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Month: January 2022

Transporeon acquires SupplyStack and Nexogen

Posted on by Keith McKinley

With the acquisition of  SupplyStack and Nexogen, Transporeon customers profit once more from the fact that the services of the Transport Management Platform can be consumed in a modular way.

Transporeon continues to follow a growth strategy that embeds new functionalities directly in its network. The company thereby provides easy-to-consume capabilities, optimising transport flows and complementing respective in-house IT capabilities delivered by ERP and TMS systems for an ever more sustainable, cost and time-sensitive economy.

Transporeon acquires SupplyStack

Following the acquisition of ocean visibility and multimodal planning specialist Logit One in December 2021, Transporeon now further expands its capabilities in handling multimodal and part load transports by adding the services of SupplyStack to its Transport Management Platform.

Transporeon’s customers are now getting access to a comprehensive multimodal and part load planning and execution framework, supporting automation and optimisation of transport flows. Shippers and forwarders will be able to further automate their transport planning, assignment and execution.

After an integration period, SupplyStack customers will also obtain access to Transporeon’s carrier network, platform services, freight procurement and rate management as well as spot assignment, freight settlement and audit offerings.

In addition, they will profit from the integration of Transporeon’s Sixfold Real-Time Visibility (RTV) services into daily operations. This way, they no longer have to use visibility as a separate feature. Instead, RTV becomes an enterprise-wide capability that drives customer service, efficiency and lays the foundation for more sustainable transport execution.

“There is an increasing demand in the supply chain to improve transparency and reduce costs, while at the same time making freight transport more sustainable,” commented Stephan Sieber, CEO of Transporeon. “Adding multimodal and part load transport planning and execution capabilities to our platform through the acquisition of SupplyStack will provide our customers with the degree of flexibility necessary to achieve this goal.”

Nick Poels, Founder and CEO of SupplyStack, added: “Although powerful alone, we believe we are stronger together. This acquisition marks an important milestone in our mission to change the way freight is moved. Combining SupplyStack’s Transport Management solutions with Transporeon’s network will enable our customers to profit from our services – on global supply chains with a mix of modes as well as on domestic operations.

“We therefore are happy to become part of the Transporeon family, where our customers from different industries can manage their logistics operations following a true network approach.”

Transporeon acquires Nexogen

To support operators in optimally dispatching fleets, Transporeon is taking over AI road transport planning specialist Nexogen. The Software as a Service (SaaS) company helps carriers and asset owners improve utilisation by optimising matches between orders and trucks, drivers and itineraries. This way, Nexogen reduces overall freight transportation costs, empty runs and waiting times.

Already today, Transporeon offers comprehensive carrier services ranging from Market Intelligence, RTV on Ocean, Air and Road-transport, to autonomous freight procurement and document management. With the acquisition of Nexogen, the company enlarges its carrier service portfolio even further by introducing the AI Planner and the AI Operator.

The Nexogen AI planner connects to existing Transport Management Systems (TMS) and supports optimal asset utilisation by matching orders to trucks and drivers based on data. The AI planner’s engine plans ahead, also taking into account spot market data to ensure the highest level of fleet utilisation.

The Nexogen AI Operator helps to manage fleets more efficiently based on telematics and real-time insights. Offering a most efficient itinerary planning tool, it also provides dispatchers with real-time insights on shipment execution. The AI Operator uses its access to primary data sets, such as remaining hours of service and fuel consumption, to calculate tunnel, ferry, parking and gas station route planning as well as accurate ETAs – always in compliance with EU regulations.

Nexogen carriers will be able to receive spot transport offers directly from Transporeon, thereby obtaining access to additional loads. In addition, they will profit from the option to find subcontractors for non-matching shipments on the Transporeon platform.

With up to 30% inefficiencies in European road transport, driver shortages, and increasing sustainability targets, carriers and shippers need to work more efficiently, by reducing both empty runs and unprofitable waiting times.

