Into the Clouds:
Dispatch personnel are responsible for being the communicators; sharing critical information among drivers, customers, and other internal and external parties. It can be a challenge to stay on top of all of the various information streaming in. Trailer status, location, and data specific to meeting customer contracts are just some of the metrics that the dispatch team needs to coordinate.
Dispatchers play a vital role in ensuring that things run smoothly within a transportation company. When dispatcher's jobs are made easier and provided top notch data at their fingertips, it makes everything else in the business run significantly smoother. We had the opportunity to survey some Fleet Owners and Managers to see what they had to say about how our trailer tracking solution has drastically improved their dispatch efficiency.
Interestingly enough, we found a strong correlation between dispatch efficiency and improved business health and operational efficiency.
Data at Your Finger Tips
Even seemingly small inefficiencies that dispatchers face can prove to be a massive detriment to the company. For instance, if the dispatch team loses even a few minutes trying to confirm a theft and notify the police, the chances of recovering that trailer become less and less likely as the clock ticks. Not to mention that without the right tracking technology, being able to quickly identify theft is nearly impossible.
Communicating among so many different parties is vital, but quickly becomes a time-consuming process, especially in emergency situations. A digital portal and customized alerts make sure that the right person is notified instantly. Suspicious trailer activity (location, door sensors, temperature..etc) that was once overlooked can now be tracked every step of the journey.
“CloudHawk has reduced the time to locate vehicles and understand their status with no need to contact the driver or terminal. Understanding dwelling resources is helping to improve utilization leading to cost savings from rental reduction to being able to better plan for staffing.”
-Melissa Palton SAP TM/Linehaul Business Analyst
100% Visibility Equals Peace of Mind
In the industry, mix-ups are sometimes unavoidable. Managing dozens, or even hundreds of trailers can be a logistical nightmare, so some things are bound to be overlooked.
One fleet owner admitted that “It (CloudHawk) is very useful, especially when the dispatchers drop trailers somewhere, and forget about it”. Having to constantly worry about the whereabouts of trailers and wonder if anything has been overlooked can be a strain on the dispatchers, customers, drivers, and of course you.
Knowing that every trailer has been accounted for, and is on schedule is a huge relief. You can relax knowing that if anything were to go wrong, even after hours, the right person will receive a customized alert and the issue can be fixed in a timely manner.
Focusing Efforts Where it really Counts
Now that your time, as well as the time of your dispatch team is not being spent on unnecessary communication, stressing over trailer whereabouts, and more, you can focus the team’s efforts elsewhere.
“It has helped us see our asset utilization, prevent thefts and when we broker our trailer out, we are able to keep an eye on it and see where it has been and when we can except it back without having to contact the carrier.”
-Satbir Sidhu | Operation Manager Falconxpress
With the right trailer tracking solution, your team can hone in on other important functions of their job beyond the day to day.
Dispatchers have a challenging job, so once the tedious inefficient parts of their job are made more manageable, the company can thrive. It is important to note that dispatch efficiency is about more than sensors, and includes things like API integrations, more intuitive operating systems, easier dispatch training processes and more.
We will be exploring that in our next blog post, so stay tuned!