Top Tips For Over-the-Road Shippers to Build Sustainability

Did you know it is estimated that some 20 million trucks each year are mismatched to loads? And when mismatching occurs, trucks run empty on the backhaul. This is important because every time a truck moves it omits harmful carbon emissions into the air and our environment. Shippers dedicated to sustainability efforts are doing their part to ensure their loads are matched to carriers at the right time and place, so trucks run with purpose– with product.  Finding the right truck, at the right time, is not as easy as it sounds, especially if a shipper still relies on traditional freight procurement processes to source capacity. Forward-thinking shippers, focused on sustainability, have completely changed their mindset on how to source capacity, and have embraced new solutions that automate the critical freight procurement process turning it from static to dynamic.  Embracing AI and Freight Procurement Automation Technology With automation, AI/ML algorithms go to work to dynamically match configured shipper load attributes with compliant, asset-based carriers at the right time and place. When loads and trucks are connected at the right time, empty miles and CO2 emissions are drastically reduced making over-the-road transportation more sustainable.  Sleek Technologies, the leader in freight procurement automation and an official SmartWay partner for six years running, designed their freight procurement SaaS platform [called OTS] to help shippers uncover sustainability opportunities by always matching a load with the right carrier. Without a middleman standing in between, it’s a win, win for both the shipper and carrier. Carriers reduce empty miles while shippers find the best truck for their cargo, which means they deliver on time and at a...
How a Rail Strike Impacts Trucking

How a Rail Strike Impacts Trucking

The threat of a rail strike has ramped up in recent weeks, even causing the United States government to start discussing contingency plans. Supply chain woes are nothing new to the trucking industry over the past few years, but this would put a heavy strain on over-the-road supply.  Roughly 60,000 union members that are employed by the railroad are set to go on strike, and that includes conductors and engineers. The railroad system carries nearly 30 percent of the nation’s freight, and a strike by those conductors and engineers would quickly bring the system to a stop.  Trucking Routes Would Become Imbalanced The rail industry doesn’t employ nearly as many people as it did decades ago, but railroads are still a vital part of the shipping industry in this country. Railroads move more than 324,000 containers per week. A railroad strike would have a direct impact on truckload capacity, causing it to be oversold and imbalanced.  Trains are how goods get from ports to the distribution hubs. Trains are built to move massive quantities of things like grains, chemicals, and coal. One railroad car has the capacity of between 3-5 semi-trucks. A rail strike would produce an additional 200,000 tanker truckloads per week – just to move chemical products.  Find Ways to Expand Trucking Capacity Now  If trucks need to shore up the loss of rail shipping options, it would put even more strain on the ports – many of which are already bursting at the seams. The threat of a rail strike is real, and businesses that rely on shipping should be doing everything in their power to prepare...