Ready-made SAAS solutions are quick to set up and use, but they have several constraints you need to consider.
First, it may take time for the software provider or a development team to integrate route planning software with your logistics system. Also, there are no guarantees the solution will cover all your business needs and be able to build routes with custom rules.
On the contrary, you can invest more time and money at the beginning and build the functionality you need from scratch. This will eventually bring you more flexibility for application updates and allow you to easily adjust your software to your business needs and your company’s business processes.
Creating a solution from scratch or implementing route optimization functionality into existing software
Most logistics companies build custom solutions for route planning and make them one of the features of complex transport or fleet management systems.
What to consider while building route optimization functionality
Building a route for a fleet is a complex process that involves analyzing different types of data such as truck capacity and traffic conditions. In programming and combinatorics, this process is also known as a vehicle routing problem (VRP) if we need to build optimal routes for multiple vehicles visiting a set of locations, or a traveling salesman problem if we build a route for one vehicle. The main difficulties in solving both these problems is the necessity to take into consideration various constraints, such as vehicle's capacity, time windows, etc. Here are some of the things a route optimization algorithm should take into consideration:
-
ELD mandate. It’s important to track a driver’s time on the road and allow managers to set time constraints for trucks according to drivers’ working hours.
-
Forbidden zones. Implement functionality to let logistics managers add zones on the map where an algorithm cannot build routes. For instance, some route planning APIs we’ll talk about later can build routes that avoid tolls and ferries.
-
Real-time traffic data. When creating a route, an algorithm should consider up-to-date information about traffic jams, accidents, and road closures.
-
Schedule optimization. Besides taking a driver’s working hours into consideration, the algorithm should consider delivery windows, departure times, etc.
-
Manual editing. Enable your logistics managers to manually edit waypoints in real time.
-
Analytics and reporting. Your route planning software should allow you to track actual and planned routes as well as help you compare the delivery performance of different business hubs.
-
Real-time driver tracking. Logistics managers should be able to track route progress in real time. This will help them quickly react to situations that may cause delivery delays and reorganize routes.
-
Truck capacity. An algorithm should also solve the Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problem (CVRP). It means it should consider that vehicles have a limited carrying capacity of the goods.
For the transport management system we developed, we combined route planning with load planning so dispatchers can create accurate and cost-effective plans, taking into consideration types of cargo and truck capacity.
