How AI Can Help You Produce Faster FTL and LTL Quotes

Record-breaking volumes plus sky-high customer expectations for speed, value, and service are creating a perfect storm for freight forwarders and other logistics service providers. These swelling pressures are forcing companies into new ways of working and the adoption of new technologies at scale, simply in order to keep up with the competition.

While the industry at large still has a long way to go to streamline fragmented processes, data, and systems, advancements are being made at a steady pace. Technological advancements in the areas of AI and automation hold exciting possibilities for supply chain professionals and stakeholders alike, promising to accelerate processes and cut costs when put to good use. A bright future!

 Key Takeaways

• 45% of shippers have stopped working with a freight forwarder due to inadequate technology.
• Artificial intelligence, or AI, is technology that employs the use of computers to mimic the incredible decision-making capacity of the human mind.
• The need for a more streamlined approach, particularly as it relates to LTL freight, is greater than ever as demand reaches new highs for less-than-truckload shipments.
• AI can benefit freight forwarders by accelerating processes, boosting productivity, and increasing accuracy.
• A revolutionary, AI-powered, inland freight quote automation solution, Quote Automation by Magaya transforms quoting operations into a simple, 3-step, AI-powered process that takes mere seconds from start to finish.
• Quote Automation intelligently extracts details from ordinary quote request emails to build accurate, hyper-competitive quotes in seconds.

AI is Changing the Face of Logistics

While freight forwarding has not traditionally been thought of as a “high tech” sector, the tides are turning. In fact, a recent FreightWaves survey found that an astonishing 45% of shippers have stopped working with a freight forwarder due to inadequate technology. With AI proliferating our everyday lives through Netflix recommendations, helpful chatbots, and smart home upgrades, it’s only natural that we expect the companies we do business with to be leveling up as well. Customers are realizing that the forwarders that embrace technological innovation not only provide a better, more convenient customer experience, but also more transparency, and often, better value and service. 

Making big waves across many industries these days for its limitless possibilities and benefits, Artificial intelligence, or AI, is the aptly-named technology that employs the use of computers to mimic the incredible decision-making capacity of the human mind. In an industry like freight forwarding, where routine tasks like filling out required forms, searching for rates, and communicating with customers and agents are commonplace, there is huge potential for AI to accelerate processes, boost productivity, and sidestep potential human error.

Perhaps some of the most exciting applications of AI for logistics are machine learning, whereby a computer analyzes data, which may include human input, and becomes more intelligent over time, and natural language processing, where a computer can process regular human speech or text and turn it into normalized data.

As PwC puts it, “…integrating cutting-edge technologies such as optical character recognition (OCR), supervised machine learning, and automated analytics that incorporate natural language processing into a seamless process will require time and technical expertise…Combining these AI techniques, it is possible to read and summarize long documents from third parties, competitors, or internal sources quickly and easily, and generate rapid and appropriate responses. ”

Soaring Demand for LTL Freight Requires a New Approach

The need for a more streamlined approach, particularly as it relates to LTL freight, is greater than ever as demand soars to new highs for less-than-truckload shipments. A bigger piece of the pie can be captured by freight forwarders that can process more quotes, faster, and at lower rates.  

What’s behind the recent surge in demand for FTL and LTL freight? Skyrocketing import volumes are not the only trend influencing demand for FTL and LTL truck freight in the US. Local economy, e-commerce, and last-mile deliveries have also risen steadily, and the industry is taking note. “The LTL market is changing rapidly, demand is growing rapidly, and it’s not just because of the diversion of freight from intermodal rail and truckload, as some people think,” Satish Jindel, president of transportation research firm SJ Consulting Group, told JOC.com. “It’s a fundamental change in how goods are moving from where they are produced or imported and how they are showing up at the doorsteps of consumers.”

Introducing Quote Automation by Magaya: Lightning-Fast FTL and LTL Quotes Powered by AI

In response to the demand for better ways to process massive volumes of FTL and LTL quotes faster and more efficiently, Magaya recently released its new Quote Automation solution.  

A revolutionary, AI-powered, inland freight quote automation solution, Quote Automation by Magaya intelligently extracts details using natural language processing from ordinary quote request emails to build accurate, hyper-competitive quotes in seconds – a simple, 3-step, AI-powered process from start to finish:

1. The customer emails their US domestic FTL or LTL shipment quote request, just like they always have.

2. The request is reviewed in the Quote Automation portal, where edits can be made if needed and the best rates from all major carriers appear in an instant, right inside the application.

3. With one more click, a formatted quote is ready to be emailed back to the customer.

Plus, Quote Automation uses augmented intelligence technology to gradually learn and improve over time. A form of artificial intelligence, augmented intelligence, “focuses on adaptive systems powered by machine learning in which the algorithms learn from humans’ experience, but the ultimate decision-making is done by humans” (PwC).

What’s Coming Next 

Looking toward the future, Magaya plans to extend the automation and natural language processing technology in the first release of Quote Automation by Magaya to other modes of transport, including ocean and air. Stay tuned!