network, we were able to put together
some continuous moves that involved three
origin and destination pairs,” says Cole. “We
were able to have a Martin truck essentially
run in a continuous circle.” The companies
also convinced Martin to put lightweight
equipment on that lane so they could haul
more weight. “Martin has some equipment
that actually allows us to haul 49,000-pound
loads rather than the traditional 44,000
pounds,” says Cole. “So we developed a
continuous movement between both our
networks and used lightweight equipment
to get even more efficiencies on that lane.”
Similar collaborations with several other
retailers and CPG companies have been com-
pleted or are being evaluated. “If it happens
that the other party also is a member of
Chainalytics’ benchmarking consortium, then
all the transportation information needed to
do the analysis already is within the Chaina-
lytics database,” says Cole. “They operate as a
clean room so we can’t see each others' rates
and everyone signs a non-disclosure agree-
ment, so there is a high level of comfort.”
Taking out miles clearly results in mone-
tary savings, but such arrangements also
provide soft benefits, says Cole. “Whenever
you do these lane matching events, espe-
cially with a retailer, there is a clear benefit
to the relationship because it leads to other
“We learned we
needed to change the
mileage radius. We
could see specific dol-
lar savings with that.”
— Michael Cole of Kraft Foods
dialogs. We might be able to talk with them
about redesigning their fuel surcharge pro-
gram or designing a sustainability program.
If they are not already actively involved
with Smart Way, the EPA voluntary program
to reduce emissions, we might help them
get hooked up with that. Once you start
having these kinds of conversations, they
tend to lead to other things.”
Cole describes Chainalytics as an
“approachable” consultant that is “very good
at talking the language of transportation.”
Perhaps most importantly, he says, they lis-
ten. “There are some consultants that might
try to force you down a particular path, but
that might not always be the best way to get
to the end result. Everyone wants to drive
productivity, but if a consultant’s conclusions
and recommendations are going to be very
disruptive to the organization, then maybe
there is a different way to get there and realize
the same dollar savings.”
Chainalytics is very open to discussing
alternatives “without bullying you down
one particular path,” he says. “To my mind,
that means they have a better chance of
bringing the organization to the finish line
and hitting the productivity targets, which is
why you hired them in the first place.”
Chainalytics, www.chainalytics.com
Resource Link
SPOTLIGHT ON FOUR SOFT
‘Our strategy was to go for state-of-the-art functionality.
Our demands were extreme, and we were looking for
nothing less than the best system. 4S VisiLog offered
exactly what we were looking for.
Our partnership with Four Soft is based on know-how and trust.
Stability is crucial to us and our customers.
Four Soft and 4S VisiLog have served us well.’
