There have been a remarkable number of noteworthy new stories related to shipping technology and commercial partnerships in recent weeks. Some shipping and logistics sector commentators have already pointed out that such moves speak of a greater level of consolidation in the industry than has been seen before. Of course, because shipping companies are announcing partnerships with technology firms and vice versa, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the current way of doing things will become the industry norm. However, all UK-based shipping companies, freight forwarders, courier firms and hauliers should at least be paying attention to the latest technological developments and the way some of the bigger industry players are now experimenting with them.
What is the latest news with respect to shipping and delivery technology today? Read on to find out.
BigCommerce Announces Global Partnership with DHL to Support US Growth Plans
The technology firm BigCommerce, which has developed one of the most widely used open SaaS e-commerce platforms, has said that it has entered a new commercial relationship with one of the world’s leading providers of international express shipping brands, DHL. BigCommerce had previously been viewed as a tech firm that was associated with fast-growing and up-and-coming business-to-consumer and business-to-business firms, so a partnership with a truly established firm like DHL is being viewed as a significant step up by many. The recently announced commercial relationship will be geared toward helping online businesses in the USA initially. The idea is that the owners of such internet-based businesses will be better able to capitalise on opportunities overseas and to expand their portfolio of customers and products globally.
According to the CEO of DHL Express, Greg Hewitt, the logistics provider – which is actually headquartered in Bonn, Germany – was looking forward to working with BigCommerce because it would allow more of their merchant client base in the US to strengthen their reach across the globe. Significantly, Hewitt reckoned that this would be something that was achievable across a variety of industries. “As the requirements of start-ups enterprises – as well as mid-market firms and larger enterprises – evolve and heighten,” he said, “We will be able to further their support.” Hewitt explained that BigCommerce merchants should now expect fast, reliable and expedited shipments through the partnership that would ‘optimise their cross-border potential’.
BigCommerce, as a NASDAQ-listed software services provider, currently has many merchant customers in the United States that rely on its service to run their e-commerce back-room operations. With the new announcement, merchants who join the scheme will be able to access discounted rates from DHL Express. However, the programme is not entirely one of offering lower pricing for global and domestic shipping. Crucially, any merchant that subscribes to the scheme will also gain access to DHL’s logistics and international shipping professionals to help them with both imported and exported goods.
Under the partnership programme, BigCommerce’s clients will also be able to use DHL’s On Demand Delivery tool. According to DHL, this provides their commercial clients with proactive notifications of the progress of shipments as well as giving the option of flexible delivery arrangements across the world. As Russell Klein, chief commercial officer at BigCommerce put it, the partnership with DHL illustrates ‘our commitment’ to providing online retailers in the US access to technologies and service providers of the highest calibre in the logistics sector today. “DHL shares BigCommerce’s ambition to help retailers grow faster and sell more to maximise their commercial success,” he said.
London-Based Zencargo Announces Partnership With Tech Firm Tive for Greater Shipment Visibility
A leading digital freight forwarding firm that operates from the City of London has recently said it is teaming up with shipment tracking solution provider, Tive. The idea is that customers who make use of Zencargo’s freight forwarding expertise will soon be able to track their shipments as they move around the world in real time. The idea is that it will help organisations that rely on international supply chains to make better decisions about their processes as they are able to gain up-to-the-minute information about their deliveries. For its part, Tive describes itself as a ‘visibility solution provider’ which is able to provide critical shipment locational data thanks to sensors that it claims are the best in their class.
Not only does Tive’s solution mean that companies that rely on shipping in parts and components will have a much better idea of when they will arrive but the locational data provided also helps to cut down on unwanted problems like missing shipments and theft to a certain extent. Where temperature-controlled shipments are being made – for food consignments and certain pharmaceutical goods, for example – Tive’s sensors will also be able to provide accurate information directly to Zencargo’s clients. According to Tive, this can be invaluable to certain business models that rely on goods arriving in mint condition for their own quality assurance purposes.
According to a statement made to the press announcing the partnership, the supply chain industry has faced much disruption over the past two years. Therefore, Zencargo wanted to find a way that would mean its clients could better understand the progress of shipments as they happened rather than for them simply to put up with increased costs and longer lead times in the sector. In particular, Zencargo’s executives thought this was crucial for importers of perishable goods, which is why the temperature and condition tracking offered by Tive’s technological solution was so appealing to them.
According to the freight forwarding firm, partnering with Tive will mean that Zencargo can provide its customers with deeper insights into the current location and condition of goods at the very moment such information is needed. Tive already works with some trusted global brands, tracking the real-time shipments of firms like Alpine Fresh, Biocair and OBE Organic, among others. Thanks to its industry-leading and highly accurate trackers, Tive says that it can ensure businesses are able to monitor inventories throughout the entire transportation journeys of goods in transit while meeting quality and regulatory compliance requirements. In the end, Zencargo is betting that this will mean improving the satisfaction of its services among its customers.
Indeed, Tive’s Solo 5G sensor technology matches – to a certain extent – the sort of service offering that Zencargo wants to promote. These sensors have geofencing capabilities and also provide automated notifications to coincide with the arrival and departure times of shipments. Equally, if an unexpected route deviation occurs, Tive’s solution will provide an alert. Given that Zencargo’s business model goes beyond a traditional freight forwarding model by promoting a digital platform through which all stakeholders involved in an intermodal supply chain can liaise with one another, Tive’s technology appears to be a good fit.
Alex Hersham, Zencargo’s Chief Executive Officer said that because of the partnership, his firm would be able to add greater visibility to supply chains that go even further than the current services they offer. “By making sure [our clients]… have all the information they need to to make agile decisions,” he said, “Delays and losses of goods can be prevented.”
Tive’s founder, Krenar Komoni, backed Hersham’s sentiment. He said that the new service would allow Zencargo’s customers to view hyper-accurate condition and location tracking information in real-time. “Looking from within the Zencargo platform to help prevent problems before they rise,” he said that this would help to ensure that goods arrive on time and in full more often.
Enhanced Truckload Capabilities Announced by Banyan Technology
Based in Ohio, Banyan Technology, one of the world’s foremost providers of freight and logistics management software that provides over the road (OTR) shipping solutions, has pre-announced that it will unveil a new truckload service at a logistic trade show in the US later this year. At Connect 2022, which will take place in Cleveland this year, Banyan says it will demonstrate its enhanced truckload system for the first time. Providing real-time access to load boards, this enhanced software solution will allow Banyan’s clients to rate and compare various OTR shipping modes before executing them. Crucially, this will all be possible from a single-screen interface, allowing logistics firms to significantly simplify their shipping operations.
“I am excited to showcase our commitment to our truckload solution,” said Brian Smith, Banyan’s CEO. “[The enhancement will]… make it easier to rate and book truckload shipments via our LIVE platform,” he added. Smith went on to explain that this would function for both direct carrier APIs as well as for the automated management of contracted rates. Deanna Castello, Director of Marketing for Banyan, echoed his CEO’s comments, stating that Connect 2022 constituted the ‘perfect time and place’ to release their newly enhanced service option that will round out all of the tech firm’s OTR modes within a single software platform. Connect 2022 Conference takes place at the start of October and will be attended by over a hundred commercial firms in both the United States and Canada that currently use Banyan’s software systems. According to Banyan Technology, the software firm has access to three times more carriers than any other service provider in North America today.