Traditional transport management systems (TMS) are under threat from an evolving landscape centred around real-time transportation visibility platforms.
Berg Insight says real-time transportation visibility platforms (RTTVPS) now offer various types of visibility functionality for the transport sector, ranging from niche visibility providers to broader supply chain and logistics software vendors
Key players and integrations
Key players in this market include Project44, FourKites, and Shippeo, all of which have focused specifically on visibility platforms.
"Project44 and FourKites are both US-based companies active on the global market, while Shippeo is based in France," said Rickard Andersson, principal analyst at Berg Insight.
These companies boast extensive partner ecosystems, integrating with ELD (Electronic Logging Device) and telematics companies, as well as TMS, WMS (Warehouse Management System), and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system vendors. Project44, for instance, has over 1,400 telematics integrations and 80 TMS/ERP integrations.
FourKites collaborates with numerous partner companies, offering hundreds of enterprise technology integrations, including ERP, TMS, WMS, and dispatch systems. Shippeo's network integrates with over 1,100 TMS, telematics, and ELD systems.
TMS providers expand into visibility
In addition to visibility-focused platforms, major TMS providers like Transporeon and Descartes are also significant players in this space.
"In addition to Project44, FourKites and Shippeo which have had an explicit focus on visibility platforms specifically, other major players in this space include Transporeon and Descartes which are also key TMS providers", continued Andersson.
Transporeon expanded its transportation logistics offering by acquiring Sixfold’s real-time visibility technology. Similarly, Descartes acquired MacroPoint, one of the largest supply chain visibility networks.
"We're excited to have MacroPoint join the Global Logistics Network so that we can jointly deliver even more value to the logistics and supply chain community,” said Edward Ryan, Descartes’ CEO.
The blurring lines of visibility and TMS
The transport management and visibility markets are expected to continue merging through M&A activities and in-house development, aiming for true end-to-end supply chain visibility.
As real-time transportation visibility (RTTV) platforms add features, they increasingly position themselves as TMS players, creating competition between TMS and RTTV providers.
"Multiple players which have historically positioned themselves as leading providers of real-time transportation visibility platforms specifically are today using other homegrown monikers to describe their respective businesses and supposedly unique offerings", concluded Andersson.
