www.truckandtrack.com Winter 2023 Truck and Track 31 DESCARTES™ organising, and correlating the tremendous amount of data that route planning and GPS-based execution solutions generate. The advent of powerful, but intuitive and low-cost analytics platforms such as Microsoft PowerBI™ that has standardised integration to route planning and execution solutions streamlines the data management process and gives deep insights into plan versus actual performance. ■ How machine learning helps capture plan versus actual performance. Tracking fleet plan versus actual delivery performance is an excellent application for machine learning because of all the data that is created in the route planning through execution process. Machine learning can more accurately identify actual stop location, drive, service and stop times, and other patterns such as changes in stop sequence. These recommendations can be applied to the optimised planning solution to create more accurate and productive route plans. Machine learning can also identify which planners and drivers are outliers to capture best practices or coach poorer performers. ■ Robotic process automation can eliminate some of the causes of plan versus actual deviation. Unfortunately, planner performance can vary widely resulting in significant deviations to the initial optimised plan and poorer plan performance. By capturing and automating the planning practices of the best planners using robotic process automation, fleet operators can eliminate many of the post-optimisation tweaking that occurs during the planning review phase. Consequently, there will be fewer changes, more predictable planning outcomes across the organisation, shorter planning reviews, and greater planner productivity. Conclusion Plan versus actual delivery performance analysis is an important process for pinpointing and improving the practices and actions that planners and drivers take that negatively impact home delivery performance for retailers. Using this three-point approach described allows managers within retail and ecommerce organisations to capture the changes that impact home delivery performance. When combined with technological advances such as data analytics, machine learning, and robotic process automation, fleet operations can implement powerful plan versus actual performance processes that drive delivery fleet performance and improvements to the bottom line. https://routinguk.descartes.com Descartes Systems Group the global leader in uniting logisticsintensive businesses in commerce, announced that U.K.- based Spacepro is using the Descartes Customer Engagement Platform™ to enhance the customer journey within its aftercare department, which services its sliding door and interior solution products for construction, newbuild and online consumers nationwide. “As we work towards achieving best-in-class service, gaining valuable insights into the final leg of the customer journey is critical,” said Neil Martin, Sales Director at Spacepro. “By using the Descartes solution to create opportunities for real-time customer engagement in our field service operations, we’ve significantly reduced access issues and gleaned insightful responses regarding the customer experience. Expanding this smart add-on beyond the initial deployment to our national fleet will allow us to extend the proven benefits to our entire customer base.” The cloud-based Descartes Customer Engagement Platform helps companies elevate the quality of the customer experience while driving operational efficiencies and lowering costs in last-mile delivery and field service. Companies can automate customer communication before, during and after deliveries or service appointments with a branded web-based customer portal that supports real-time ETA tracking, provides chat options, and captures customer feedback. By leveraging technology to easily engage with customers throughout the delivery or appointment lifecycle, companies can decrease inbound call volumes for order status and ETAs, reduce noaccess rates and failed appointments, receive actionable and timely customer feedback, streamline click and collect options for order collection and increase customer retention and customer satisfaction. “We’re pleased to help Spacepro better empower its customers to receive services on their terms,” said Gary Taylor, Sales Director at Descartes. “Customer expectations have been reshaped by ecommerce, food delivery and ride-hailing apps, making customer engagement a critical strategy for B2C and B2B businesses alike. Descartes’ real-time customer engagement technology helps companies capitalize on the opportunity to differentiate themselves in final mile delivery performance where delivery excellence is a must-have.” About Spacepro Spacepro is a brand of Home Decor GB Ltd, one of the leading suppliers of sliding doors and interior solutions in Europe, supplying products into DIY, construction, newbuild and online channels. Proudly manufacturing in Sheffield for over 45 years, we are the UK market leader in Sliding Wardrobes manufacturing over ¼ million doors each year. We take great pride in our products and service, retaining complete control of the development process from identifying consumer needs and initial concept drawings, to design and prototyping. For more information, visit https://spacepro.co.uk About Descartes Descartes is the global leader in providing on-demand, softwareas-a-service solutions focused on improving the productivity, security and sustainability of logistics-intensive businesses. Customers use our modular, software-as-a-service solutions to route, track and help improve the safety, performance and compliance of delivery resources; plan, allocate and execute shipments; rate, audit and pay transportation invoices; access global trade data; file customs and security documents for imports and exports; and complete numerous other logistics processes by participating in the world’s largest, collaborative multimodal logistics community. Our headquarters are in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada and we have offices and partners around the world. Learn more at www.descartes.com Gary Taylor Spacepro Improves Access Rates and Customer Interaction for Service Appointments using Descartes Customer Engagement Solution
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