How do you track freight shipments? Use freight tracking software to stay on top of where each shipment is and other relevant shipping information. Freight tracking software is easily integrated into good TMS software. Such is the case with EZ Loader’s freight tracking system for LTL Shipments, which returns the LTL carrier’s tracking number (also known as a pro number) and then brings in all the tracking details from that carrier. EZ Loader also provides a truckload shipment tracking service, but also readily integrates with outside truckload tracking services such as ELD Based or Macropoint App Based Tracking.
With LTL shipments, LTL carriers use barcodes to scan in shipments at each stop, e.g., each terminal it goes through. Each barcode has associated pro number, or tracking number, that users can access to tracking each stop along the way. A shipment from Florida to Tennessee may stop at four or five terminals in a single transit and be loaded and unloaded based on its next destination and consolidated with different freight. A good TMS will pull in these scans and updates from carriers to show users exactly when and where their shipments have checked in and out of terminals to provide ETAs.
What is the difference between full truckload (FTL) and less-than truckload (LTL)? It is simply the amount of trailer space a single freight shipment requires. FTL fills up the entire space of a trailer while LTL is used when freight only takes up a portion of a trailer. EZ Loader TMS provides myriad tools to help brokers manage and provide important information to their customers for full truckload shipments: digital rate confirmations, digital carrier onboarding, auto-generated documentation (which can be sent directly from EZ Loader), and address and item books. It makes multi-stop loads easier to manage whether they are van, flatbed, or dimensional freight. Truckload shipment tracking and EZ Loader’s dashboards provide real time updates on truckload shipments and help users gain great visibility into their operations.
LTL stands for less-than-truckload shipping and is used in the transportation of small freight or when freight doesn’t require the use of an entire trailer. LTL can be used when freight weighs between 150 and 15,000 pounds. Alternatively, shippers can use full truckload carriers. For small packages that can be broken down into units weighing less than 150 pounds, parcel carriers are an option too.
EZ Loader’s LTL Portal allows you to pull in LTL carriers’ contracted rates, get rate quotes, book shipments, dispatch carriers for pick up, and potentially avoid accessorial fees. It generates all necessary LTL paperwork (BOL and labels), and pulls in tracking information and documents (PODs, invoices) directly from the carrier. Brokers can set their customers up with this same functionality. Our LTL Portal connects via an API connection to all major LTL carriers and partners.
A Proof of Delivery form (POD) is required for every shipment, regardless of size. It is also a process by which businesses do not create customer invoices until delivery is confirmed. EZ Loader’s Carrier Invoice and POD digital web link functions as a portal through which carriers can directly upload PODs as well as invoices and any other documents related to a load. Carriers can also note additional charges that do not match the contracted amount (e.g., detention, layover or other accessorial fees). EZ Loader automatically generates a new link when a load is delivered and sends follow-up emails to carriers that have not uploaded PODs within two weeks of making a delivery. EZ Loader’s Carrier Invoice and Pod Upload helps brokers significantly reduce the time and resources needed to track down and upload the documents required before the audit and invoice process can begin.
Load boards (also known as freight boards) are online matching systems that allow shippers and freight brokers to post loads, find each other, and enter into agreements to move freight. They also allow carriers to post their free equipment. The best economies of time and resources are reached when carriers and brokers use a freight board from within a TMS, as EZ Loader TMS facilitates via integration with all major load boards. Our digital onboarding process makes it easy to onboard new carriers that want to book loads from the load board. It also automates and creates digital weblinks that enable carriers to onboard directly into the TMS. EZ Loader’s TMS automatically generates a weblink to upload all documents, accounting, and W9 information and to enable e-signatures on a broker’s agreement. This is a much more cost-effective than doing all of this work manually.
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