receivers, and drive operational efficiencies for the industry at large.

Scheduling system and interface fragmentation is a significant point of friction amongst carriers, brokers, and shippers. As the industry relies increasingly on an integrated network of providers and solutions to manage the end-to-end lifecycle of each shipment, it’s vital to define and share a consistent data architecture and API standard for the distribution of scheduling information. The SSC was formed in December 2022 to establish the industry’s first formal set of scheduling API standards.

Today, the Technical Standard is available for TMS developers on GitHub, encapsulating eight months of rigorous technical and strategic collaboration. The work ushers in an era where scheduling systems work seamlessly, transcending the barriers that have long hindered efficient data sharing among shippers, carriers, and brokers. The SSC’s API-based approach will allow companies to access the latest data and make smart decisions to increase efficiency, reduce empty miles and waste, lower costs, and improve service outcomes. As each company aligns with these standards, the industry can better orchestrate freight needs with data-informed systems.

“This moment is the culmination of everything the SSC has been working toward to date. Our objective was to develop a technical standard that would allow scheduling systems across the freight industry to consistently and efficiently communicate with one another, and that’s exactly what we’ve achieved,” according to the SSC’s integrated product leads from Uber Freight, J.B. Hunt and Convoy; Chris Chmielewski, Greg Granata and Brian Holley respectively. “The logistics industry is modernizing at an incredible rate, continually improving conditions for seamless digital communication between systems. Standardizing this communication now promises substantial future benefits. Our aspiration is for all stakeholders — brokers, carriers, shippers, and receivers —to recognize the value that these standards provide and embrace them so all parties can save time, money, and ultimately, deliver value for their customers.”

TMS Leaders Invest In Adoption and Integration Efforts

As industry leaders adopt these standards, a significant transformation is set in motion. Shippers stand to benefit from collaborating with these forward-thinking TMS providers, whose investments in integration translate to increased efficiency and cost savings in their operations. This harmonization signifies more than just technical progress; it underscores a dedication to innovative solutions that enhance the logistics ecosystem as a whole.

“At One Network, we’re not just embracing the publication of the SSC Technical Standard; we’re committing to implementing and utilizing these standards to enable greater efficiency across the logistics landscape in 2024,” said Greg Brady, Founder and Executive Chairman of One Network Enterprises. “Our dedication to these guidelines goes beyond rhetoric; it’s a strategic move that will empower shippers and carriers with streamlined operations and enhanced data sharing. As we weave these standards into our systems, we’re driving transformative efficiencies, and ultimately, fostering a more connected and agile logistics ecosystem.”

“At BlueYonder, the unveiling of the SSC Technical Standard marks a significant stride towards establishing more efficient supply chain systems,” said Chirag Modi, Corporate Vice President, Industry Strategy. “Embracing these standards is not just an affirmation; it’s a commitment to bring additional API capabilities to the industry’s landscape. We will weave these standards into the fabric of our operations to improve data sharing, foster operational fluidity, and unlock new dimensions of scheduling efficiency. As we march through the latter part of this year, our resolve to embrace and implement these standards echoes our dedication to delivering value to our customers and the entire logistics ecosystem.”

“We’re actively implementing these standards at Oracle and charting a course toward enhanced data sharing,” said Srini Rajagopal, Vice President of Logistics Product Strategy at Oracle. “We encourage shippers to engage with their software providers to urge progress on SSC Technical Standard integration. Together, we’re spearheading an era of innovation that will benefit the entire logistics community.” 

Further Industry Momentum Supports the SSC: New Collaborators Join the Ranks

Embracing the momentum, the SSC welcomes several additional distinguished collaborators, including:

• DHL Supply Chain, the Americas leader in contract logistics and part of DHL Group.
• Lineage Logistics, a global leader in the temperature-controlled logistics industry.
• Mastery Logistics Systems, a comprehensive cloud-based SaaS transportation management system designed to manage complex transportation needs for shippers, carriers and logistics service providers.
• Transportation Insight & Nolan Transportation Group, part of TI Holding Company, bring over two decades of multi-modal expertise and technology to the logistics industry and rank amongst North America’s top 10 largest logistics companies.
• Ryder System, Inc., the leader in supply chain, dedicated transportation, and fleet management solutions.
• Worldwide Express, a full-service, non-asset-based logistics provider offering more than 115,000 customers access to industry-leading small package, truckload and less-than-truckload shipping solutions.

These organizations join existing players Convoy, J.B. Hunt, Uber Freight, Arrive Logistics, Blue Yonder, Coyote Logistics, E2open, Echo, One Network Enterprises, and Oracle.

The SSC continues to invite industry collaborators and advocates to support the Technical Standard across the industry. For more information or to learn how to get involved and contribute to the SSC, please visit www.FreightAPIs.org.

Introducing the SSC Badging System

In addition to this milestone, the SSC is excited to introduce its new badging system designed to recognize and differentiate industry participants actively contributing to the development and adoption of scheduling API standards.

Innovator Badge: This badge is awarded to companies that actively support or contribute to the creation of the scheduling API standards or the SSC itself. Innovators play a crucial role in shaping the future of the industry by sharing their expertise, insights, and resources.

Early Adopter Badge: TMS companies that verbally commit to integrating the SSC Standards into their products by the end of 2024 are eligible for the Early Adopter badge. These forward-thinking organizations demonstrate their dedication to driving industry-wide improvements and efficiencies.

The SSC’s badging program will provide clarity and transparency within the industry, helping businesses choose partners that are actively advancing scheduling standards. It will also promote collaboration and innovation among industry players, driving further progress in the development and implementation of API standards.

 To learn more about the SSC, visit www.FreightAPIs.org.

About the Scheduling Standards Consortium (SSC)
Founded in 2022 by Convoy, J.B. Hunt and Uber Freight, the Scheduling Standards Consortium (SSC) was established to create freight appointment scheduling standards that provide consistent visibility into the supply chain. Together with shippers, carriers and intermediaries, the SSC aims to simplify the integration of systems across the fragmented ecosystem and generate efficiency across the freight industry. To learn more, visit www.FreightAPIs.org.

The post Scheduling Standards Consortium Achieves Landmark Milestone: API Standards Published appeared first on Convoy.

Improving the lives of truck drivers and carriers is at the core of what Convoy is all about. This week, we could not be more excited to celebrate the dedication of all the carriers we work with. Happy National Truck Driver Appreciation Week!

Drumroll please….announcing the 2023 Haul Stars Awards Winners

As part of our celebration, we are proud to announce the winners of our fifth annual Haul Stars Awards*. This year we are recognizing eleven carriers for their outstanding work and industry leading quality. Each winner will receive their own commemorative trading card along with a $250 Target gift card, and a Convoy swag box.

We have two new award categories this year. The Electric Ace award, going to the carrier who completed Convoy’s first fully electric shipment and is charging forward to power the future of freight. This year also marks the first year that our shipper customers have officially joined us in celebrating these outstanding carriers. Target, Unilever, and Ardagh are each recognizing a top carrier with a Team Captain award, these are awarded to the top-performing carriers in Convoy’s network who hauled their loads over the past year. These three shippers wanted to join us in the celebration because of their deep appreciation for the carriers who keep their business moving.  

To continue with tradition, we will be presenting the award for Most Valuable Carrier to a carrier with impeccable quality scores who has gone above and beyond to make our app better. We will also be recognizing Division Champs, awarded the carrier in each region with the top quality scores. Join us in celebrating the eleven 2023 Haul Stars Award winners. You can read more of their stories throughout the week on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. 

Earn more with less hassle

Beyond recognizing these amazing Haul Stars Award winners, we’re celebrating all carriers with a special offer. This week, any carrier who hauls with Convoy is eligible to save $700 on a two-month trailer rental**. 

