IT Services For Ontario’s Transportation Industry

Like most industries, the transportation and trucking industry was also greatly affected by the COVID pandemic. While the actual driving of trucks is largely unchanged, some of the everyday experiences in the transportation and trucking industry have been changed forever. With so many people needing to work remotely, truck drivers are now considered an essential service, since the world would be drastically changed if they were unable to work. Without their efforts, supply chains and deliveries around the world would be stopped.

However, some parts of the trucking industry can be done remotely, and you want the right IT team in place to help you manage things like manpower, fuel efficiency, and scheduling. Hiring the right IT company is one thing you can do to help fight against the many challenges you will face in the supply chain industry.

Supply Chain Disruptions

Around the world, it seems like everything is back ordered. From buying the plywood you need to do a home renovation project, to having a new hot tub delivered, it seems that orders and shipments that used to take days or weeks are now taking months or even years in some cases. Some of this delay has been directly related to the coronavirus, as the trucking industry has adapted to the new health standards.

It’s not just truckers, the entire transportation industry is working towards new health standards. Sometimes the people in the warehouses are unable to work due to quarantine. When goods can’t be pulled off the shelves, they can’t be loaded onto the trucks, creating delays. While some of these delays are a part of the new unavoidable reality of living in a pandemic, it’s important to do everything possible to keep the supply chain running efficiently.

The Biggest Challenges In The Transportation Industry

So, what are the hardest challenges and how can you work through them?

Believe it or not, there are more orders than ever before and the demand itself is a challenge. Even if everything was running effectively, transportation companies would still struggle with the increase in demand. Think about it – with people unable, or unwilling, to leave their house and shop in public as much as before COVID, everyone is ordering everything they can online. These online orders all require shipping and delivery.
Safety is also very important, but does pose a challenge. With truck drivers being limited to how long they can drive at a time, this means that even a healthy driver cannot drive around the clock, which could delay shipments.
Warehouse workers affected by COVID… If one person in a warehouse comes down with COVID, everyone might have to be quarantined, which means shelves aren’t being stocked and deliveries aren’t being packaged.

How Can A Good IT Company Help Solve These Challenges?

While some areas of transportation cannot be improved, it’s important to improve the ones you can. For example, if your company is increasing a spike in online orders because of everyone shopping from home, you need a good IT company that can help manage that workload. While you can’t help it if a warehouse worker gets sick, you can make sure your IT needs are not the cause of any shipping delays.

Don’t be the business that gets orders lost in a queue or has their IT servers crash because they can’t handle the increase in orders. Streamlining operations is the best way you can get ahead of invertible challenges in the transportation industry.

What Can You Do To Streamline Operations?

Look at improving your processes. Logistics and Supply Chain Management literally involve hundreds and thousands of moving pieces, both literal and figurative pieces. Find a way to streamline those processes and cut down on waste, and a good IT company can help you do all of that behind the scenes.

Everything from process planning to order fulfillment can all be done from behind a computer screen, making a good IT company paramount to your success in the logistics industry.

With so many customers being unsatisfied with delays, it’s important to have a good online portal to interface with your customers. Let your IT team develop a method where your customers can track their packages every step of the way from the time they order their material to the time the material is delivered to their homes.

Human Resources Management

Did you know that the right IT software and equipment could help you manage your staffing issues? From the hours your truck drivers are putting in on the roads, to the shifts your warehouse team are working, you can manage all of that online with the right tools. You can also use your IT team to help communicate directly with your drivers, ensuring that they always have the latest information on orders and deliveries.

Managing a logistics company takes a lot. It’s more than just the physical part your customer receives. In some ways, that’s all the customer wants to know… that they place an order and it will arrive as scheduled. Customers don’t always want to know “how the sausage is made.” But, your job in logistics means you have to manage the sausage-making process. A good IT company will work with you to manage what you can. Don’t let manpower issues slow down deliveries. If one of your team members comes down with COVID or any other illness, you should have a system in place to cover for him and keep your supply chain running smoothly.

What’s Next?

For more information, reach out and Tektonic today! Our team can give you a breakdown of all the ways we can help you from an IT perspective. It’s important to shore up the areas in your industry that you have control of, like processing online orders, which can help you compensate for any challenges your truck drivers or warehouse teams might encounter in the field. Let us work with you on your technology needs, so your orders are all processed efficiently, which can help you build and keep the trust of your customers!