I recently was in the market for a pick-up truck.  Why?  I just wanted something that I could haul stuff with and pull a trailer.  My wife thought it was just another one of my many mid-life crises.  For a while, all I wanted was your basic pick-up truck, one that I could just park at the house and use whenever the occasion called for it.  After looking at options, I decided my original idea wasn’t practical.  I since have purchased my new toy and it’s a quad cab with a cover over the bed, side steps, chrome mirrors, custom grill and with a bed extender.  I really don’t need all those things to haul stuff or my trailer, but they are cool and people like my truck.  I think I’m more stylish and now I don’t have a depreciating asset in my driveway, I actually use it everyday.

Okay, so get to the point.  As many of you surmise or know, we license Transportation Management Software (TMS).  Our software comes with all the bells and whistles, much like my pick-up truck.  It has the rate shopping application to compare various carrier charges, you can book shipments through it, tender shipments to carriers, obtain shipment status information, get alerts, record tasks, review contracts, obtain spot quotes, get up-to-the-minute reports and much more.  It’s really cool and helps companies manage their shipping operations efficiently and cost-effectively.

Most recently, we have licensed just our rate engine component.  I equate our rate engine to the bed of my pick-up.  The rate engine, like my truck bed, is the key component.  Without the rate engine, one can’t rate shipments and compare carrier costs and options.  Some companies just want that and not all the bells and whistles.  I understand that.  For example, we have a few third parties who have our rate engine but they have built all the other bells and whistles, including the interface, but they know the complexity behind a solid rate engine is tough to develop.  Also, maintaining a rate engine is not easy.  There are constant upgrades and adjustments due to the complexity of the industry.  In other words, rating formats constantly change, new rules are implemented by carriers and new services introduced that must be rated and compared.  It’s really no easy task.

So much like me when I was shopping for my pick-up truck, make sure you know what you are wanting to accomplish.  If what you need is a way to compare shipping rates across multiple modes and carriers, perhaps just the rate engine is all you need.  It can be integrated into other systems such as an ERP, WMS, MRP, accounting system or other software.  If you are looking to manage the entire shipping process, it might make more sense to acquire the full TMS.  It too can be integrated and perhaps the added features provide additional benefits.  And when you do acquire either, make sure you show it to all your friends, they might tell you that you are going through some mid-life crises. However, you and I know that isn’t true!