We’ve seen carriers increasingly looking for better access to trailers to grow their fleets as they expand their businesses. This year we’ve made access to Convoy trailers more flexible than ever. Our trailer return options on power-only loads have increased from 7 to 14 days and carriers can now rent trailers from Convoy for a month or longer. These are just a few of the ways Convoy is working to help carriers earn more with less hassle. 

Looking to rent a trailer? Claim the discount now.

TruckYeah, Convoy celebrates you

From all of us at Convoy, we want to thank each and every truck driver for keeping this country rolling. We appreciate your hard work, and look forward to seeing you on the road.  

*Haul Stars Awards terms and conditions apply.
**Trailer Rental Promotion terms apply.

Meet the winners

The post #TruckYeah, It’s National Truck Driver Appreciation Week appeared first on Convoy.

Today we’re excited to announce a new real-time fraud detection system that has reduced cargo theft, double brokering, and other forms of fraud in our network by 90%, even as the industry experienced a 41% increase¹. This new system, which we’ve been testing with customers since January, combines machine learning technology, forensic behavioral data, automation, and industry collaboration to monitor risk in real-time, proactively block fraud before it can occur, and more quickly apprehend perpetrators. As a result of this work, we reduced the rate of theft and double brokering in our network to less than 0.001% across hundreds of thousands of shipments in Q2 2023. And at the time of this announcement, we haven’t experienced a single incident of theft in the second half of 2023.

A growing industry-wide problem

Every year, cargo theft costs shippers hundreds of millions of dollars—in 2022, the total value of stolen freight within the US was nearly a quarter of a billion dollars according to CargoNet. This industry-wide problem has only accelerated in recent years, with cargo theft up 57% year-over-year and trailer theft up 17% for the second quarter of 2023. Attacks have also become more sophisticated, with thieves using technology to target high-value loads and often working as part of larger cargo theft rings.

Traditional solutions to fraud prevention fall short in several ways:

1. Over-reliance on onboarding

Vetting carriers during onboarding is a necessary step to protecting against fraud. However, risk at onboarding is a single static data point, while a carrier’s risk profile and behavior can change over time. Effectively evaluating risk requires a more durable solution that relies on real-time data to continuously verify carrier legitimacy.

2. Failure to identify fraud networks

Traditional theft mitigation is akin to a game of whack-a-mole, in which individual actors are pursued for prosecution, but their connections to larger fraud rings can’t be established. A more systemic approach is required to identify these networks and proactively block fraudulent activity across all known members.

3. Insufficient driver data

Fictitious pickups, in which criminals use false identities to pose as legitimate carriers, were up 600% in 2022. Yet most solutions, including prominent industry data sources, lack information about individual drivers, which can be critical in securing check-ins at facilities and mitigating impact when adverse events occur.

4. Impartial assessments

Traditional risk assessments are often black-and-white decisions based on broad blanket policies and arbitrary data that have little correlation with cargo fraud. This results in frequent false positives that stifle the growth of legitimate carriers by blocking them from working with established brokerages. Instead, these carriers often resort to working with less credible brokers, exposing them to non-payments or misdirection schemes.

The problem is made worse by the fact that most fraud prevention efforts today rely primarily on manual process and human analysis, which can’t scale to effectively protect a freight network.

Introducing the industry’s first real-time fraud detection system

Over the last six months, our team has been working in collaboration with Fortune 1000 shippers and industry partners to pilot a unique real-time fraud detection system that addresses these shortcomings. At the core is machine learning technology that continually verifies the trustworthiness of carriers and identifies relationships between carriers, along with a dedicated team that provides decision oversight and input into the model. 

Before a carrier can join Convoy’s network, and once they’ve satisfied mandatory insurance, operating authority, and FMCSA carrier contact verification, they’re run through a proprietary risk assessment model. Borrowing concepts from graph theory and fuzzy logic, and using publicly available and proprietary data, this clustering model identifies latent connections between carriers and their personnel and then makes recommendations based on the risk level of those links. Identifying these connections is critical to preventing fraud since perpetrators often operate in networks or through the use of multiple identities.

Carriers flagged as high risk are immediately blocked from bidding on loads within the Convoy app. Those flagged with potential risk are asked to submit additional information to prove their legitimacy. And all carriers flagged with any level of risk are reviewed by a member of Convoy’s Trust & Security team to make the final decision on network membership. 

Of course, a carrier’s risk profile can change over time. Carriers who appear to be trustworthy during onboarding can quickly evolve into high-risk entities based on economic changes, sales of motor carrier companies, or onboarding of poorly vetted drivers. For this reason, our solution continually vets every carrier in our network multiple times per day before they can accept each load, using data from all interactions Convoy has with the carrier as well as publicly available information. Additionally, Convoy has built a multi-layered driver verification process to validate the accuracy of provided identification, with the capability to provide the validated assigned driver directly to facilities to verify before releasing a shipment.

Once a load has been assigned to a carrier, our systems track every step of the shipment lifecycle, looking for anomalies and proactively alerting our team to any suspicious activity. GPS tracking enables our systems to automatically determine if a shipment isn’t progressing to its destination as expected. Similarly, cargo sensors automatically alert us if a shipment is being unloaded in an unexpected location, enabling us to take immediate action.

Our solution is also an effective defense against the increasing threat of double brokering. At onboarding and throughout the course of their membership in Convoy’s network, carriers are evaluated for attributes typically associated with double brokering, behavior in accessing and navigating Convoy portals, and other attempts to mask their identity. Then, as carriers book shipments, our system evaluates their schedules for practicality. If deemed infeasible or high risk, loads are automatically removed from the carrier. 

Ensuring a positive, fair experience for carriers

In building a modern fraud prevention solution, we knew it was also critical to provide the tens of thousands of legitimate small carriers and owner-operators in our network, including those with new MCs, with a system that doesn’t obstruct the growth of their business. This is in contrast to many traditional solutions, which are often indiscriminate and haphazard in their approach to carrier vetting—using broad policies and arbitrary data to block by default rather than using precise, up-to-date forensic and behavioral data to block only when necessary.

For example, a well-known tactic in the industry is to use DOT inspection count as a deciding factor in whether to block a carrier from accessing their shipments. This unfairly penalizes new carriers entering the industry, as the median time for a small carrier to receive their first inspection is 154 days (more than five months). In addition, Convoy data indicates that just 56% of single-truck carriers are inspected each year, with 75% inspected over a two-year period. Blocking these small carriers based solely on an issue like inspection count unnecessarily stifles the growth of their business and exposes them to increased risks of unscrupulous broker behavior, as noted above.

Our approach was to build a solution that proactively monitors risk in real time, combining the automated decision making model described above with a dedicated team trained to provide technology oversight and to make fair and consistent decisions. We began by modeling behavioral details and other latent attributes that are more directly correlated with fraud than generic data points like inspection counts and location. We then employed custom heuristics to fine tune our recommendation engine in order to minimize the number of false positives.

To further minimize false positives and other similar issues, we designed a human-in-the-loop process where an audit team reviews our model’s decisions when there’s a higher degree of uncertainty. The team follows a thorough standard operating procedure to request additional information from carriers and make a decision on each case. These decisions are then fed back into the model to continually improve future recommendations.

Through these efforts, we’ve created the industry’s first always-on fraud prevention system that significantly improves cargo security without negatively impacting the tens of thousands of hard-working carriers in our network.

The critical role of industry collaboration

The development of our model, mitigation, and reaction techniques wouldn’t have been possible without the trend analysis, data, and products from companies including CargoNet, Central Analysis Bureau, Persona, and others. These organizations exemplify how technology innovation can be used to reduce losses from fraud and foster a greater sense of security and trust within our industry.

In addition, law enforcement continues to play a critical role in the investigation, apprehension, and prosecution of bad actors—in the last six months, they’ve tracked down and apprehend members of multiple cargo theft rings across the US. Additionally, law enforcement adjacent professionals, industry groups, and our private investigator partners continue to provide incredible support to the development of industry-wide solutions to combat fraud.

