EmergeTMS: The Future of Freight Management

The symphonies of roaring trucks have been echoing through the U.S. roadways for almost an eternity now. But the parade of freight zipping down the highway is not without a few bumps in the road. Between the back-to-back hurricanes of 2017, the Electronic Logging Devices (ELD’s) limiting drive time, and the ongoing massive driver shortage, the trucking industry has indeed hit a critical capacity crunch—there is simply not enough trucks to meet shipping demands. This has resulted in the highest shipping rates in U.S. history.

Enter EmergeTMS - a free, light-weight, cloud-based transportation management system designed to help small to mid-sized shippers navigate the crunch and free up time spent managing logistics.

Emerge has stepped in to aggressively counter the freight industry’s challenges with their proprietary technology that saves logistics professionals hundreds of dollars per load while offering services from more carrier options seen in years. With millions of dollars of freight already running through their system, Emerge could change the industry forever. Customers simply sign up for free, enter their quote details into the system and within minutes get access to the lowest rates on live capacity. “With an average savings of $150 per load, our customers are blown away by the options they’re seeing,” says Kyle Jepson, VP of Technology at Emerge.

Not only does Emerge connect shippers to new carriers/ brokers and mitigate the capacity crunch, “We set out to create a freight management system that puts an end to waiting around for phone calls, sorting through endless email clutter, managing spreadsheets, or dealing with check calls,” says Jepson. “Our platform also provides shippers an all-in-one tool to streamline the process of quoting, booking and tracking freight transactions in an intuitive and easy to use manner.”

Further, Emerge offers real-time analytics, shipper to carrier/ broker chat and reduces manual data entry.

The Impact

Speaking specifically about a shipper in the Phoenix market, Jepson comments on a recent client engagement Emerge undertook. He states, “When we collaborated with the client, they were not working with a TMS. Further, they were managing all their quotes through calls, emails, and spreadsheets.” Since collaborating with Emerge, the client has experienced a significant decrease in time spent on managing workflows. Their response rate from capacity providers has also increased. The client went from navigating lengthy spreadsheets and email chains to leveraging a single, tightly organized platform that can manage their sales, customer support, and logistics department.

Emerge’s all-in-one platform can be implemented within minutes depending on the size and organizational environment of the shippers, as opposed to most of the detail-oriented TMS solutions that can take up to 3-12 months. Post-implementation, users can create login credentials and provide the name and email addresses of their partners to build a network of carriers and brokers within the portal.

“Emerge offers functionalities that are only available for large shippers today,” comments Jepson. The company provides an option for its clients to collaborate, chat, and email within the Emerge platform. Clients can get answers to their queries immediately and get their loads booked faster. Further, through the platform’s tracking feature, shippers can monitor their shipments in real-time. The option of tracking drivers’ locations through cell phone triangulation is also available in the portal.

LTL Connect

“Our LTL Connect feature allows the shippers to connect with multiple LTL providers on a single platform, no more logging into multiple websites for rates,” says Jepson.

“After building a quote, the shippers are presented with rates from their current network as well as new partners running that lane. This leads to the creation of more opportunities, which ensures that their loads are covered. Emerge’s main aim for LTL shippers is to help them make their day-to-day operations easier.”

Delivering Smart and Fast Logistics

Apart from providing a one-stop-shop for all the trucking industry needs, what steers Emerge ahead of the competition curve is their industry knowledge and a highly competent team of experts. “Our staff members have run logistics companies, worked in brokerages and managed thousands of shipments throughout the U.S. through every mode possible,” Jepson adds. “In addition, we are extremely customer focused and always keep them in mind while creating any particular enhancement to our product.” While other companies present solutions that can be appealing to executives, Emerge focuses on end-users and ensures that their TMS platform is easy to use, helping them to carry about their day-to-day operations without any complications. The company also provides a higher-level overview of the senior management of shipper organizations to assist them in making strategic decisions.

Another differentiator that Emerge offers is the integration that it provides with the third-party freight solution providers. This gives Emerge an opportunity to be flexible, innovative, and extend benefits to shippers through partnerships. “We also offer a fast feedback loop among our sales, support, and development group which helps in comprehending the clients’ pain-points faster. This assists us in taking an iterative approach toward solving their predicaments and lessen the turnaround time as we don’t have to wait for the clients to come to us,” exalts Jepson.

The company will be adding support for multi-modal transactions, which includes Full Container Load (FCL), Less than Container Load (LCL), and Air/Expedited, and enhance features that will support enterprise customers and further expand their solution portfolio. “Right now, we are in the process of growing our development staff, which will be leveraged to add third-party vendor integrations. We will also be targeting the large shippers in the years to come,” concludes Jepson.