Today’s Pickup: Convoy claims its carriers have better crash ratings, fewer cargo claims than industry averages

That process, Seeks noted, results in safer carriers using the Convoy platform. The post said that carriers vetted through Convoy’s process have a 15 percent lower predictive crash rating than the industry average, and see cargo claims on an average of just once in every 2,200 loads as compared to once in every 100 loads, which it said was the industry average.

“We set higher standards for our carriers than the nation’s most prominent brokers and asset carriers typically maintain,” Seeks wrote. “By using a data-driven process (enabled by our technology platform) to manage adherence to our rigorous standards, we create a strong foundation that helps build trust with our customers and our carriers.”

Among the steps Convoy takes to vet carriers are the automatic disqualification of conditional and unsatisfactory carriers, and the acquisition of insurance certificates directly from insurers.

“By automating the assessment of a carrier’s service quality and compliance characteristics, we remove human error and bias, and the gaps that come with static checks, which in the traditional process can sometimes let unqualified carriers back on the road. Convoy’s review process takes place in real-time, at multiple steps of the carrier and shipment lifecycle,” wrote Seeks.

 Did you know?

Drilling and fracking a single well in the Permian Basin can involve almost 1,000 trucks hauling drilling equipment, sand and water, and truck drivers can make up to $100,000 a year doing so.

Quotable:

“China is doing very badly, worst year in 27 – was supposed to start buying our agricultural product now – no signs that they are doing so. That is the problem with China, they just don’t come through.”

– President Donald Trump, as the U.S. and China start a new round of trade negotiations

In other news:

Tesla pickup nears

Elon Musk tweeted that the all-electric Tesla pickup is just months away from its debut. (CleanTechnica) 

U.S. Department of Energy boosts alternative fuels

The U.S. Department of Energy has announced $50 million in grants for research related to developing alternative fuels. (Energy.gov)

ATRI seeks input on top industry issues

The American Transportation Research Institute is seeking comments from industry stakeholders for its annual survey of the top issues facing the industry. (Transport Topics)

Data’s critical role in infrastructure funding

State transportation department leaders are noting the important role that data now plays in securing infrastructure funding. (AASHTO)

Autonomous train test ongoing in Colorado

A 48-mile track in Pueblo, Colorado is the proving ground for an autonomous train, as testing ramps up. (Fortune)

Final Thoughts

Convoy has released a study that claims carriers in its network are safer than industry average and there are fewer cargo claims than industry average. While some may dispute the claims are not independent – it is, after all, a study conducted by Convoy of its own customers – it shows the lengths that upstarts in the digital brokering space are going to attract both carriers and shippers to their platforms. Last week, Uber Freight released its own study saying that owner-operators on its network made more money last year than company drivers. It’s a new form of marketing that traditional brokers will need to adapt to going forward, if it proves successful.

Hammer down everyone!