As we continue to navigate the increasingly complex landscape of fraud and cargo theft, we look forward to expanding these relationships, which we believe can ultimately benefit every shipper, broker, and carrier in our industry.

If you’re interested in learning more about how our fraud prevention solution can help your transportation team reduce supply chain risk, drop me a line at trustandsecurity@convoy.com or contact your Convoy account manager.

¹ Convoy internal data comparing H1 2023 vs. H2 2022, CargoNet Quarterly Supply Chain Risk Trends Analysis 2022, 2023

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EDI revolutionized communication by providing a standardized format for data exchange and reducing errors associated with traditional methods like mail and faxes. By defining standardized message formats and communication protocols, EDI enabled consistent communication between participants, akin to a common language that everyone understands. This standardization was achieved through collaboration among industry players seeking more reliable and efficient ways to communicate.

Modern web APIs have more recently revolutionized the tech industry by also making it possible for different organizations to easily and efficiently communicate with one another. Unlike EDI, web APIs are often designed and implemented by a particular company to suit their needs and then made publicly available for anyone to use as they see fit.  Implementers have the freedom to choose from various API protocols and define message formats, affording them flexibility and customization options. This flexibility is advantageous for implementing solutions quickly and leveraging a vast ecosystem of tools and expertise.

Modern web APIs have more recently revolutionized the tech industry by also making it possible for different organizations to easily and efficiently communicate with one another. Unlike EDI, web APIs are often designed and implemented by a particular company to suit their needs and then made publicly available for anyone to use as they see fit.  Implementers have the freedom to choose from various API protocols and define message formats, affording them flexibility and customization options. This flexibility is advantageous for implementing solutions quickly and leveraging a vast ecosystem of tools and expertise.

Companies such as Project44 and Fourkites provide innovation in the form of location data aggregation and normalization across various sources, and this data is made accessible by API. Tech-forward companies like Convoy are able to easily integrate with these APIs to provide seamless experiences and valuable insights to our shippers about the locations of their shipments at any given time.

A common, valid criticism of APIs replacing EDI is that there is no established standard for how different companies should communicate via APIs. The lack of a common language would hinder seamless communication and lead to an explosion of bespoke interactions which would be a large step backwards towards the pre-EDI world.

However, it’s crucial to note that APIs can be defined using standardized communication protocols. One approach could be to define APIs that adhere to existing EDI message standards. Alternatively, they can be used to define a completely new set of standards that may offer improvements over current EDI practices. An example of this is the FreightAPIs effort, which aims to establish new standards using modern technologies, starting with scheduling APIs.

With this context in mind, it becomes essential to address the core questions:

1. What advantages do modern web-based APIs offer over EDI? APIs provide flexibility, customization, and the ability to leverage a vast ecosystem of tools and expertise. They enable rapid development and deployment of new features and products, supporting innovation and growth. By utilizing standardized communication protocols within the API framework, industry players can ensure compatibility, scalability, and seamless integration.
2. Do the EDI message standards need to be replaced with something new? The answer to this question is not straightforward. While EDI has served as the backbone of communication in the freight and logistics industry, it is not without its limitations. The fragmented landscape of EDI, with different versions and methods of communication, has resulted in significant challenges for integration and interoperability. APIs offer the potential to not only simplify adoption, but enable usage in domains previously inaccessible to EDI such as mobile applications and more. However, while APIs have a lot of benefits, the decision to replace EDI entirely requires careful consideration so that we can build on the foundation laid down by EDI.

In conclusion, the future of communication in freight and logistics lies in finding the right balance between leveraging the advantages of APIs and addressing the challenges presented by the current state of EDI. APIs offer flexibility, innovation, and compatibility with modern technologies. Simultaneously, the industry needs to explore opportunities for standardization within the API framework, leveraging the lessons learned from EDI to ensure seamless and efficient communication.

By engaging in a thoughtful conversation about the improvements needed within the existing EDI landscape, we can collectively work toward leveraging modern communication protocols, defining and adopting industry-wide standards, and shaping the future of communication in the freight and logistics industry for the better.

The post The future of communication in freight and logistics: examining APIs and the potential for improvement appeared first on Convoy.

Today, we’re excited to roll out Convoy Just-In-Time, our latest truckload freight service that guarantees on-time performance within 15 minutes of the scheduled delivery time. This novel approach to just-in-time delivery provides manufacturers and retailers with the service quality compliance they expect, but with unmatched flexibility to handle fluctuating demand. Convoy’s internal data shows that shippers using Just-In-Time can reduce their annual transportation costs by up to 11% while maintaining higher service quality levels.

For many automotive and industrial manufacturers, precise on-time delivery is a critical requirement for their supply chains to operate cost-efficiently. Shipments that arrive early or late can result in production shutdowns that cost these companies on average $22,000 per minute. Similarly, consumer product companies often need to adhere to stringent on-time delivery policies at retailers’ facilities or incur fines that can increase the cost of each shipment by thousands of dollars. These same retailers then face out-of-stock or out-of-shelf inventories and lose out on realized sales. Data from the Food Marketing Institute and the Grocery Manufacturers Association estimates the US retail food industry alone loses $15-$20 billion per year due to unrealized sales caused by stockouts.

The traditional challenge with just-in-time freight is that it relies on asset-based carriers whose operations lack flexibility. To meet the stringent requirements of just-in-time shippers while maximizing fleet utilization, these carriers need to plan weeks in advance to position their trucks and drop trailers, and optimize the routing of these assets. This rigidity often leads to an inadequate response when demand fluctuates—any surge in volume can result in the need for expedited carriers, who charge a premium for their services. In worst cases, delayed deliveries can lead to manufacturing production shutdowns and loss of revenue from stockouts and unrealized sales. The combined costs of these events can increase annual transportation spend by up to 11% (this figure doesn’t account for the losses incurred due to fines resulting from delayed customer deliveries).

Convoy Just-In-Time takes a novel approach to these challenges by harnessing our network of more than 400,000 trucks, our pool of telematics-enabled drop trailers, and our machine learning models that automate the shipment lifecycle. When demand fluctuates, we can reroute trucks and trailers to facilities nationwide within days, providing shippers with the service quality they expect from just-in-time services, but with a level of flexibility that virtually eliminates the need for expedited services. In addition to cost savings, this approach reduces operational burden at facilities, particularly for load planners who no longer have to scramble to find expedited carriers.

Based on the successful testing we’ve done with automotive and industrial manufacturers as well as CPG companies and retailers over the last year, we’re able to offer shippers a guarantee that we’ll arrive within 15 minutes of the scheduled delivery at least 98% of the time. In the rare event of an early or late delivery, we cover an agreed-upon portion of the shipper’s costs.

Carriers are required to use the Convoy app to haul with us, which means we have a 24/7 pulse on where the truck is and what it’s doing. We have achieved 99% carrier app connectivity which allows us to provide the most complete and transparent picture of shipment status and supply chain performance. We automatically collect 1,000 data points on every shipment and use it to power a sophisticated machine learning model that accurately predicts ETAs and proactively recovers from shipment disruptions. For shippers, all of this data comes together on the interactive Convoy dashboard, within their TMS, or through customizable email and text alerts.

If you’re curious to learn more about Convoy Just-In-Time, you can write to us or contact your account manager. 

The post Introducing Convoy Just-In-Time: Guaranteed on-time delivery meets unmatched flexibility appeared first on Convoy.

Later, Dorothy and Emerj’s Head of Research, Daniel Faggella, discuss how Google, AWS, and Microsoft are lowering the barriers to entry for SMEs looking to start in AI and democratizing data science roles that were highly specialized just a few years ago.

Listen to the podcast:

The post Winning buy-in from leadership for AI projects, with CTO Dorothy Li appeared first on Convoy.

Convoy, the nation’s leading digital freight network, announced today a unique, in-app feature aimed at fighting human trafficking. The new feature enables the 80,000 carriers in Convoy’s nationwide network to immediately flag suspicious behavior and take action when they encounter potential cases of human trafficking.

