Have you ever not known if a Real-Time Logistics Visibility Platform (RTTVP) or a Transportation Management System (TMS) is what you need to optimize your supply chain? In the logistics world, there are tools that may seem to serve the same purpose, but they actually offer complementary solutions to make a supply chain stronger and more efficient. Here, we’ll tell you the basic differences between these two tools so you can identify the challenges each one solves and make a more informed decision based on your industry, operational complexity, and company size.
To understand it quickly, imagine the Transportation Management System (TMS) as a master planner, while the Real-Time Logistics Visibility Platform (RTTVP) is the eye throughout the entire journey; both tools are designed to save time, reduce costs, and streamline logistics operations.
Transportation Management System (TMS)
A tool that helps plan, coordinate, and execute the movement of goods. Its main function is to allow companies to organize and execute transportation operations as efficiently as possible. It handles tasks such as:
- Route planning and carrier selection.
- Cargo management, ensuring that products are transported in the appropriate mode (truck, train, plane, etc.).
- Cost control, looking for transportation options that optimize the budget.
Real-Time Transportation Visibility Platform (RTTVP)
This tool focuses on providing deep in-transit visibility with real-time updates on the location and status of goods throughout the journey. Thanks to integrations and connections with a network of AVL providers and transport lines, it generates models with Artificial Intelligence that allow for precise prediction and guarantee real-time information for proactive and accurate decision-making. This tool is designed to:
- Offer real-time visibility of unit locations at every moment of the journey.
- Provide predictability with accurate arrival estimates (ETA) through constant updates and Machine Learning (ML) models.
- Generate alerts in case of delays or incidents, which allow for quick decisions to adjust the delivery plan.
- Automate activities that lead to the digitalization of the supply chain.
- Have automated communication and system integration.
Some Benefits that Both Tools Provide
Transportation Management System
- Calculation of income and expenses: It allows you to configure the sales and transport cost rates, considering multiple variables.
- Carrier management: It allows you to configure different transport providers, entering information about their drivers, vehicles, and rates.
- Delivery driver management: It keeps track of payments to delivery drivers.
- “Limited” visibility: It generally does not have live updates. The visibility it provides is based on important events, such as the departure and arrival of the order, but does not include minute-by-minute details.
Real-Time Transportation Visibility Platform
- Detailed visibility and real-time predictability.
Integrations with ERP or TMS that accelerate implementation. - Updated information and alarm triggering about the status of your orders in real time.
Easy, simple, and ad-hoc implementation for the client’s logistics operation. - Generation of real-time Proof of Delivery (POD) and proper management for payment.
- Implementation and use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) models to automate tasks and reduce manual errors.
- Exception-based management: Monitor only what needs to be monitored due to arrival risk and optimize resources and time.
By understanding the challenges that each of these tools solves, it’s time to take the next step towards an optimized and automated logistics operation. At Recurso Confiable, we connect to the heart of your logistics operation with our Real-Time Transportation Visibility Platform, Control Track. We provide you with not only visibility and automation but also the benefits of our GPS integration RC HUB (the largest in the region) with more than 1,000 integrated AVLs and more than 5,500 connected transport lines.
Our Control Track platform, integrated with Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, is the center of the operations that our Business Process Operation (BPO) teams use to support the logistics operation of each of our clients and guarantee high-quality, precise, complete, and consistent data to have a healthy, strong, flexible, and prepared logistics operation for the eventualities that are often part of the journey.
Ready to transform your logistics?
Request a personalized demo of Control Track and discover how we can help you tackle your logistical challenges.
