Bunge and Target, a South American logistics and technology solutions provider, are partnering to form Vector, a new enterprise focused on digitizing truck freight hiring and other services in Brazil.
The two companies successfully collaborated in the creation of the freight contracting app Vector, launched last year and used in Bunge's operations in Brazil. Named after the app, the new standalone company will now offer the platform’s logistics services to other companies.
Vector can help increase drivers’ productivity by mapping logistics flows and process integration to finding synergies that reduce idle time for them while reducing logistics costs for companies.
Vector’s platform is the only tool of its kind that integrates with the shipper’s operating system, communicating with the loading and unloading locations. This allows the scheduling of freight as well as the distribution of all the transport documents, ensuring loads for drivers without the need for contact between the parties. The tool also eliminates a physical step since the loading order is issued digitally at the time the freight is accepted by the app.
"Based on the data we have since the app launched, we know that the tool not only creates efficient collaboration between companies and drivers, it also improves truck drivers’ quality of life. We will work to ensure they are able to schedule more trips and increase their productivity," explains Javier Maciel, CEO of Vector.
In the year since it launched at Bunge, the Vector app has digitized nearly the entire process of contracting truck freight for the company, which moves about 25 million tons of grain a year in Brazil. Today, the app accounts for 97% of the volume that Bunge transports by road in Brazil. The tool has registered 48,000 truck drivers and has organized 557,000 trips, with 57,500 downloads and US$ 480 million in freights payments.
"We are leading a digital transformation movement in our core business and we needed a solution that went far beyond a simple freight shop window, one that would support us in automating interaction with our logistics partners. The combination of Bunge's scale and in-depth knowledge in commodity handling with Target’s experience in service, agility and responsiveness were essential for creating the successful Vector app, which has now become an independent company," says Makoto Yokoo, Bunge's Logistics Director.
Vector’s corporate structure requires it to accept other large shippers as partners. The company also plans to offer owner/operator drivers and small transport companies access to more competitive costs for products such as automotive parts, or maintenance services, including finance for working capital, cargo insurance, and payment means. By joining this collaborative ecosystem, drivers become part of a community that Vector will use offer opportunities that truck drivers do not have access to when working alone.
About Target
TARGET (Technology Applied to Risk and Transportation Management) provides services and products through innovative and tailored technological solutions within Road Safety, Traffic, Transportation and Logistics.