Stephan Sieber, CEO of Transporeon, commented: “The integration of Nexogen into our Transport Management Platform will help carriers improve their asset utilisation and manage complexity. This is important with regard to the upcoming EU mobility package. While the new framework guarantees fair competition across the market and protects drivers through clear rules, it adds further regulation to logistics operations. Intelligent solutions are needed to successfully operate under this framework. Nexogen’s AI powered services will assist fleet operators to consider all necessary information and rules when planning a transport.”

Nexogen CEO András Kovács added: “Our mission is to use data for leveraging the potential of logistics through intelligent, automated planning and optimisation. Adding Nexogen’s capabilities to Transporeon’s large portfolio of carrier services will allow us to drive digitisation, thereby improving efficiencies and reducing CO2 emissions in each freight transport. We therefore are pleased to become part of the Transporeon ecosystem and its vast community counting more than 130,000 carriers.”

Transporeon acquires SupplyStack and Nexogen

Posted on by David Priestman

With the acquisition of  SupplyStack and Nexogen, Transporeon customers profit once more from the fact that the services of the Transport Management Platform can be consumed in a modular way.

Transporeon continues to follow a growth strategy that embeds new functionalities directly in its network. The company thereby provides easy-to-consume capabilities, optimising transport flows and complementing respective in-house IT capabilities delivered by ERP and TMS systems for an ever more sustainable, cost and time-sensitive economy.

Transporeon acquires SupplyStack

Following the acquisition of ocean visibility and multimodal planning specialist Logit One in December 2021, Transporeon now further expands its capabilities in handling multimodal and part load transports by adding the services of SupplyStack to its Transport Management Platform.

Transporeon’s customers are now getting access to a comprehensive multimodal and part load planning and execution framework, supporting automation and optimisation of transport flows. Shippers and forwarders will be able to further automate their transport planning, assignment and execution.

After an integration period, SupplyStack customers will also obtain access to Transporeon’s carrier network, platform services, freight procurement and rate management as well as spot assignment, freight settlement and audit offerings.

In addition, they will profit from the integration of Transporeon’s Sixfold Real-Time Visibility (RTV) services into daily operations. This way, they no longer have to use visibility as a separate feature. Instead, RTV becomes an enterprise-wide capability that drives customer service, efficiency and lays the foundation for more sustainable transport execution.

“There is an increasing demand in the supply chain to improve transparency and reduce costs, while at the same time making freight transport more sustainable,” commented Stephan Sieber, CEO of Transporeon. “Adding multimodal and part load transport planning and execution capabilities to our platform through the acquisition of SupplyStack will provide our customers with the degree of flexibility necessary to achieve this goal.”

Nick Poels, Founder and CEO of SupplyStack, added: “Although powerful alone, we believe we are stronger together. This acquisition marks an important milestone in our mission to change the way freight is moved. Combining SupplyStack’s Transport Management solutions with Transporeon’s network will enable our customers to profit from our services – on global supply chains with a mix of modes as well as on domestic operations.

“We therefore are happy to become part of the Transporeon family, where our customers from different industries can manage their logistics operations following a true network approach.”

Transporeon acquires Nexogen

To support operators in optimally dispatching fleets, Transporeon is taking over AI road transport planning specialist Nexogen. The Software as a Service (SaaS) company helps carriers and asset owners improve utilisation by optimising matches between orders and trucks, drivers and itineraries. This way, Nexogen reduces overall freight transportation costs, empty runs and waiting times.

Already today, Transporeon offers comprehensive carrier services ranging from Market Intelligence, RTV on Ocean, Air and Road-transport, to autonomous freight procurement and document management. With the acquisition of Nexogen, the company enlarges its carrier service portfolio even further by introducing the AI Planner and the AI Operator.

The Nexogen AI planner connects to existing Transport Management Systems (TMS) and supports optimal asset utilisation by matching orders to trucks and drivers based on data. The AI planner’s engine plans ahead, also taking into account spot market data to ensure the highest level of fleet utilisation.

The Nexogen AI Operator helps to manage fleets more efficiently based on telematics and real-time insights. Offering a most efficient itinerary planning tool, it also provides dispatchers with real-time insights on shipment execution. The AI Operator uses its access to primary data sets, such as remaining hours of service and fuel consumption, to calculate tunnel, ferry, parking and gas station route planning as well as accurate ETAs – always in compliance with EU regulations.

