Did you know that the logistics market in India is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.5% between 2019 and 2025? (Source: ReportLinker) While the logistics industry is growing by the day, digital intervention in the logistics industry is the need of the hour. Owing to this demand, multiple digital logistics partners are helping enterprises manage all aspects of their logistics supply chain, right from assigning drivers to the trucks, determining and optimizing routes, ensuring trip visibility, automating all transaction points like manless weighbridges, etc.

Advanced digital logistics supply chain partners can help businesses cut costs, improve efficiency, manage every aspect like entry and exit points, and use logistical data for better business planning in a more efficient manner. However, given the advent of transparency and digital inclusion in all industries, choosing between multiple digital logistics partners is tricky. Hence, to simplify this decision-making, we’ve listed some factors a company can consider while selecting a digital logistics partner in this blog post. Knowing these factors can help you decide the digital logistics partner you wish to opt for in your business.

• Degree of Technological Innovation

A traditional supply chain ecosystem uses manual processes for each task. For example, multiple phone calls and ensuring access to physical documents like permits are parts of a manual logistical process.

A digital logistics partner accomplishes complete technological integration through digital systems, providing a connected and integrated digital ecosystem for your logistical processes. Processes can be tracked through one technological platform from the point of origin, where the truck is loaded with freight, to the end destination, where the cargo is unloaded. Technologies like artificial intelligence and robotic process automation help use data to gather trends about the digital logistical processes and ensure data is available to plan and optimize routes better. Such automation and integration of multiple processes help improve business efficiency and positively impact businesses' bottom line.

• Reliability

While technology companies are working on making this digitalization simple and self-explanatory, there are many instances when an expert’s assistance is required.

Let’s take the case of an enterprise that needs to take care of multiple factors like ensuring the end customer's satisfaction, ensuring proper distribution of products, managing transporters, and ensuring that all company logistical processes comply with government rules. Hence, while choosing a digital logistics partner, you must select a reliable partner who can help your company meet all requirements and help digitalize your business logistics processes efficiently.

• Complete coverage of services

When choosing a digital logistics partner, it must provide a range of technological logistics solutions like road, rail, and ocean transportation solutions that cover all your business needs. For road, rail & ocean logistics, the business must manage different transporters, documents, government compliance needs, etc..

With the help of a digital logistics provider who can provide services for all, an enterprise will not have to select different partners for each service. Working with a single partner will help the business save time coordinating with multiple stakeholders.

• Quality of last-mile deliveries

In the logistics supply chain, last-mile delivery is a term used to describe the process when the products reach the final destination. For example, if freight is transported by a truck from Delhi to Mumbai, the last-mile delivery process will be complete when the freight reaches Mumbai. To ensure the high quality of the last-mile delivery process, first, the freight must be delivered by the truck driver to a destination on time. This is where data collection, like the time taken for freight to reach a destination, etc., becomes crucial.

• Data-Driven Solutions & Planning

Big data refers to large data sets that businesses can analyze to obtain valuable information. The application of this in the logistics industry can be to measure the time taken for freight to be transported on a route, information to help optimize logistical processes, etc. Analysis of such data helps businesses make better decisions like route optimization, process planning, forecasting, future projections, etc.

• Credibility and Impact

When transporting goods from one point to another, a huge financial risk is involved, owing to the value of goods and the large quantity. This is where the credibility of the supply chain partner comes into the picture. No enterprise would risk transporting goods with a non-credible logistics partner. Hence, checking the partner’s credibility is highly important.

Businesses can check the credibility of the logistics partner within the industry. Some facts about the industries the digital logistics partner has worked with, trips the company has helped complete, and the impact created in clients' businesses (success stories) can help the digital logistics partner gain credibility faster.

• End to End digitalization

While opting for a digital logistics partner, end-to-end digitalization is essential. Since multiple stakeholders are involved in the logistics process, all need to be in sync for smooth process automation. Each stakeholder in the supply chain plays a crucial role, from the truck drivers to the loading operator, the warehousing operator, and the distributors/retailers. Therefore, all aspects like automatic fetching of documents, determining entry/exit gates, loading/unloading points, etc., need to be digitalized.

• Artificial intelligence capabilities

Artificial intelligence technology helps automate or mechanise those tasks which are otherwise being performed by human intervention. Here, AI technology is used to learn from predefined data and plan routes better, automating entry and exit points, etc., are examples of artificial intelligence technology. According to statistics, India’s artificial intelligence market is expected to reach USD 7.8 billion by 2025. (Source: CIO&Leader)

• Blockchain

In a usual case scenario, logistical information of each stakeholder involved in the logistical supply chain is captured separately. For example, the loading operator, the truck driver, and the channel supply chain partners (distributors or retailers) work in silos without interacting with each other. However, with the help of blockchain technology, businesses can overcome this by bringing all stakeholders on one platform and will no longer work in silos but stay connected. As a result, the collaboration between all parties involved in the logistical process becomes easier, ensuring timely delivery of freight and no gaps in the logistical processes. Moreover, enterprises can ensure that the turnaround time of each delivery (TAT) is reduced and efficiency is brought to business processes.

• Robotic process automation technology

Robotic process automation refers to software technology through which structured inputs, logic and technology is utilised to perform actions that were otherwise performed by humans. If clear conditions are provided to help perform a task, multiple actions can be performed through the application of RPA. Repetitive actions can be easily automated using RPA. In the logistics industry, the application of RPA technology helps in fetching relevant documents from portals like permits, shipping orders, etc. Moreover, extracting shipping details, posting/retrieving information from ERP systems, monitoring inventory levels, etc., are some other applications of RPA in the logistics industry. According to statistics, the global demand for the global robotic process automation market will reach USD 18339.95 million by 2027. (Source: Brand Essence Research)

Conclusion

Fre8wise is India’s first artificial intelligence, robotic process automation, and quasi-blockchain enabled digital logistics platform, helping enterprises to digitalize logistical processes and reduce costs. If you wish to learn more about the product features offered by Fre8wise, head over to this page.