[ICS] Transportation Package – A One Year Anniversary

Exactly a year ago, in June 2020, we officially released our first add-on solution for Microsoft Dynamics AX/365FO – [ICS] Transportation Package. Since then, it has proven to become an invaluable tool for companies looking to optimise their delivery networks and build stronger supply chains for the future.

The last year's release could not come at a more critical time with the coronavirus pandemic forcing businesses to seek new ways of making their supply chains more efficient, agile and resilient to volatile changes in demand. The sharp surges in orders experienced in 2020 across multiple industries have put large amounts of stress on transportation networks and supply chains of many companies. And our team believed this was exactly where our Transportation Package could make a big impact.

The Package itself is a suite of powerful add-on tools, based on complex mathematical algorithms. It expands the standard functionality of the Transportation Management module of Dynamics AX 2012 R3 and D365FO with new unique features for optimal route planning and transportation network optimisation.

Key Features

Developed in close collaboration with ICS clients in the logistics and manufacturing industries, the Package was designed to address some common challenges that businesses in these sectors face in their daily operations. It supports integration with popular mapping platforms (OSRM, Mapbox and HERE) and allows the user to:

• Build in real time optimal delivery routes and perform their visual analysis;
• Plan cargo trips for a large number of orders for delivery by vehicles with different carrying capacities; and
• Plan and optimise transportation routes in a multi-echelon (or multi-tier) delivery network.

The Package is primarily intended for manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, retailers and logistics services providers, but it can become extremely useful to any company that operates a complex transportation network and is faced with a challenge of its optimisation to reduce total delivery costs and provide better customer service.

Key Benefits

Some of the typical benefits from using the Package include:

• Considerable reduction in route planning time;
• Greatly simplified overall workflow;
• Decreased operating costs through reduction in mileage, driving time and the number of vehicles used (and/or driver shifts);
• Improved customer service.

The Package is also quite straightforward to use with its seamless integration into Dynamics AX 2012 R3 and D365FO environments.

Mobile App for Drivers

Earlier this year, our team has finished work on a mobile application for drivers that can be used together with the Package. It is based on MS Power Apps platform and allows drivers to view the planned routes and access all the necessary cargo and delivery details (such as delivery addresses, time of arrival, volume and weight of goods, and so on). The app also provides the ability to synchronise the data with a GPS navigator and for the driver to regularly update the office and the customer on the status of delivery.

In December 2020, [ICS] Transportation Package was successfully published on AppSource meaning that our solution has fully met all the requirements of Microsoft’s strict and rigid validation process.

To learn more about [ICS] Transportation Package, explore its features and book your live demo, please visit this section of our website. Or simply email us at: vip@ic-service.by.