VANCOUVER, B.C. – Major carriers such as UPS, FedEx and DHL are using geographic information systems (GIS) to monitor locations in real time and analyze any related risks. But the benefits may not be limited to the biggest fleets on the road.

“We can take what we’ve learned from these large companies and put [it] into the context of smaller carriers,” says Arif Rafiq, Esri Canada’s industry manager for transportation.

Speaking during the Cargo Logistics Canada conference in Vancouver, Rafiq offered the example of a produce shipper in San Francisco that had five distribution centers and 289 customers. In a bid to avoid rush hour delays, it was sending a truck out of each distribution center for eight-hour shifts beginning at 9 a.m. The challenge is that limited the business to serving 189 customers.

The company began to dig into the real-time insights of a geographic information system to answer some key questions.

How many extra vehicles would be needed to serve all the customers in the same time windows? Which distribution centers could maximize the use of additional trucks? For that matter, could different delivery windows work? And how would any change in the number of distribution centers or vehicles make a difference?

“You have to make sure that the information you put into these systems is realistic. Step back, ask the right questions, and then let the mathematical engine do its job,” Rafiq says.

The ultimate solution in this case involved eliminating two of the distribution centers and opening a different location entirely. With the four optimized locations, it was able to meet customer needs and still trim overall driving hours and distances by 10%.

The insights are not limited to finding efficiencies. Rafiq stresses the importance of identifying gaps in services.

An automotive battery manufacturer, for example, tapped into GIS in the search for at-risk areas or service gaps that could emerge in the event of something like a major highway accident or natural disaster.

Ultimately, GIS establishes the platform used to analyze routes, optimize service areas, track goods, and mitigate risks, he says. Carriers can then integrate the data from different business systems into a format that can be shared across the organization.

Says Rafiq: “Carriers need to get a partner that understands spatial analytics and location intelligence.”

That’s where the true efficiencies can be hiding, no matter how big a carrier might be.