At the start of the new year, it’s common for freight shippers striving for an optimized supply chain to review their carrier options to make sure they use the ideal mix of freight transportation providers. In 2019, this procurement business has lasted the entire year, as shippers and 3PLs look to take advantage of a softer freight market to secure better pricing and service.

While carrier pricing is stable for the time being, there are signs that the rest of 2019 could bring about a different reality. Even a perceived loosening of freight rates is a signal to transportation buyers throughout the supply chain. If Old Dominion customers are currently finding carriers willing to use higher discounts to attract business, other carriers are also seeing the same from LTL shippers, and this means a significant trend might emerge. SMC³ has also witnessed an increase in LTL bid activity generated through its Bid$ense product.

This holiday season, SMC³ is empowering shippers, carriers, 3PLs and other supply chain stakeholders with the gift of logistics and supply chain optimization.

The SMC³ team has been hard at work cooking up numerous automated messaging options for shippers and 3PLs. Learn more about SMC³’s cornucopia of APIs.

Volume LTL deals with shipments that won’t fill an entire truck, but don’t fit into contracted LTL rates. These goods can move on a carrier’s backhaul or chronic empty lanes and are priced at spot-market rates. With volume LTL, customers only pay the going rate for the space their freight occupies. Volume LTL is mutually beneficial for shippers and carriers.