Human trafficking is a crime of exploitation that affects individuals worldwide. According to the US Department of State, each year, an estimated 600,000 to 800,000 men, women, and children are trafficked, and this $150 billion industry is growing. Truck drivers traverse the vast expanse of the United States, venturing into truck stops and other less-frequented areas. This unique vantage point grants them enhanced opportunities to identify potential victims of human trafficking and promptly report any suspicious activity they encounter.

Convoy recognizes the critical role that technology and transportation professionals play in combating this crime. Building upon an existing partnership with Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT), Convoy has integrated a one-click reporting feature within the Convoy app, allowing drivers to easily report suspicious activities related to human trafficking. This activity could be an individual not understanding where they are, an individual or individuals who were demonstrating an inability to speak freely or who’s communication was being monitored or controlled, a minor who is seemingly under an adult’s control for financial gain, and more. Through this new feature, drivers can now text, call, or submit a tip to the national human trafficking hotline operated by Polaris, facilitating a rapid and effective response to potential cases. By leveraging its network and actively involving carriers, Convoy aims to raise awareness, aid in the recovery of victims, and support law enforcement efforts to apprehend perpetrators.

“We commend Convoy for their ongoing commitment to combat human trafficking,” said Molly Griffiths, Corporate Engagement Manager at TAT. “By providing truckers with a simple and efficient way to report potential cases, Convoy is demonstrating their commitment to the safety and well-being of vulnerable individuals. We believe that this in-app resource will further mobilize the transportation industry in recognizing and reporting instances of human trafficking and sets a positive example for the industry on the role technology plays in making a tangible difference.”

TAT has been at the forefront of combating human trafficking within the transportation industry. Through their educational initiatives and mobilization of transportation professionals, TAT has significantly contributed to the recognition and reporting of human trafficking instances. Convoy partnered with the organization in 2021 to establish a certification program for drivers as part of Convoy’s Haul Stars program, a membership group representing the most elite carriers who operate the more than 400,000 trucks in its network. Training is crucial because it educates truckers — who are on the road all the time — but also because their calls and reports can help build a wealth of evidence and allow victims to seek justice.

“Convoy is proud to launch this new in-app feature that empowers carriers to take a stand against human trafficking,” said Amir Pelleg, Vice President, Carriers and Marketplace at Convoy. “By providing our carriers with a simple and efficient way to report suspicious activities, we are fostering a culture of vigilance and solidarity within the transportation industry. Together with Truckers Against Trafficking, we can make a real difference and contribute to rescuing victims.”

The post Convoy empowers carriers to combat human trafficking with new in-app feature appeared first on Convoy.

In a recent interview with James Pitts, J.R. Pitts Service’s founder, we learned how he transitioned from being a company driver to an owner-operator and built a successful trucking company from scratch. With a rigorous network strategy learned during his time as an LTL driver, James has grown his company from a single truck to eight trucks in just over two years. In this interview, he shares his insights on what has allowed J.R. Pitts Services to succeed in a challenging market, the importance of having a hazmat endorsement, and tips for fellow carriers and drivers.

How long have you been in trucking and how’d you get started with Convoy?

I’ve been trucking for about 23 years. I started as a company driver like everybody else and then, a few years ago, I got on with FedEx as an LTL driver. I thought I’d retire with them, but before the pandemic, they let a bunch of drivers go. I had some money and wanted to buy a truck, but didn’t think I’d have enough money to run it on my own. Through a friend, I got connected with a small company that was willing to let me put their numbers on my truck and teach me the business. That was great – I knew the driving part and I knew how to put loads together, so once they helped me learn the business side I was good to go. I ended up staying with them for about a year before going out on my own. 

Once I got my authority, I tried Convoy and started running loads from Union City to Fort Pierce and back. A guy named Anthony from Convoy’s dedication team saw my pattern and asked if I wanted to run the lane on a dedicated contract. I only had one truck, but he took a chance on me, and we’ve been growing ever since.

What has allowed J.R. Pitts to succeed in today’s market?  

I learned a lot about how to build a freight network when I was at FedEx running LTL and know what drivers around here want – they want to be home every night. Here in Valdosta at the state line between Georgia and Florida, I can have drivers pick stuff up in Atlanta, bring it down here and have another driver take it down to Florida and vice versa. We use this approach with my trucks and with my leased-on owner-operators. This strategy keeps our trucks moving and my turnovers low.

What else have you learned in your career that’s been useful in this market?

So much. First, my mindset has always been focused on consistent freight. I’m not the type of guy who runs to the loadboard to find the highest paying load. Sure, you might make a little less on a load, but in the end, you make more. When I was getting into this business an old fella told me, “James, a fast rolling dime will outrun a slow rolling quarter any day.” I put that thought together and realized that’s what Walmart does – volume and consistency – and that’s what I try to do with my business. Second, the more certifications or endorsements you have, the better. For example, LTL carriers will require all their drivers to have a hazmat endorsement because companies are willing to pay a lot of money to get a couple of pallets across the country if it’s hazmat. So, I saw the importance of hazmat and now I’m making all my drivers get their endorsement to ensure that we can pull those higher-priced loads when they come through.

What’s the process for getting a hazmat endorsement? 

It’s pretty easy. You need to get some training, pass a test with your state, clear a federal background check, and update your insurance to cover Hazmat. It doesn’t cost much to do and frankly, I’m surprised more carriers don’t do it.

I suppose some people are worried about the training part. In my case, I’ve got some friends that used to train at larger carriers, so they can get my guys going. Some of the training options are online, but having someone there in person who can explain things like what a placard is, where it goes, and how to use it is a big help.

How much extra should carriers expect to pay for insurance? 

It depends, but it’s not that much more. I think my insurance is about 25% more than friends who don’t haul hazmat. We haul enough hazmat that the extra cost is worth it since we make more money on those loads. However, you have to be careful to make sure you’re offsetting the extra cost. If you’re dispatching leased drivers on your authority, you also need to make sure they have all the necessary hazmat insurance and endorsements. Keep in mind that with hazmat, it’s not just about the extra money you get on a load. With hazmat, I can do more for a broker, and that opens up more opportunities.

Do you have tips you’d share with your fellow carriers and drivers? 

Absolutely. Carriers need to understand that the market goes up and it goes down. When it goes up, I capitalize on the rates and save your money. I don’t spend it on cars or whatever. Then, when it goes down like it always does, you don’t have to worry as much because you have money to keep the business running. I just had a truck breakdown the other day, my favorite truck. The engine locked up when I was coming home from Locust Grove. Between towing and repairs, it’s going to cost me maybe $20,000, but I’ve got money in a maintenance account, so I’m not worried about it.

Also, you need to have a strategy. In today’s market, I keep telling guys to quit looking for that one big score. They might find a $5,000 load out to Arizona, but they’re going to spend $2,000 in fuel and they’ve got no plan to get back home. For me, I look for consistent freight on lanes I know, usually with dedicated contracts. Profit is profit, and I know how to make this strategy work.

Finally, for the new guys, find someone who will teach you the business. Learn from them before you go out on your own.

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The post Grow your business with hazmat appeared first on Convoy.

This model gets materially better with scale, using technology to address the industry’s existing limitations and the reasons that trucking remains so fragmented. Hybrid carriers have a digital truckload marketplace, a universal pool of trailers, online drivers and equipment, and broad industry integrations, all running on a technology platform that uses data and AI to orchestrate everything, manage carrier quality, and generate actionable insights for shippers. By removing silos around truck and trailer capacity, these truckload platforms will benefit from network effects and other economies of scale, making them better and cheaper at scale and giving shippers compelling reasons to consolidate their freight spend for the first time.

At the end of the day, there is a reason that trucking is so fragmented and hasn’t seen benefits of scale. Here we dive into why this is and why it is now changing.

