Port of Tilbury, UK: Mandata acquired Returnloads.net, a freight exchange provider earlier this year.
The acquisition gives operators the ability to expand their networks to find new customers and suppliers using Returnloads.net and then to execute that work using Mandata transport management software.
Steve Spark, (pictured above right) Mandata Group, says collaboration is key for road transport and the combination offers exciting opportunities.
“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,” he says.
“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, (pictured above left) client services director, Mandata says: “The acquisition of Returnloads.net really complements 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,” he says.
