Truck and Track Summer 2021

www.truckandtrack.com Summer 2021 Truck and Track 23 BREXIT - DESCARTES to more readily meet the ecommerce delivery challenge which is compounded by the driver shortage. Delivery to store While home delivery companies and ecommerce providers are struggling to cope with demand, the driver shortage is also threatening supermarket supplies, with many household names in the news concerned about meeting deliveries to UK stores because of the lack of drivers. Not only are supplies low in stores causing rows of empty shelves but home deliveries are having to be limited in order to cope with demand. Being able to effectively manage deliveries to supermarket stores can help to alleviate some of the pressure. When it comes to sharing delivery capabilities, an online, remote, centralised system is essential, so that everybody – from drivers to store workers – can access it in order to provide maximum visibility and capitalise on technology to get more out of the existing resources in place. Dock appointment scheduling can become a critical component of efficient supermarket operations. Being able to manage demand in line with resources and capacity, prioritise deliveries and create a foundation for better carrier/supplier collaboration – addressing this significant pinch point during such a critical time will help to streamline the delivery process. Improving driver productivity The driver shortage problem is critical – from ecommerce deliveries to supermarket operations – companies need to act now in order to prevent further disruption. The solution lies in using technology so that retailers, distributors and delivery companies can combat the fallout from the crises. Training and attracting new drivers is not a quick or simple fix but one solution that can make a difference now is to utilise advanced routing and scheduling software to unlock greater efficiency gains to minimise the need to recruit new drivers. Companies can transformperformance andmaximise the utilisation and efficiency of their existing drivers and vehicles. Fleet operators should therefore look to make delivery routes more efficient and deliveries less stressful for the driver to increase capacity and improve driver productivity and retention. Advanced route optimisation software will take excess miles out of the delivery process by evaluating all the delivery options available to find the right combination of routes and stops tomaximise delivery capacity. Software that uses data based on the time of day and directional flow of traffic, rather than an average for the road, can accurately predict driving times and expected arrivals. Descartes’ advanced routing software can show drivers exactly where they need to go and in what order so they arrive at their destination safely, increasing efficiency and reducing driver stress. Additionally, in-day route optimisation helps organisations manage real-time challenges, proactively adapting to change as it happens, for example re-routing to avoid accidents and delays. In turn, this will help businesses to avoid inevitable delays that could impact business operations. Using the latest optimisation technology and automating route planning processes will increase driver productivity further by reducing miles per stop. For large organisations, this could be the equivalent of hiring dozens of additional drivers. Existing Descartes customers have increased their capacity by 35%by usingDescartes’ advanced route optimisation and delivery scheduling software.