SensorTransport offers unlimited access to support COVID-19 guidelines
SensorTransport, a cloud-based solution provider of live shipment tracking and electronic proof deliveries, is offering unlimited use of its platform for free through the end of June to help drivers follow the CDC’s no-contact guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are a digital platform for the delivery moment,” said John Chang, head of customer success and product at SensorTransport. “We connect truck drivers to dispatchers to 3PLs, all through a digital, no equipment platform, which is completely configurable. The main thing we want to do is to provide a very digital experience to any delivery, which could be a home delivery or a commercial delivery, that allows live tracking and electronic proof of delivery, as well as a traceability of data throughout the delivery chain.”
Some of SensorTransport’s services include sensing capabilities of ambient temperatures and humidity inside of the trailer, tracking shipments in real-time using pings from the driver’s smartphone while also getting specified alerts from origin to destination, and tracking last-mile delivery, instantly collecting electronic proof of delivery with a customizable app to collect all relevant last-mile data.
“Drivers don’t even want to get out of their cabs,” said Rob Haney, founder and CEO of SensorTransport. “We were hearing stories where the drivers were quite nervous because it used to be that they had to go into the office [to make a delivery], and they didn’t want to do it. They don’t want to give their phones over to people anymore for signatures.”
When making a delivery, SensorTransport’s platform allows a driver to select a ‘no-signature due to safety receipt process’. Protected with geo-fenced security, the fleet manager will know that the delivery happened, where it happened and when it happened.
“Instead of a signature, just take a picture of the address,” said Haney. “It's a geo-fenced picture of the person's address in front of their house. And that's it — that's what we see coming across now instead of a signature.”
Switching from pen and paper to a digital-age delivery system has been the main focus for SensorTransport.
“It's always been much more secure than a pen and paper delivery, which you never really know who signed what,” explained Haney. “You could confirm the guy's name and spelling, [now] it's not just some signature that you can't read. This paperless way of delivery translates perfectly to the safety aspect of the virus.”
Estes’ EFM Delivery Network, a customer of SensorTransport, uses the company’s digital platform to maintain full tracking visibility throughout the complete Final Mile delivery cycle right through to a no-contact delivery.
“Providing direct-to-consumer Final Mile delivery services while maintaining social distancing is critical,” said Nick St. Onge, director of operations at EFM Delivery Network. “Through the use of our SensorTransport technology tools, we’ve been able to quickly and easily adjust our processes while still providing a safe and positive residential delivery experience with options like unattended and no contact delivery. Where a signature would have been captured previously, we now confirm delivery completion through the drivers’ mobile device with GPS location and time stamp verification along with photos of the completed delivery.”
While the transportation industry has taken measures to adjust to the new climate amid the novel coronavirus, Estes has seen a more positive outlook from its customers.
“As a result of the stay-at-home orders and convenience of online shopping in general, consumers have become more comfortable with e-commerce direct-to-home delivery, and we expect to see that trend continue,” St. Onge added. “Real time customer updates and communication are essential to the process and we’ve found that when these steps are taken, the result is an efficient delivery and a satisfied customer experience.”
SensorTransport’s platform not only helps help drivers stay contact-less during the pandemic, it helps the dispatchers working from home during stay-in-place orders.
“A lot of these trucking operations were struggling to figure out how to work from home,” added Haney. “What we can provide for them is the cloud, the brain of our operation. All you need is either a phone or a home laptop. Just log-in, and we can migrate the entire operations to the cloud, and you can be remote within minutes.”
While SensorTransport is not a digital broker, the company is offering its no-contact delivery capabilities to any companies who are directly in charge of dispatching drivers to help them execute no-touch deliveries and remote dispatching. If the COVID-19 pandemic continues past June 30, the company will continue its free offer to support the industry.
“This is a tough time for everybody. Let's try to help where we can, we'll do a little bit, you know, where we contribute. And if this thing goes a little further, or people are just realizing that our software's out there a little later, we're happy to extend it.”
