Not every transportation management system platform provides true visibility and usability across every supply chain operation. Without sufficient TMS capabilities, transportation network partners struggle to maintain awareness and execute activities across a freight shipment’s life cycle.
“A qualified supply chain professional can no longer walk into the C-suite and say, ‘I don’t know who and what is in my supply chain,’” Association for Supply Chain Management CEO Abe Eshkenazi says, adding three persistent global supply chain capability gaps include visibility, transparency, and traceability. “Today’s market is a more integrated digital network of partners, suppliers, and other organizations in your supply chain,”
Real-time shipment visibility is just one piece in the overall transportation management puzzle. The ability to act based on information within your system is just as vital.
Let’s examine the 10 TMS capabilities you need from a transportation management platform with global reach.
1. Dynamic Process Improvement Powered by Your TMS
2. Broad Freight Capacity Assistance
Greater freight capacity assistance allows shippers and logistics service providers (LSPs) to understand and better plan for changes in the available capacity.
The platform predicts capacity needs on an ongoing basis. Additionally, by connecting to digital load boards, the platform capabilities improve load matching and reduce costs on freight that’s not moving.
3. Freight Market Rate Index
A freight market rate index analyzes freight management contracts and provides access to transportation rates across modes within a single platform.
MercuryGate TMS capabilities include a market rate index that analyzes more than $60 billion worth of freight management contracts. Inside the platform, users can leverage 300% more rate data than they can access in existing freight indices.
4. TMS Optimization of Route, Rate and Processes
With TMS capabilities offering ongoing optimization and review of routes, rates, and processes, you know that each freight shipment will be on the best possible course.
5. Omnimodal TMS Capabilities
Omnimodal shipping refers to the ability to execute and track transportation across multiple modes, without repeating the entire freight scheduling and management process at each step.
6. TMS Automation of Exception Management
Prioritization of exceptions offers additional advantages within a TMS platform. This can be especially critical when managing time-sensitive transportation in pharmaceutical and food supply chains. Shippers use advanced functions to prioritize reroutes or other changes according to the needs of receiving parties and the shipper.
7. TMS Capabilities to Build Dynamic Rule Sets
Dynamic rule sets in the TMS mirror advantages offered in exception automation, but these rules apply to all freight management activities, not just exceptions.
8. Embedded Parcel in TMS Capabilities Platform
TMS capabilities that capture all transportation modes natively in one environment, including parcel freight management, reduce the burden for shippers scheduling parcel shipments. Furthermore, when appropriate, users can use parcel management to handle inbound and reverse logistics freight as well.
9. Comprehensive Carrier Management
10. Fleet Management
For shippers operating in-house fleets, fleet management tools are essential to keeping in-house costs below the costs of outsourcing. For logistics service providers, fleet management resources are just as invaluable in supporting efforts to manage drivers, equipment, and operations.
Calculate your potential Saving While Using an enterprise TMS
TMS Capabilities to Modernize Your Supply Chain
Read our eBook, TMS 101, to learn more about benefits accessed through a scalable TMS and the proven value of a leading transportation management platform.
