Loads more efficiency for UK transport as Mandata grows into freight exchange
In June last year, Mandata Group
acquired Returnloads.net the UK’s leading freight exchange provider helping
manufacturers, shippers, and distributors find new transport suppliers, as well
as enabling transport operators to expand their networks and find new work.
Mandata Group provides Transport Management
Software (TMS) solutions to road transport operators helping them control their
transport operations more effectively and increase productivity.
The acquisition brings something totally new to
the road transport sector giving operators the ability to expand their networks
to find new customers and suppliers using Returnloads.net and then to execute
that work more efficiently using Mandata TMS.
Steve Spark, CRO of Mandata Group explains that collaboration
is a key theme for the road transport sector today and the combination offers
exciting opportunities moving forward. “Our customers have told us
that they need to be able to work more effectively with their customers and
subcontractors. They need help to win new work and to expand their own
supply chains to get work done when they do not have capacity in their own
fleet” adds Steve.
“Returnloads.net gives us a fantastic platform
from where we can build out our collaboration proposition. We have
exciting plans to invest further in the platform both as a stand-alone
proposition and how we integrate the platform with Mandata Group transport
management solutions.”
Customers who use Returnloads.net to find new
work, can expect to see enhancements to the existing platform that will help
them promote their services more effectively by highlighting aspects of their
service. Customers who use the website to find new suppliers will benefit
from a much improved search engine allowing them to focus on things that are
important to them, such as customer ratings, industry accreditations and
memberships, helping them to validate who they work with.
Mandata TMS customers who want to find new
suppliers will be able to publish loads quickly and easily on Returnloads.net.
If they already subscribe to the platform to find new work, then they can
easily bring the new work back into TMS to get the job done, while providing
real time updates back to their customers through in Returnloads.net.”
Chris Wall, Client Services Director at Mandata
explains: “The acquisition of Returnloads.net really compliments the work
Mandata has done on launching the Subbie Portal earlier this year.”
“The Subbie Portal gives Mandata TMS customers the
ability to allocate loads to members of their existing supply chain who are not
users of Mandata TMS themselves. Sub-contractors can provide real
time job updates, ETA’s and PODs straight back into Mandata TMS, removing the
long-standing problem of a lack of visibility on loads once they get handed
over to a sub-contractor.”
“In developing the Subbie Portal and acquiring
Returnloads.net we are giving Mandata customers the ability to find new
customers and win more new work if they want to. This means they can work in a
more integrated way with their existing supply chain network and expand their
network by finding new sub-contractor partners. We are basically
giving our TMS customers the ability to create their own networks,” added Chris.
Steve Spark goes on to say “being successful is
harder than it has ever been for transport operators right now.
This is the first phase of our plans to help our customers work in a more
collaborative and integrated way with their customers and suppliers. We
have some really exciting plans for how we will expand that offer which we will
be communicating during 2021.”
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