Canada Cartage regards Information Technology (IT) as a key differentiator in the dedicated transportation business.  In order to maximize the value that we provide our customers, we believe it imperative to make order entry easy and to create visibility to the service being offered.  Furthermore, we believe that it is our responsibility to optimize the value of our service by investigating how we can service our customers at a lower cost. 

 

 

Customer Benefits:

If technology doesn’t benefit the customer, then it is not worth the investment. At Canada Cartage, we test our technology to determine if it provides increased efficiency, makes it simpler to work with us or creates visibility into the service that we are providing.

 

• Efficiency – making better use of the trucks to help reduce costs.

 

• Simplicity – simplifying the order entry process while respecting that different customers have varying levels of computing systems.

 

• Visibility – for many companies, outsourcing transportation is a difficult decision. By providing visibility and clarity of the service being provided, we quickly dispel any concerns about the selection of Canada Cartage and the decision to outsource.

Differentiated Through Technology
 

At Canada Cartage, the use of technology is evident throughout the 6 phases of the service cycle. 

For new accounts, the process begins with SCOPE, where the service, or exact needs of the customer are defined using an online interactive tool developed by Canada Cartage.  After the scope of service has been defined, Canada Cartage offers the use of advanced routing tools to PLAN and optimize delivery routes to meet operational objectives (note that the PLAN portion can be done in advance of order placement, or immediately after order placement for routes that are dynamic). 
 

In order to start the service, an ORDER is placed and the trucks are TRACKed using GPS and complementary in-cab wireless technologies.  After service completion, Canada Cartage offers the customer access to service metrics designed to MEASURE the service performance and to create visibility to ensure all expectations are met.  Lastly, Canada Cartage INVOICEs the service and the cycle begins again.


IT in the Service Cycle:

 

1. Quote
For new accounts, the process begins with scopeing phase, where the service and exact needs of the customer are defined and quoted on using an online interactive tool developed by Canada Cartage. 

2. PLAN
After the scope of service has been defined, Canada Cartage offers the use of advanced routing tools to PLAN and optimize delivery routes to meet operational objectives (note that the PLAN portion can be done in advance of order placement, or immediately after order placement for routes that are dynamic). 

3. ORDER
In order to start the service, an ORDER is placed.   Canada Cartage encourages the use of electronic order placement.
4. TRACK
In order to offer immediate visibility of service progression, Canada Cartage’s trucks are TRACKed using GPS and complementary in-cab wireless technologies (service agreement dependent). 

5. MEASURE
After service completion, Canada Cartage offers the customer access to service metrics designed to MEASURE the service performance and to create visibility to ensure all expectations are met. 

6. INVOICE
Lastly, Canada Cartage INVOICEs the service and the cycle begins again.

Order

1. Manually Enter your Order


Each Canada Cartage customer has the ability to launch an online interface designed to allow customers to select pre-defined pick-up and delivery points and define the “next-day run” or series of runs.

 

2. Upload an Excel File


This is a facility commonly used by companies with dynamic routes and/or many trucks. For many customers, it is simpler to develop a next-day plan on an internal system and output to excel and then upload the excel file to Canada Cartage’s Transportation Management System (TMS). As a result, Canada Cartage allows the customer to upload an excel file into the TMS. Once uploaded, a data integrity check is performed and the route information is displayed online prior to final submission into the TMS.

3. Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)


The most streamlined solution involves a system-to-system exchange of order information. This exchange can be restricted to order entry or include other features such as invoicing and tracking. In the case of EDI, Canada Cartage’s IT Solution Team meets with the customer’s IT team to ensure a smooth exchange of data is achieved.

track
History of Trips

Canada Cartage provides visibility regarding trip progress via an online interface that shows every trip that was completed for the customer and noting when the trip was started and finished. In some cases, this information includes arrival at each pick-up and delivery location. 		 Location of a Canada Cartage Truck

As an option, Canada Cartage provides online and real-time visibility in terms of the location of the truck(s) serving a particular account. This is achieved via GPS tracking and includes metrics such as current location and bread crumb trail to see where the truck has been. This facility allows Canada Cartage to provide e-mail notification of significant events such as arrival and departure from a delivery destination. 		The ability of Canada Cartage to provide tracking and on-time reporting is restricted by the nature of the service being offered and the customer’s ability to electronically submit order information prior to the start of each trip.
Measure
In order for Canada Cartage customers to measure the value of the service being offered, online dashboards showing key performance indicators (KPIs) are made available. These dashboards are broken into performance KPIs and load KPIs.

Performance KPIs are typically focused on on-time arrival metrics. Other performance-oriented KPIs include safety metrics.		 Load KPIs require the customer to electronically transfer load information with the order. This information could be the number of cases or pallets or pounds being delivered on each Bill of Lading (BOL). The benefit of conveying load-specific information is that cost KPIs become clearly visible. KPIs are a great tool to help identify opportunities for increased efficiency and superior value.
invoice Quote
Canada Cartage’s Customer Portal also provides the ability to show the invoice(s) and supporting information. In this way, Canada Cartage customers are empowered to view invoice information at their convenience. As businesses grow or react to changing market factors, a new or different transportation service may be required. In order to clearly convey what is being sought and to ensure quality of execution, Canada Cartage has developed a proprietary online “scope of service definition facility” that walks the customer through a series of questions designed to help clearly communicate the needs and wants associated with a new service or changes to an existing service.
 
 
 
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