What are Transport Management Systems?
Transport Management Systems (TMS) are software that links a company’s Order Management System (OMS) with its Distribution Center (DC).
A TMS becomes a central hub of communication for the transport aspect of an organization’s supply chain. A TMS, therefore, facilitates a three-way interaction between the carrier, shipper, and ultimately, the customer. Conventional TMS systems offer modules for load optimization, yard management, carrier management, order visibility, advanced shipping, freight payment, audit, route planning, execution, and optimization.
To derive the maximum benefit from a TMS program, an organization should be able to meet the goals mentioned below:
- Cost efficiencies via optimized planning of routes, load optimization, and carrier selection
- Improved accountability via increased visibility of the transport chain
- Broader flexibility to accommodate alterations in delivery plans
- Completion of fundamental execution requirements of the supply chain
Challenges that shippers face in the present economic environment
In today’s business landscape, managing domestic and global transportation within a unified system is essential for an efficient and integrated supply chain. To this day, businesses rely on manual processes or use multiple systems to manage their freight. This leaves little to no room for evaluating performance or service quality. Other businesses use hosted legacy transportation management systems. Hosted transport management systems lack flexibility and don’t offer a comprehensive view of the supply chain. Without established metrics or best practices, businesses struggle to reduce transportation costs and improve service quality.
Effective international shipment planning requires shippers to manage sailing schedules, trade compliance, bookings, and tracking of imports and exports. We recommend reading Global Trade Management.
Using Transport Management Systems for managing global and domestic freight
One option that shippers need to consider is Transport Management Systems that are available as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and offer global and domestic functionality. Software designed for global logistics should ideally enable businesses to effectively manage all forms of transportation (domestic or global) under a single platform with a unified workflow. The entire supply chain should be fully visible and there should be direct communication between the carriers and shippers.
If shippers can deploy a global TMS, they will have an all-inclusive solution for managing domestic freight at a port-to-port level, which will have a direct impact on the company’s bottom line. Automated processes, streamlined communications, and a unified workflow among all supply chain partners enhance efficiency and provide greater visibility into payments and related discrepancies before they impact finances.
Technology designed for global transportation can significantly help in bridging the gap for companies with multiple divisions as they enable logistics management on a global and domestic scale within a single system.
Learn More about our IOR and Freight Services to improve your global transportation.
Explore further by reading Countervailing Duty
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