The problem: bringing economies of scaling to the truckload industry

In most transportation and delivery businesses, economies of scale, including network effects(1), allow the leading providers to gain cost and service advantages for their customers, causing the market to consolidate around them. The parcel and less-than-truckload (LTL) delivery businesses are good examples of this. No single package takes up an entire truck or trailer, so each customer that ships something helps cover the cost of the delivery for everyone. The more participants, the more economical it becomes. Additionally, with more customers and packages, the shipping service can add more deliveries per day, making it even more convenient for everyone.

This has not yet happened in the truckload industry(2), where limited advantages of scale have allowed fragmentation to persist as a viable sourcing strategy. Shippers work with dozens or even hundreds of truckload carriers and brokers who compete for their business. This is currently the best strategy for shippers to get competitive coverage, pricing, and service, but it leads to a transitory or what-have-you-done-for-me-lately mentality that limits the opportunity for each individual provider to think long-term, and it prevents big bets that could lead to step-function improvements in service and cost. For this to happen, shippers need to be presented with a fundamentally new model.

This persistent fragmentation in truckload is unusual. Most of the time, when companies source services, they choose just one or a few providers, not dozens or hundreds. They want to reduce the overhead of managing vendors and gain the volume discounts and priority service of top customers. For example, companies pick one payroll processing system, hire one partner for warehouse logistics, and contract one food services vendor to manage their cafeterias. The leaders gain advantages as they get bigger and customer growth accelerates.

Metcalf’s law says that a network’s value is proportional to the square of the number of participants (n^2); said differently, its value increases exponentially as its users or participants grow. These models clearly benefit from this effect. Why not truckload?

Why do network effects exist in these areas but not truckload?

Unlike in the parcel or LTL examples, each truckload delivery is financially viable on a standalone basis. Its cargo fills the entire truck on its own, and it moves point-to-point along a single route, so its success does not rely on any other participants in the network. For this reason, the barriers to entry are also very low. Nearly anyone can buy a truck or fleet and start hauling freight on similar footing to the rest of the industry.

Therefore, the network effects in truckload come not from optimization at the individual truckload shipment level but rather primarily at the system level. In parcel, wasted “space” creates the primary inefficiency to solve. In truckload, it is wasted miles (driving empty) and wasted time (waiting to load/unload) that creates the primary inefficiencies to solve. For example, combining multiple shippers’ freight networks to identify the best combinations of loads (routes, backhauls), optimizing appointment times and drop-and-hook programs to reduce waiting time, and ensuring that the best-located truck is matched to each run to reduce empty miles.

Unfortunately, many of these truckload networks are walled off from each other today. For example, the business model of the market makers who are in the best position to orchestrate the industry today – large truckload brokers – often operate on a load-by-load basis and fragment their own network of trucks and shipments into many small marketplaces, each managed by a carrier sales rep with a portfolio of carrier relationships. Naturally, carrier reps are reluctant to share their trucking relationships with others, which blocks a true network from forming as the brokerage scales.

Asset carriers face challenges in scaling and optimizing stitched-together networks

On the other hand, asset-based carriers run businesses predicated on effective network planning, which shouldn’t come as a surprise. While a typical broker is “asset light” — their primary cost being wages to employees who earn a commission for sourcing loads from shippers and finding trucks to do them at a lower cost — an asset carrier’s primary costs are their assets (trucks and trailers) and fixed driver costs. Not only do they need to be smart about making enough money to cover their variable costs, but also to cover their cost of capital for the assets they own. Thus, their focus is on asset utilization. They consider how different shippers’ networks overlap, and they attempt to stitch together a balanced portfolio that maximizes the utilization of their assets. For example, in an ideal situation, a carrier would find a backhaul or other symmetrical route between two companies that ship in different directions, creating an efficient loop for their drivers. In another case, they might start with a pool of trailers at one facility that ships to several destinations and, over time, fill in backhaul contracts to recover the empty returns.

However, as things move from planning to execution, it becomes clear that forecasting is often more art than science. Trucking is messy; the allocated pool of trailers and dedicated drivers are more fixed than daily or weekly fluctuations in demand, the necessary appointment times for live-load scenarios aren’t always available, and facilities, trucks, and drivers get delayed. And if something goes wrong, changing the appointments and driver schedules is cumbersome. The asset model is rigid by design, making it hard to be resilient when the unpredictable inevitably happens. Holiday weeks are a typical example of this. For example, leading up to Labor Day weekend, load volume spikes and outstrips trailers, leaving shippers to fail over to find the live-loaded trucks on the spot market. During off weeks, when volume dips, they pay trailer underutilization fees.

Adding or removing trailers quickly is expensive and operationally difficult. Trailers are committed, and the drivers have a system. Thus carriers manage a constant tension between service levels to shippers on the one hand and asset utilization on the other hand. And even though most asset carriers also run a traditional truckload brokerage to gain flexibility – re-brokering up to 40% of their freight to other carriers (3) – it is not seamless with their own operations, and its costs and service levels often don’t hold up to the commitments they’ve made.

All of these dynamics reduce service flexibility and lead to local optimizations and sub-scale marketplaces that lack network effects.

A lack of scale effects is also evident in that trucking brokerages and carriers do not gain operating leverage or performance advantages from scale

For example, you can see below that for several top national brokers, every incremental $ of net revenue requires proportionally the same investment of additional operating expenses. In other words, these businesses operate linearly, without major network or scale effects.

This doesn’t change as brokerages or carriers get bigger. In 2018 I listened to a panel discussion on trucking at a conference. A new-to-truckload executive shared that after looking at the financials of over a dozen public and private brokers, he had a discovery to share — all of them, from sub $100M to several billion in revenue, had roughly the same unit economics. The large, national players could cover the largest shippers across more regions, but they didn’t do it better. Others in the room echoed this for asset carriers, and others shared that in some cases, they became slightly worse with scale because their overhead increased, and they struggle to maintain the same quality standards, pricing controls, and network balance.

It isn’t that brokers and carriers don’t get better as they learn a facility’s operations or build density on a lane. They do. However, the financial improvements are localized to that specific opportunity and quickly reach a plateau. Similarly, those that add offices and employees to gain national scale are able to service larger national accounts, but as they grow, each incremental shipment costs about the same to support.

Finally, in most cases, shippers need multiple providers to meet their needs. Some of their freight is predictable and runs drop & hook, best for asset carriers, and some is less predictable and benefits from a broker’s flexible capacity. For national shippers, there isn’t one carrier or broker that is “best” in all regions of the country. And at the end of the day, because they can’t precisely forecast their volumes unless they pay for fully-dedicated capacity, shippers can’t count on their carrier or broker partners to reserve capacity for all scenarios. They simply need redundancy, opening the door to many providers.

All of the above conditions across asset carriers, brokers, and shippers’ truckload networks have created antibodies to consolidation. The Vice President of a major national U.S. retailer summarized this to me by saying, “We have hard caps built into our system. I can tell you that whenever we relax this and give a huge award to one carrier, even a carrier-of-the-year winner, it backfires, and their service drops the next year, and we move them back out.”

To date, a model that gets more efficient and better for shippers as it scales has not existed. As such, the conditions for significant industry consolidation and simplification have not existed previously, but that is now changing.

Enter the hybrid carrier, creating the path for economies of scale

A hybrid carrier brings together the best of asset carriers and truckload brokerages, using technology and open capacity marketplaces and shared trailers to get better and cheaper with scale in a way that we have not seen in the truckload industry. Over the next decade, a handful of hybrid carrier-enabling platforms will emerge and scale as they power this transition, giving today’s brokers and carriers the opportunity to deliver a broader set of service offerings with higher performance, better cost structure, and more data-driven insights for their customers.

The key ingredients of a hybrid carrier include:

1. Universal pool of trailers, all sensor-enabled and available to the carrier network for both live and drop-and-hook loads. 

