FourKites rolls out new Dynamic Yard offering

Roughly four months after acquiring the yard management service offerings from Denver-based TrackX Holdings Inc., an enterprise asset management company deploying SaaS-based solutions geared towards the tracking and managing of physical assets, Chicago-based FourKites, a provider of real-time tracking and visibility solutions across transportation modes and digital platforms, has rolled out a new offering, entitled Dynamic Yard.

FourKites officials explained that Dynamic Yard is a new software offering that enables shippers to proactively manage their facilities through real-time in-transit and in-yard freight data and analytics. And they added that through the connection of traditional, siloed yard management software with FourKites real-time supply chain data and predictive ETAs, shippers can cut down on demurrage and detention expenses, as well as optimize operations on a company-wide basis through their facilities.

The major benefits of Dynamic Yard, according to FourKites, include:

●      Hardware-agnostic, with seamless integration with a large variety of systems, including ERP/TMS, WMS, ELD, GPS and telematics

●      Highly scalable to support a wide range of facilities, from the smallest up to multiple enterprise locations

●      Multi-site visibility via a single, centralized control panel

●      Deep integration with FourKites carrier products to ensure continuous communication and optimization with carrier partners

“We are thrilled to be able to offer Dynamic Yard to facility managers across the globe,” said FourKites Chief Product Officer Priya Rajagopalan, in a statement. “It is FourKites’ mission to shed light where the supply chain has historically been forced to do business in the dark. The latest testament to the power of our customer-driven innovation, Dynamic Yard extends the power of real-time freight visibility into new territory for the first time.”

When FourKites acquired the yard management service offerings from TrackX, FourKites said  acquisition will enable it to develop a new supply chain visibility offering focused on extending real-time visibility into the yard, with TrackX’s Yard Management, Dock Management, and Gate Control solutions, which are the key components of the acquisition. These solutions, according to FourKites, are “are highly scalable, serving the smallest facilities up to multiple enterprise locations…[and] are hardware-agnostic and integrate seamlessly with ERP and WMS systems, as well as RFID and IoT sensors.”

What’s more, FourKites said that this acquisition will create a first of its kind offering through the integration of FourKites real-time logistics data and predictive ETAs and TrackX’s yard management offerings, which will enable enterprises to proactively manage yards and warehouses that are based on real-time signals from both trucks in-transit and trucks on-site.

In a recent interview with LM, FourKites CEO Matthew Elenjickal said that the impetus for FourKites to acquire this business from TrackX stemmed from a need to extend visibility beyond in-transit to tractors and trailers waiting to be unloaded.

“It was the next logical step and something we knew our customers would benefit from,” he said. “As more and more IOT devices are being introduced into the yard for managing the gate, dock and trailer moves, it was a natural extension for FourKites to play a role in the IOT space to collect real-time data from the yard IOT devices and expand visibility from in-transit to the yard. We also saw a need for the yard to be brought onto the network. Current yard management solutions are mostly on-prem, single tenant applications. There's an industry trend where more and more shippers, brokers and mega-carriers are adopting drop trailers. But to manage a drop trailer program more effectively, you need a multi-tenant solution that manages visibility across multiple yards. Given the density we have with our shipper/carrier partners, we knew we were in the best position to bring it to market, and that's what drove the deal.” 

What’s more, he added that FourKites had been looking for ways to solve this industry challenge for more than a year, evaluating whether it should build this technology internally vs. acquiring a solution, with the company ultimately deciding to acquire the domain expertise so that it could quickly bring this solution to market and benefit its customers.