In this economic mess, forwarding services are the most sensitive part of the economy. For you it is more appropriate to take a look at truck stops or rest areas; like logs there are trucks, and now a lot, the economy is slow.
Expediting services mean that someone has to move cargo from “A” to “B” as quickly as possible at a minimum price. How is it working? A broker has the cargo in his portfolio and is negotiating the prices with the driver, this means that 20% of the price is for this service. Next in line is “Driving Authority” (another 15% of the price after broker fees), this will process money and security procedures including insurance for freight. And keep an eye on the load at all times, so the customer knows where their load is. This is the job function for FedEx Custom Critical and Panther Expediting Services. My job function as a Leased Vehicle Operator is to collect data and process paperwork and of course find the shipper, pick up the freight and deliver it to the consignee at commercial speed (47 mph on Panther and 45 mph on FedEx). Personal I am a team player so my truck’s commercial speed is 1000 miles/day and I am always available to the driving authority.
If your car didn’t start in the morning, call a taxi and it will arrive on time. Troy imagine the communication tools (thanks Bell and Marconi) working for you and get a dim picture of the work of expediting.
First contact with FedEx, a few years ago, I shipped and ordered RFID (friend identification using radar technology) tags in the United States. My location at that time Europe, Romania, Cugir (this is in the middle of nowhere, AK47 was produced there and the communist country keeps it a secret) street so hidden that for visitors I give as a point of orientation my cherry tree, the most large and old in the area. I was able to keep an eye on my tags until I got to that country. At the time of delivery I was looking outside, and a driver came to ask me… if my address is there! I later understood that FedEx has direction optimization tools, so the driver avoids turning left.
Panther is using Internet Map. And they have started a GPS app on the devices.
Now what about the tools? Communication tools are the most expensive part of the business. You recognize easy professional drives, you always have a working “hands-free” device. The interior truck is a satellite communication tool. Panther has a “paperless” working behavior, this means that the driver has to scan documents, and log books are automatically generated by a satellite device (the driver has a black box that records all his position changes) every few minutes, this is annoying for all drivers. Technological level – windows so you can communicate as if you were using any laptop. FedEx is using the same industry-wide tolls, which means open source software and Java applets that interface and integrate the phone into the computerized system. Log books are kept legally, on paper, so you have 15 minutes between status changes. Ok, you have to send the documentation by mail. I have received a lot of inconsistent data at Panther, at FedEx I don’t have any access to the computerized system, this means that the general rules of competition are the same for all carriers. For communications, it has a “messenger-like” behavior.