The shared trailer pool is not tied to a given facility or route, so it can quickly grow or shrink with weekly volume changes faster than traditional carriers. This allows backup and spot loads to run as drop & hook as well. Any carrier on the platform can move a pre-loaded trailer, rent an empty one, or keep it after a delivery to use for other off-network jobs before later returning it. The return locations and times are designed to get trailers to where they are most needed on the network (or predicted to be needed by AI). This flexible return and rental program reduces relocation costs and allows carriers to find more backhauls. The platform maintains the pool.

2. A single digital marketplace for truckload volume and capacity. 

Hybrid carriers have access to vast pools of carriers and owner-operators. To drive network effects, they need to know that their path to getting access to the best freight at the best rates is via the digital marketplace, not negotiating over the phone. If their ideal job is out there, they can get it. This brings energy to the marketplace, which includes single jobs, batches, dedicated runs, and more. The variety of options allows for a trade-off between performance and cost. This results in asset-like visibility, availability, and performance, even with minimal lead time.

3. All drivers are online and connected throughout the job workflow.

It isn’t enough to have some of your carriers/drivers do some of their tasks online. To give the hybrid carrier the greatest opportunity to harness efficiencies and find opportunities, all drivers and trucks need to be online, when on the clock, for all the steps. Drivers share data and documents, offer visibility, handle detention and accessorials, manage payments, self-service exception handling, and more. The tech helps drivers keep moving to make more money and get paid faster. The visibility helps the platform learn and become more efficient. Today, the trucking companies most likely to use the app have < 10 trucks.

4. Digital integrations with shippers for seamless communications and data sharing.

Hybrid carriers have digital connectivity into a broad range of shippers via TMS and other EDI or API integrations. These allow for automated tendering, routing guide updates, spot load bidding, appointment scheduling, and financial processing.

5. Technology platform to orchestrate supply & demand AND load execution.

A hybrid carrier is too complex to run only by hand. The platform orchestrates the pricing and matching, provides self-service tools for brokers and carriers, tracks and manages carrier compliance, monitors and repositions trailers, and supports workflows for tendering, load creation, appointments, visibility tracking, payments, insights, sustainability reporting and accounting (e.g., GLEC framework).

Over the last decade, billions of venture dollars have gone into the truckload freight industry on the promise of digital transformation. That investment spurred, amongst other important innovations, the first generation of universal trailer pools and digital platforms for truckload brokerage, including many of the capabilities listed above. These platforms have remained proprietary, but this is changing. In the coming years, we will see some or all of these platforms open up, and the next wave of innovation will be built on top of them, enabling today’s brokers and carriers to become tomorrow’s hybrid carriers too.

As this happens, the leading platforms will only get better, leading to increasingly better cost, service, and insights for shippers. For the first time, shippers will have a compelling reason to consolidate their freight onto fewer providers.

The proof, as they say, is in the pudding. While it will take years to know exactly how this plays out, Convoy is one of the companies that has invested in building a hybrid carrier platform already. The results that we have seen from our V1 are very promising, and here are a few examples.

Consolidation leads to lower operational costs per load and better performance

There are material operating cost advantages when shippers consolidate more of their freight onto one hybrid carrier. The example below shows this for Convoy’s current offering, which is powered by our hybrid carrier platform. In addition to cost reduction, we also see improvements in on-time service performance.

More density continuously delivers more efficiencies and lower trucking costs

As the volume of loads and trucks in a market grows, network density increases, and the odds that a carrier finds their ideal load(s) (ideal timing and route) increase, reducing waste and costs. This phenomenon isn’t new; however, in most cases, brokers see the gains tap out and plateau relatively quickly. Instead, Convoy sees the gains come in waves with each efficiency, including overall density, load batching, appointment time optimization, flexible trailers, etc. The system continues to improve as it scales.

Flexible drop & hook matches reality of shipper demand, allowing continued service 

Hybrid carriers enable flexible drop & hook, which we have observed to successfully handle rapid changes in freight demand without needing to failover to live spot or paying underutilization fees.

An efficient, digital marketplace absorbs spikes in demand without spikes in staffing or compromising service quality

Hybrid carriers can handle volume spikes with minimal impact on service quality because of the scale and automation of the marketplace.

This pattern was maintained through the volatility of COVID. The efficiency of a hybrid carrier-style network provided elastic capacity with high tender acceptance rates and helped maintain superior on-time performance relative to the industry across market cycles.

The truckload industry has long been held back from enjoying the efficiencies and service benefits that come from economies of scale…but that is changing and changing fast. After proving to ourselves, our shippers, and our carrier network that there is a new way to manage truckload that DOES, in fact, get better with scale, we have begun to open up our platform to the broader industry.

Our goal in doing this is to accelerate the trucking industry’s transformation towards a more efficient future. That is only possible by breaking down the walls that exist across the industry. These walls that exist within and across shippers, within and across brokers, and amongst carriers’ assets are impeding the tremendous benefits that can come from network effects and other economies of scale within any single broker and across the entire industry.

Fortunately, the walls are already starting to come down. Within Convoy, our marketplace for truckload carrier capacity is unfettered by individuals’ various books-of-business, and our trailers operate in a universal pool across facilities and carriers. We recently opened this platform up for other carriers and brokers to use as well, alongside our first party truckload business. The nearly 20 brokers and carriers that are using it today save an average of 15% when they find a more efficient truck on our platform than on their own. And as we release more features and capabilities into this externalized, standalone platform, it will only get better, and momentum will only build further.  

As the now famous quote, most often attributed to William Gibson, goes, “The future is already here.  It’s just not evenly distributed.”  Never before has that been more true than it is today in the US trucking industry.

To learn more, inquire at info@hybridcarriers.com.

1. The Network Effect in Supply Chain and Logistics
2. Economies of scale in truckload exist mostly for the individual truckload and the efficiency gained by hitting the maximum weight or filling all of the space inside the truck (“weighing out” or “cubing out”).
3. Latest SEC Filings Reveal Major Trucking Companies Still Outsourcing Vast Amounts of Freight

The post Driving change: how hybrid carriers will finally unlock economies of scale in trucking appeared first on Convoy.

The reservation program will use the hub-to-hub model. Convoy’s vast carrier network of small fleets and owner-operators will gain access to lucrative opportunities to deliver customer loads to the pick up hub in Texas, and then V.A.S.’ autonomous fleet will execute the long-haul to the next hub. A carrier in Convoy’s network would then deliver the load to its final destination. 

We are excited to add Convoy to our growing list of early reservation customers and work together to bring all the benefits of autonomous trucking technology to shippers on the Convoy network. This collaboration underlines the growing interest in autonomous technology as the industry looks for ways to increase freight capacity, improve efficiency and safety.”

Nils Jaeger, President of Volvo Autonomous Solutions.

Under the hub-to-hub model, autonomous trucks will operate on highways, providing continuous service between transfer hubs throughout the day and night. By improving the safety and efficiency of freight corridors, autonomous trucks will contribute to the growth of freight volume, increasing demand for truck drivers to deliver goods from the transfer hubs to their final destinations. This approach enhances the work-life balance of professional truck drivers by enabling local drivers to transition into short-haul jobs, granting them more time at home and improving their overall quality of life.

“We have great confidence in the transformative power of autonomous trucking technology to help tackle industry challenges,” stated Brooks McMahon, Chief Business Development Officer at Convoy. “By leveraging these trucks for highway segments and strategically scheduling loads during off-peak hours, we can minimize emissions, optimize fuel efficiency, and enhance the well-being of drivers. We’re particularly excited about how this model enhances the quality of life for small to midsize carriers who will support either leg of the transportation, but will be able to remain local more often and spend more time with their families. We are excited to partner with Volvo Autonomous Solutions in charting this new course and unlocking the full potential of autonomous trucks.”

The post Convoy joins Volvo Autonomous Solutions Reservation Program appeared first on Convoy.

