Shippers can post their freight requirements
by e-mail, writes Ray Smuts
WHAT IS thought to be the first locally-developed Ecommerce auction site dedicated to freight procurement, providing total confidentiality between negotiating parties, is now available to South Africa's air, road and sea carriers and shippers.
Behind the project is freight personality Geoff Cawood, managing director of Northern Steamships Ltd, which for the past 15 years has been involved in ship financing utilising currency and tax benefits.
The important difference between this site and others, explains Cawood, is its two-phase function which allows subscribers a totally transparent initial step in the freight procurement process. This is effectively an auction phase. However, shipper and carrier can thereafter enter into a confidential 'black box' stage for final negotiations.
He regards the site as the ideal Ecommerce tool for smaller freight enquiries and negotiations, its simple and user friendly process providing shippers with a means of advising the marketplace of their freight requirements via a single email. Carriers who have continuous access to the 'posted' enquiries and requirements can in turn offer or indicate by way of a simple uniform email.
The first phase of the freight request is transparent so that all site visitors may see it but remain anonymous as there is no 'trail' whereby a competitor can identify the requesting or offering party. In view of the transparency, carriers may elect to revise their offers, alter or reduce them in order to be more competitive.
When the shipper is ready to accept or negotiate with one of the offers he or she enters into a totally confidential phase visible only to the two negotiating parties. After negotiations have been completed, freightwebsite sends a confirmatory email to both which is easily downloaded for management, vehicle allocation and other necessary purposes.
Cawood believes that the ultimate success of his www.freightwebsite.com will depend on a critical mass subscriber base likely to exceed 2 000 but which should ideally achieve more than 3 000. The website is now available on a 'no obligation' free trial period until September 15, thereafter at the fixed rate of R120 a month.
Design, deployment and implementaton of the site and infrastructure was performed by Obsidian Systems, Cape Town, using the Linux platform.
In short, Cawood believes www.freightwebsite.com spells an end to switchboard symphonies, holding for freight clerks, delays pending return calls and then subsequent fax and other confirmatory requirements while at the same time providing other significant benefits to carriers and their agents, among them reduced advertising costs and staff.
For an on-site review and demonstration if you can improve visit www.freightwebsite.com.
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