Whether you’ve been in the industry for years or are just beginning your journey in logistics and transportation, you may have noticed a pattern of change. What is this evolution that seems to happen in the blink of an eye?

Technology.

From the beginning of logistics, before there was even a word for it, technology has been evolving. As goods were transported, inventors were continuously thinking of bigger and better ways to transport their products from point A to point B.

Today, supply chains are impacted much more rapidly than they were all those years ago. That’s why it’s imperative to stay current on the ever-changing technology market.

The problem is, as technology evolves faster than ever, it can be challenging to keep up with all of the advancements. So let’s dive into some of the current changes you should know about and how they impact your business.

Tracking

Packages are trackable from the moment of order to the moment of delivery. Private consumers demand access to knowledge every step of the way, and the trend is becoming more popular among corporate consumers.

However, when it comes to sending shipments to corporate consumers, having constant communication with the client is a boon for those in the logistics industry, and here’s how.

As communications between drivers, warehouses, head offices, vehicles, and more have become available, areas that used to produce headaches and bottlenecks have been removed. Due to data being relayed in real-time, there are no questions of ‘Where is my shipment’ or ‘Why hasn’t my truck arrived?’

Additionally, because of customizable reporting, customers can now decide what information they want and when they want it, helping to further reduce the frequency of customer confusion and questions.

By removing these questions, the logistics community has a better relationship with their customers, and customer satisfaction is rising. And a happy customer keeps returning.

Routing

It’s not just communications in tracking that is changing the face of logistics and transportation. With the vast majority of freighters using GPS tracking devices, tracking your goods has gotten exponentially easier. Not only are logistics companies and customers able to keep a close watch on where their goods are at any given moment, but truck drivers and others who are transporting the goods benefit.

With modern GPS technology available to drivers, long gone are the days of getting lost en route to a destination. Drivers can now rest assured that even a wrong turn can easily be corrected without calling dispatch and searching for answers or pulling into a rest area to figure out where they went wrong.

The advancement in GPS technology for drivers means travel time has been cut, allowing goods to arrive on time or even before they are expected. Even in the event of traffic incidents or road construction, drivers now have the ability to avoid these situations and save themselves time. This means better fuel economy by driving less, idling less, stopping less, and saving the company time and money.

The increased demand in customer requests for routing information and increased delivery efficiency are just a couple of the reasons why Atech uses the most modern transportation management system on the market that allows us to give our customers insightful and useful information they didn’t even know they needed.

With our analytics system, our customers receive customized reports that analyze their entire supply chain system, allowing them to see where bottlenecks are and how we can remove those bottlenecks together.

Driver Behavior

In addition to GPS technology aiding drivers, companies can now monitor driver behavior more closely, ultimately helping drivers stay safe and driving instructors better train the new generation.

In the past, it was difficult to know how drivers were doing on the road. The hours driven, speed limits broken, and other factors were all unpredictable. But now, thanks to the latest technology, driver behavior can be monitored through tracking systems, satellite technologies, and more.

With the addition of these monitoring technologies, such as the black box, logistics companies can keep better tabs on situations that make a driver unsafe, such as driving too many hours a day. The technology helps transportation companies better understand what happens in a truck leading up to an accident. Furthermore, there is a growing interest in companies implementing technologies to remotely shut trucks down.

By tracking key data and driver behaviors, companies can help train drivers more effectively and ensure that drivers and fellow travelers remain safe during long journeys. Collecting important data, such as how frequently drivers use cruise control, lane departure, hard break count, vehicle speed, and more is helping companies avoid dangerous driving patterns to keep all commuters safe.

Atech Logistics is an industry leader in Driver Behavior and Routing. Electronic logging is not a requirement for logistics companies. But at Atech, we know that our drivers will be safer by using electronic onboard recorders (EOBRs), and our routes will be more efficient, saving our customers time and money as their goods get to them more quickly.

Our entire fleet isn’t just outfitted with the latest EOBR technology; we also use onboard cameras to manage driver behavior. These cameras serve as a learning tool for all our drivers and our management teams. By recording driving behaviors, we can review and analyze how safe our drivers are during their runs, which can then be used for teaching moments, keeping everyone on the road safer.

Vehicle Maintenance

Most freight vehicles are equipped with predictive maintenance tools capable of analyzing vehicles remotely. These tools allow companies to identify when any part of their fleet needs maintenance without taking time to check each vehicle individually.

Now, drivers can safely take to the roads more quickly because routine maintenance and issues with their vehicles take less time, which is also a win for the consumers waiting on their goods’ arrival.

But it’s not just money and time that’s saved when vehicle maintenance is kept. By using predictive analytics in the logistics and transportation industry, companies can become all-around more efficient with resources. From the company’s mechanic team to information on the back-end, by keeping vehicles maintained with the latest technologies, companies ultimately earn more business and create a reputation of excellent service throughout the whole transportation process.

At Atech, our number one priority is everyone’s safety, which is one reason why we replace our entire fleet every five years. By changing out our rigs, we ensure that the latest technologies are always part of our team and that our environmental footprint remains small.

With technology changing so rapidly, replacing our fleet frequently means our team has state-of-the-art tools at their disposal, including lane departure systems, advanced aerodynamics, crash avoidance technology, and more.

Social Media

As social media has risen to the forefront of consumers’ minds, the logistics and transportation industry has benefitted. For example, how often do you see an Amazon ad? How many social media groups do you belong to, trying to keep up with industry standards, news, and gossip?

With social media, the logistics community can quickly and efficiently communicate, not just with each other but with the general population. This is a game-changer for the industry. Suddenly, we can easily do market research, see where gaps in our services are, make announcements to the community, and more.

If you’re looking for a good example of logistics on social media, follow the Atech Logistics LinkedIn page for the latest news and updates.

How Do These Technologies Impact You?

With all of these technological advancements, it’s an exciting time to be in logistics. But how do these technologies impact you?

As logistics professionals, these technologies are designed specifically to make your job easier—to ensure that your job getting your goods across the country or out of the country runs as smoothly as possible, making sure that you hit your deadlines, reduce bottlenecks, keep your employees safe, and save time and money.

That’s also where Atech Logistics comes in. As the leader in cutting-edge logistics services, we strive to ensure our customers receive the best service available on the market. To provide this, we close the gap on missed opportunities by using the latest logistics technology to analyze data and track trends.

Atech Logistics strives to improve the logistics and transportation industry from both the driver’s perspective and in the back office. When all industry systems work together with the latest logistics technology, our customers receive the most advanced information on the market and the best service available.