May 9, 2023 — Seattle, WA — Convoy, the leading digital freight network, announced today that it has been named to CNBC’s Disruptor 50 list for the fifth consecutive year. The annual list features private companies that have the potential to change industries and the world. This year’s list includes companies in sectors ranging from fintech and cybersecurity to transportation and healthcare.

Convoy has revolutionized the $800 billion trucking industry by providing a digital platform that connects shippers with carriers. With Convoy, shippers can instantly find and book trucking services at competitive rates, while carriers can easily find and accept job offers. One of the company’s most significant contributions to the freight industry has been its flexible drop-and-hook program, which streamlines the loading and unloading process by allowing drivers to pick up pre-loaded trailers and drop them off at designated locations.

Convoy’s drop-and-hook program uses predictive analytics and machine learning for the most efficient way of routing trailers to shippers across the nation. The program also decongests yards while improving driver productivity and throughput of volume at facilities. Convoy’s drop-and-hook program has been praised for its ability to reduce empty miles, which leads to lower emissions and fuel consumption.

We’re honored to be named a CNBC Disruptor 50 for the fifth year in a row. A huge thank you to our customers, investors and team members. We will continue to do everything we can to make trucking more efficient and sustainable for drivers and everyone involved.”

Dan Lewis, CEO and co-founder of Convoy

Since its founding in 2015, Convoy has raised more than $670 million in funding from investors such as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, and venture capital firms like Baillie Gifford, T. Rowe Price, Fidelity, Generation Investment Management, Capital G, Greylock Partners and Y Combinator. The company’s platform uses data analytics and machine learning to optimize routes and reduce waste, helping to lower the carbon footprint of the trucking industry. Convoy has also implemented safety measures, such as requiring carriers to have proper insurance.

Learn more about Convoy and its drop-and-hook program.

The post Convoy Named to CNBC’s Disruptor 50 List for Fifth Consecutive Year appeared first on Convoy.

The SSC was established in late 2022 to address scheduling system and interface fragmentation in the freight industry. The consortium’s objective is to define an API standard for sharing scheduling information, implementing that standard to enable integrations in existing systems, and advocating for the standard across the industry. Ultimately, the standard will bring more cohesion and resiliency to the movement of goods, making it easier to book and manage appointments, optimize processes for drivers, shippers and receivers, and drive operational efficiencies for the industry at large.

New SSC collaborators include prominent industry transportation management system (TMS) and third-party logistics providers:

• • Arrive Logistics, a leading multimodal transportation and technology company delivering unparalleled service and custom strategic solutions.
  • Blue Yonder, the world leader in digital supply chain transformations and omni-channel commerce fulfillment. 
  • Coyote Logistics, a global third-party logistics leader that offers a diverse, centralized transportation marketplace to match more than 10,000 shipments every day.
  • E2open, the connected supply chain software platform that enables the world’s largest companies to transform the way they make, move, and sell goods and services.
  • Echo Global Logistics, a leading Fortune 1000 provider of technology-enabled transportation and supply chain management services. 
  • One Network Enterprises, the leader in supply chain control towers, real time appointment scheduling, and provider of the Digital Supply Chain Network. 
  • Oracle, a leader in transportation management systems, Oracle Transportation Management (OTM) enables customers to run logistics operations more efficiently, reduce freight costs and optimize service levels.

With the addition of these organizations, the SSC shows significant momentum in securing broader industry participation to develop standardized scheduling processes and more efficient supply chain systems. The SSC has been obtaining feedback from participants to review user stories and in-depth technical details to improve the design of the API standards. The current primary focus of the consortium is TMS appointment scheduling. In a future phase, projected initiatives include supporting additional scheduling software vendors.

The SSC’s initial documentation and System Interaction Model are underway and will be shared publicly in Q2 2023, and the technical standard and API design will be completed and implemented in at least one TMS by the end of 2023. 

The SSC aims to sign on additional brokers or third-party logistics service providers, transportation management system and warehouse management system vendors, and others in the coming months. For more information or to learn how to get involved and contribute to the SSC, please visit www.FreightAPIs.org.

About the Scheduling Standards Consortium (SSC)
Initiated in 2022 by early members Convoy, J.B. Hunt and Uber Freight, the Scheduling Standards Consortium (SSC) will create freight appointment scheduling standards that provide consistent visibility into the supply chain. Together with shippers, carriers and transportation platforms and intermediaries, the SSC aims to simplify the integration of freight scheduling systems across the fragmented ecosystem and generate efficiency across the freight industry. To learn more, visit www.FreightAPIs.org.

The post The Scheduling Standards Consortium Adds Collaborators and Reveals 2023 Milestones appeared first on Convoy.

Tackling the trucking industry’s carbon emissions

The transportation sector in the United States is responsible for emitting the largest amount of human-generated greenhouse gas, accounting for 27% of our nation’s total carbon footprint. To mitigate the effects of climate change, it’s crucial for companies within the transportation industry to track, report on, and reduce their carbon emissions. 

As the business landscape and consumer expectations continue to evolve, and as climate-related regulations increase, these companies face greater pressure to be accountable for their carbon emissions. For example, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is expected to introduce more rigorous disclosure requirements related to climate change in 2024. As a result, shippers need to find solutions that enable accurate and reliable emissions reporting from their freight providers.

One of the biggest challenges in measuring and reporting emissions data in logistics is the need for a universal methodology to track the climate impacts across modes of transport. The Global Logistics Emissions Council (GLEC) Framework, developed by the Smart Freight Center, addresses this problem with a consistent calculation method for companies to determine the carbon footprint of their freight transportation in global supply chains. As one of four GLEC-accredited logistics companies worldwide, Convoy now offers a solution that shippers can trust with accurate and transparent carbon emissions data.

With the Emission Insights Dashboard, shippers can quickly measure and report on their Scope 3 carbon footprint for shipments run through Convoy’s network, leveraging the data to make informed decisions to reduce emissions.

Granular visibility into carbon emissions on Convoy loads

The dashboard, which can be accessed through Convoy’s online shipper platform, provides granular, on-demand visibility into emissions reports, including total carbon emissions and intensity, available by the load. With the ability to filter by program type, date, and loading type, shippers can quickly understand where to focus their efforts on reducing emissions.

The dashboard also offers downloadable data sets so companies can easily share their Scope 3 carbon emissions data with stakeholders. This data is collected through Convoy’s app that carriers use 97% of the time at every step of the job.

From estimates and disclosure to action

To prepare for the more stringent climate disclosure requirements proposed by the SEC, shippers need to transition from manual data gathering and estimations of their Scope 3 carbon footprint to tools that efficiently and accurately provide this data.

The Emission Insights Dashboard provides this through GLEC-accredited reports that help shippers understand the impact of their operations and take action to reduce their carbon footprint. Starting today, all Convoy customers can access the dashboard by signing into their online shipper platform account.

If you’re interested in learning how the Emission Insights Dashboard can help your company reduce emissions and help mitigate the effects of climate change, drop us a line or contact your account manager.

The post Convoy introduces new Emission Insights Dashboard appeared first on Convoy.

Traditional dedicated contracts are largely inflexible, with asset carriers allocating a set number of trucks and drivers to a given agreement. The moment any additional trucks are needed, a traditional asset carrier would have to acquire more trucks, hire extra drivers, or relocate existing assets, which could take several weeks or even months.

Dedicated On Demand addresses these challenges through our automated routing technology and network of 400,000+ trucks. When volume surges, we quickly add trucks to the fleet of dedicated carriers and incorporate the additional freight via our algorithm-driven routing technology. And for drop freight, we automatically relocate Convoy trailers to the pickup location within hours. This helps shippers avoid the hassle and cost unpredictability of the spot market.

We know shippers value driver consistency to improve operational efficiencies, and with Dedicated On Demand they see the same carrier at their facilities 90% of the time. Shippers can also take advantage of Convoy Hi-Fi Visibility, which provides detailed, real-time updates on their freight, plus access to on-demand facility insights and benchmarking tools to further streamline their operations. 

