Page 79 - Inbound Logistics | April 2017 | Digital Issue

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Logistics IT

Providers

& Market Research Survey

t’s not our father’s supply chain anymore, and nobody knows that better than
logistics technology providers. It wasn’t so long ago that the most innovative
I technology solutions were available only to large shippers and providers with
money to burn, but legacy systems that require a huge investment have become a
thing of the past. Thanks to Software-as-a-Service—or cloud-based solutions—the
game has changed considerably in recent years.
Not only can shippers now implement high-quality solutions at affordable prices,
but they can also crowdsource their data and freight to gain economies of scale,
allowing them to negotiate competitive rates, increase visibility, and benchmark
performance—something many couldn’t do easily even one decade ago, and not
at all a decade before that. The shared efficiencies offered by these newer platforms
enable users to glean top value along the entire supply chain with minimal effort.
With so many options flooding the market, it can be difficult for shippers to
decide where to get their technology solutions from. They can go direct to vendors,
or let a third-party logistics (3PL) provider or carrier partner guide them through
the process.

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