Trimble and Kuebix roll out upgrades to Community Load Match platform

Earlier this week, Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Trimble, a provider of end-to-end technology solutions to for-hire motor carriers, private fleets, freight brokerage, and third-party logistics providers, and Maynard, Mass.-based TMS provider and creator of the North America’s largest connected shipping community Kuebix rolled out new capabilities for its Community Load Match platform, which facilitates collaboration between shippers and carriers to optimize how freight moves throughout the supply chain.

Trimble acquired Kuebix in February 2020, and Kuebix is now a Trimble subsidiary. When the deal was first announced in January, Trimble said that Kuebix will enable the company to mesh its private fleet and commercial carrier customer network, which is comprised of more than 1.3 million North America-based commercial trucks, with the more than 21,000 shipping companies network, which, in turn, it said, will form what it called a powerful new platform for planning, executing, and freight demand capacity-matching.

The companies said that the new version of Community Load Match represents “the first milestone” in their shared goal of a connected transportation supply chain, with Community Load Match now enabling shippers to use advanced matching capabilities to more easily find available carriers for truckload shipments and also leverage improved map visualization through the Trimble MAPS offering. On the carrier side, they said that the new capabilities provide direct access to the Kuebix shippers network—comprised of more than 20,000 shippers—to match shipment requirements with available truckload capacity.  

Dan Clark, Kuebix founder and Trimble vice president of product innovation & strategy, told LM that when a shipper starts using Community Load Match, they connect with a rapidly growing carrier community from Trimble’s network of 1.3 million commercial trucks, digital freight matching services, and brokers.

“Community Load Match offers direct relationships with a large network of high-quality carriers for occasional spot quotes or contracted rates on regular lanes,” said Clark. “Shippers can rely on Kuebix’s carrier community to supplement existing capacity with reliable alternatives. In the face of economic uncertainty and volatile lane rates, being able to ‘build your bench’ of carriers is essential for shippers to ensure every load gets covered. Community Load Match is built directly into Kuebix TMS, which allows shippers to manage their entire transportation operation and every mode—LTL, truckload, parcel, ocean, intermodal and air - on one platform without going to multiple web sites and using multiple transportation technologies.”

When asked what these capabilities provide that were previously missing or lacking, Clark said that shippers would have to spend countless hours manually sourcing truckload capacity.

“Or even worse, not comparing carrier rates at all in order to save time,” he said. “Now, they can receive, book and manage their truckload shipments all from a single source while retaining control of every shipment.”

Clark added that the enhanced user interface within Kuebix Community Load Match is making it easier than ever for any shipper to find the truckload capacity they need. And he also noted that new advanced matching capabilities enable shippers to only view the carriers with capacity that match their shipment requirements. 

“Shippers now get a visual representation and map view of available trucks in their lanes via Trimble MAPS,” he said. “With a few short clicks, shippers can specify their parameters, see which carriers have available capacity and request spot quotes for easy booking.” 

In terms of the competitive advantages of Community Load Match from a Trimble and Kuebix perspective, Clark offered up four reasons, including:

• What makes Community Load Match unique is the direct connection of shippers with a rapidly growing carrier community from Trimble’s network of 1.3 million commercial trucks, digital freight matching services, and brokers to meet your truckload needs on one platform;
• Community Load Match is a one-stop-shop to source high quality truckload carriers and offers shippers complete visibility and control for maximum efficiency. Shippers view all carriers with capacity that matches their shipping requirements, request spot quotes from the carriers they are interested in, choose the best carrier for their freight, then book directly with that carrier and manage it all in Kuebix TMS;
• Community Load Match is built in Kuebix’s industry-renowned TMS, allowing shippers to meet all their truckload shipping requirements within the TMS they are using every day for all their shipping needs; and
• Superior User Experience - Intuitive user interface with map visualization from Trimble MAPS and advanced matching capabilities, so shippers can find trucks that match their freight easier than ever