Pairing the speed and flexibility that only Convoy can deliver with the service and cost stability of traditional dedicated freight opens up new opportunities for shippers. Dedicated On Demand can be used to cover long-term, consistent freight as well as short-term projects, such as transferring goods between facilities. And with more than 400,000 power units in the Convoy network, we offer the nation’s largest fleet of on-demand tractor capacity for hauling private fleet trailers.

Your ability to be flexible, adaptable, and on time tremendously helped us complete our mission of transitioning to the Atlanta building. Thank you again for being a great partner.”

A Fortune 500 multinational food shipper

If you’re interested in learning how Dedicated On Demand can help your transportation team expand your freight coverage, drop us a line or contact your account manager.

The post Introducing Convoy Dedicated On Demand, the most flexible way to dedicate freight appeared first on Convoy.

Convoy’s CEO & Co-founder Dan Lewis recently joined Charles Trevail on the Outside In podcast to share how Convoy is addressing those industry challenges head-on, while also reducing waste, enhancing the quality of life for truck drivers, and lowering costs for shippers.

Listen to the podcast episode to learn:

• The challenges and opportunities as the industry goes digital and the lines between brokers and asset carriers blur
• How, with persistent effort and research, Dan was able to find the key value proposition for the early adoption of Convoy’s mobile app among truck drivers
• Why cutting “empty miles” is the most effective route to sustainability in the freight industry
• The potential of trucking’s semi-autonomous future, where humans and robots will join forces in “team driving” 
• Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs on surrounding yourself with supportive, long-term-minded people

The post Convoy’s CEO Dan Lewis on the digital transformation that’s happening in trucking appeared first on Convoy.

Today we’re excited to introduce instant bid responses, a new feature in the Convoy app that helps carriers save time planning their schedules, maximize their earning potential, and get peace of mind in knowing that they have a load booked. This new capability is rolling out throughout January to the 97% of carriers and drivers in our digital freight network who use our app to find, bid on, and book loads.

Traditional freight brokering has typically been a time-intensive process. It requires carriers to first build relationships with brokers to gain access to shipments. And for every shipment, there’s back-and-forth negotiation over the phone, which can take hours or sometimes days. Apps like Convoy have eliminated much of this hassle by helping carriers find and book loads they otherwise wouldn’t have access to, while eliminating many of the pitfalls associated with phone negotiations, including haggling, language barriers, and gender and cultural biases. However, many apps still require carriers to wait several hours to learn if they won or lost a load, which leads to uncertainty and delays in finalizing their schedules.

Instant bid responses address these challenges by providing carriers with immediate feedback and reduce the response time on bids submitted from hours to seconds. Through this upgrade, approximately 98% of bids on Convoy-sourced loads will be immediately accepted, countered, or rejected, providing carriers real-time flexibility to quickly book a load or adjust their rates and submit new bids. 

The addition of in-app counteroffers provide real-time, actionable feedback on bids, reducing the risk of a carrier losing a load. To date, engagement with counteroffers has been extremely positive, with many bids receiving counteroffers that are subsequently accepted.

Instant bid responses use Convoy’s dynamic pricing models to quickly evaluate carrier bids and changing market conditions to determine which bids to accept, reject, or counter.

“Instant bid responses are an exciting evolution to the Convoy app experience for carriers,” said Grant Goodale, Carrier Experience Officer of Convoy. “Providing real-time responses to bids was one of the most requested upgrades from the Convoy carrier network, and we’re pleased to now be able to provide a better way for carriers to quickly and more effectively secure loads. At Convoy, it’s our mission to help carriers earn more with less hassle, and instant bid response is an important step forward in fulfilling that promise.”

Instant bid responses are rolling out now to all carriers in the Convoy digital freight network. 

The post Introducing the next generation of bidding technology: instant bid responses appeared first on Convoy.

Together, they discuss the topic of predicting freight shipments with artificial intelligence. Dorothy explores a logistics use case for AI capabilities in predictive inventory and the impact it is having on manufacturing writ large. Still, there are many challenges, among them that truckers and freight carriers don’t have the equipment (mobile apps, GPS) that other last mile and delivery workers have. They also examine where AI can be applied to help schedule deliveries to avoid unplanned downtime.

Give the podcast episode a listen.

The post Convoy’s CTO Dorothy LI on predicting freight shipments with AI appeared first on Convoy.

December 2022 freight market summary

• Elevated consumer spending persisted as services spending continued on an upward climb. Combined with retailer inventories finally beginning to decline, demand appears headed toward more typical seasonal patterns.
• Interest rate increases are slowing automobile production and development of single-family homes. While multi-family home starts trended upward, overall materials demand associated with housing and vehicles should continue softening through Q1.
• Diesel prices dropped to lowest levels since early 2021. This eases some of the financial pressures on owner-operators and means excess capacity likely remains prevalent through the beginning of Q2.

What this means for you as 2023 begins

• The Q1 RFP cycle creates an opportunity for best-in-class shippers to review all partners for the value they add and clean their books of non-strategic partners and 3PLs accumulated during the COVID capacity grab. Reducing the number of carriers boosts efficiency (fewer carrier scorecards, updates, reviews, etc.) and helps limit potential liability associated with riskier carriers that worked their way into routing guides.
• Smart shippers are focused on strategic partners who are vested in jointly solving problems and guarding against the illusion of savings through paper rates offered up at this trough of the market. In particular, finding partners who can boost digital capabilities helps hedge against potential productivity declines if headcount reductions become necessary.
• A market tightening is likely coming at some point in Q2. That tightening may come quicker if consumer demand remains elevated and diesel costs rise due to unexpected external events (forcing capacity out of the market). A tightening may come later in the summer if demand falls and if diesel prices go lower.

Freight demand overview

Freight supply overview

More on Freight Market Trends

 Interested in additional freight market insights and trends? To get fully up to speed on macroeconomic trends and their impact on freight, hear what’s top of mind for Fortune 500 shippers, and learn the best planning tips for the peak season, view our 25-minute on-demand webinar.
Watch 2022 Freight Market Update.

View our economic commentary disclaimer here.

The post Freight Market Update: 2023 begins as a soft but more “normal” market appeared first on Convoy.

The 2022 SEAL Business Sustainability Award winners have been announced and, for the second year in a row, Convoy has received the Sustainable Service Award, recognizing innovative services that set a new standard for sustainability. 

SEAL (Sustainability, Environmental Achievement & Leadership) Awards is an environmental advocacy organization that honors leadership through business sustainability awards & environmental journalism awards, while funding research and pursuing environmental impact campaigns.

The organization’s Business Sustainability Award honors companies committed to driving true progress towards a lasting, healthy planet. Convoy was recognized for helping shippers and carriers reduce empty miles and unnecessary carbon emissions from polluting the planet.

“Companies have a unique opportunity and responsibility to drive environmental progress where politics cannot. Our corporate sustainability awards celebrate organizations that embrace the responsibility to effect positive change,” commented Matt Harney, SEAL Awards’ Founder. “Most business sustainability initiatives are unglamorous and invisible to the general public despite having significant positive impacts – we hope our awards bring some much-needed recognition to both the activities and the leaders behind them.”

According to Dan Lewis, Convoy’s CEO and co-founder, reducing the number of empty miles driven with each job simultaneously reduces carbon emissions, the cost of shipping, and the driver’s time on the road and away from their family. Waste reduction for people and the planet is critical to sustainability and is at the core of everything we do at Convoy.

Additional 2022 SEAL Sustainability Award honorees included global brands and high-growth startups, including Disneyland, General Electric, GM, Microsoft, Oracle, Procter & Gamble, Samsung, AiDash, Flock Freight, Optoro and PATH.

Learn more about Convoy’s sustainability efforts and mission.

The post Convoy Wins 2022 SEAL Business Sustainability Award appeared first on Convoy.