Developments in transport software

Transport software has been available in the market for many years, but it is still not used sufficiently by manufacturers and distributors. As it is constantly developed to meet the growing needs of its users, transport software is adapting to every organization and process of increasingly complex supply chains.

While carriers recognized the benefits of transport software, and its most common representative, the TMS (Transport Management System), a long time ago, shippers have taken longer to understand the need to use software tools capable of managing their transport operations.

Despite this recent rise in awareness, the take-up rate of transport software has remained low in recent years. A fact confirmed by two surveys conducted by DDS Logistics, the French leader in the TMS market, and the E.S.T.

The first survey revealed that, in 2006, French shippers were lagging behind in the adoption of TMS solutions to manage their transport operations. 10 years later, the take-up rate of TMS software had increased from 18% to 25%, revealing both a rise in awareness but, more importantly, significant potential for development. 40% of the companies questioned in the second survey in 2016 had plans to invest in transport software in the short term.

As digitization spreads through companies and their processes, this figure is on the rise. Manufacturers and distributors are looking for transport software adapted to their organization, their budget and their operational needs, in order to remain competitive. Specialized software publishers have developed new, more modular and more flexible tools, that are perfectly designed to meet various needs, in an effort to help businesses acquire and deploy transport software.

The TMS: increasingly powerful and modular transport software

National, international or last-mile transport has become a major issue for businesses. And the TMS is becoming more and more decisive for businesses in their quest for operational performance. The transport software suite offers powerful functionality, completely covering the process to organize and monitor operations, to help its users address the challenges raised by globalized trade, regulatory demands, omnichannel exchanges and sustainable development.

DDS Logistics designed DDS Shipper specifically for shippers. Built along the lines of a control tower, this transport management software is a comprehensive operations control system, comprising different modules: scheduling and chartering, tracking and alerts, finance and dashboards that support the strategic and operational decision-making processes.

The birth of ready-to-use transport software

DDS Logistics designed Shipper Light, a plug-and-play version of the DDS Shipper TMS solution, to make TMS more accessible to the greatest number of businesses. After discovering that only 25% of companies are equipped with a TMS today, DDS decided to provide a solution for players in the sector that overcomes the main obstacles: the lack of time and money, and long and complex decision-making processes. The Shipper Light transport software is a packaged product that takes the form of a collaborative portal, designed to meet the need for transport pricing and invoicing. Inclusion of carrier price schedules in an Excel template, simplified pricing management, pre-invoice issuance, automatic processing and verification of sums, sending of credit notes, etc., Shipper Light offers all the functions of a fully fledged TMS.

Easy to set up, it allows shippers to automatically check all their carrier invoices, and to computerize a process experienced by most companies as a time-consuming headache. Available in SaaS mode and easily implemented, Shipper Light offers its user customers a fast return on investment, allowing them to cut transport costs by up to 3%.

The arrival of collaborative transport platforms

Finally, collaborative platforms have arrived in the transport market in recent years. Interest in these innovative transport supply chain digitization solutions is growing amongst businesses, and especially small and medium-sized companies looking for simple and efficient tools.

While many new players have entered the market with new tools, as the long-standing leader in transport software suites, DDS Logistics developed the Join2ship project back in 2016.

Join2ship is a cloud-based collaborative platform that brings together shippers, service providers and customers, so that they can build durable, quality relations, while also offering the quality of service of e-commerce to the B2B sector.

In concrete terms, this transport management software enables its users to organize every aspect of their dedicated operations :

• the management of delivery appointments ;
• the integration of orders and the choice of carrier ;
• the digitization of the chartering process ;
• real-time tracking of shipments ;
• the dematerialization of proof of delivery ;
• the raising of alerts in the event of an incident, delays or early delivery.

A simple, collaborative solution that works like a real social network between suppliers, shippers and carriers.

Transport software can be adapted to all types of requirements and objectives, irrespective of the dedicated process, budget or organization. Transport software publishers are in close touch with users’ needs, as they work to digitize operations by continually developing their transport software to improve the efficiency of the supply chain and contribute to the growth of businesses.