BlueGrace introduces Carrier File data mining tool for flagship TMS

Earlier this week, Tampa, Fla.-based non asset-based 3PL BlueGrace Logistics introduced a new proprietary data mining platform, called Carrier File, that makes it easier to find the right truck for the right load inside its BlueShip TMS by filtering through data collected on hundreds of thousands of carrier records to come up with the best transportation options for each shipment.

Company officials said Carrier File provides shippers with a platform storing multiple years worth of internal and external data that streamlines the carrier search process to help identify and select the best available truck. And they added that with Carrier File part of the Blue Ship TMS, its employees can proactively identify areas to lessen costs and optimize customers’ supply chains.

In an interview, Mark Ford, BlueGrace Chief Operating Officer, Carrier Sales, said there were various factors behind the decision for BlueGrace to roll out its own Carrier File inside the BlueShip TMS.

“Carrier and capacity development is one of the most underappreciated and overlooked activities that’s performed in our industry,” he said. “But it’s also one of the easiest ways to differentiate yourself from the competition if done properly. Since the carrier base is so massive and fragmented, having a portal that helps aggregate, interpret, process and display data collected from hundreds of thousands of carriers streamlines a process most find too daunting to perform themselves. No off the shelf platform was going to accomplish this for us the way what we’ve built in-house has.” 

As for the biggest benefits of this new offering for shippers, Ford said that end of the day it’s all about selecting the best option for every available load BlueGrace has committed to for its customers, which will not change. 

“However, the biggest value our carrier sourcing approach provides for our customers is access to capacity they don’t have access to on their own,” he explained. “Most 3PLs outsource their carrier selection process to load boards, which customers can subscribe to as well for a fee. It’s not exclusive. Load boards also only contain a small portion of the total available capacity that exists in the marketplace. Our approach to carrier development has uncovered a great deal of this capacity, and identifies which loads are the best fit for their network.” 

BlueGrace previously provided a service skin to Carrier File through a combination of off the shelf platforms and spreadsheets its sales representatives used to aggregate the data they were collecting. 

As for the biggest competitive benefits of this news, Ford said: “If you are not thinking of ways to implement and utilize technology to increase efficiencies, both internally and externally,  you are going to have a hard time keeping up with those of us who are.  And the transportation industry is so massive that technology plays a key role in helping make sense of it all. The BlueGraceCarrier File accomplishes both, and we control the development internally. We will continue to add features, and can do so at a rapid pace since our development team is in-house.”