Nexogen carriers will be able to receive spot transport offers directly from Transporeon, thereby obtaining access to additional loads. In addition, they will profit from the option to find subcontractors for non-matching shipments on the Transporeon platform.

With up to 30% inefficiencies in European road transport, driver shortages, and increasing sustainability targets, carriers and shippers need to work more efficiently, by reducing both empty runs and unprofitable waiting times.

Stephan Sieber, CEO of Transporeon, commented: “The integration of Nexogen into our Transport Management Platform will help carriers improve their asset utilisation and manage complexity. This is important with regard to the upcoming EU mobility package. While the new framework guarantees fair competition across the market and protects drivers through clear rules, it adds further regulation to logistics operations. Intelligent solutions are needed to successfully operate under this framework. Nexogen’s AI powered services will assist fleet operators to consider all necessary information and rules when planning a transport.”

Nexogen CEO András Kovács added: “Our mission is to use data for leveraging the potential of logistics through intelligent, automated planning and optimisation. Adding Nexogen’s capabilities to Transporeon’s large portfolio of carrier services will allow us to drive digitisation, thereby improving efficiencies and reducing CO2 emissions in each freight transport. We therefore are pleased to become part of the Transporeon ecosystem and its vast community counting more than 130,000 carriers.”

Supply chain tech firm KlearNow raises $50m

Posted on by David Priestman

KlearNow, a smart Logistics as a Service (LaaS) pioneer founded in 2018, raised $50m in new capital to transform broken supply chains – simplifying and providing real-time cargo visibility to the customs clearance and drayage processes. KlearNow says its AI-powered platform eases the worldwide supply chain disruptions that have left businesses grappling with delays and shortages.

The Series B investment was led by Kayne Partners Fund, the growth private equity group of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, with continued participation from existing investors including GreatPoint Ventures, Argean Capital, and Autotech Ventures, plus new investment from Activate Capital.

Though the global logistics market value is $8.6tr, it is a highly fragmented and archaic industry and one of the last to embrace technology and collaborative innovation. The global pandemic has further exacerbated supply chain bottlenecks, accelerating the need for digital transformation.

Investors were drawn to KlearNow’s platform as it eases import/export burdens by digitising and streamlining complex paper-based logistics processes – reducing manual entry times and human errors. The platform takes the digitised data to power its customs clearance marketplace, providing an unprecedented level of real-time end-to-end visibility, collaboration, and cost savings for its customers.

Since its $16m Series A funding round led by GreatPoint Ventures in January 2020, KlearNow has grown exponentially, increasing its customer base tenfold and its monthly revenue run rate by more than 50 times. During this time, US-based KlearNow has expanded into Canada, and launched its UK service in January 2021 to support UK and EU businesses operating in the post-Brexit landscape.

KlearNow recently added a drayage marketplace to its smart LaaS platform to support drayage companies facing planning and scheduling challenges and importers demanding extended visibility. With both customs clearance and drayage marketplaces, KlearNow provides a single view of multi-leg shipments from port of lading to the warehouse. The Series B investment strengthens KlearNow’s position as the go-to digital supply chain solution for businesses that trade across borders.

“This latest round of funding enables us to aggressively accelerate our technology development and deployment, geographical expansion, and talent investments, helping us transform supply chains that power commerce,” said Sam Tyagi, KlearNow Founder and CEO. “We are excited to have strategic partners and investors with deep knowledge in this space, and we believe that with their support, our technology can lead to a meaningful, sustainable impact on global supply chains.”

“The supply chain and logistics industry is primed for incredible disruption in the upcoming years, and continued investment in technology and tech-enabled infrastructure is a critical component of the solution,” said Nishita Cummings, Managing Partner and Co-Head of Growth Equity at Kayne Partners. “KlearNow is the leading technology partner in this space, with an advanced AI-based platform that removes friction in moving goods across borders in an easy, efficient, and cost-effective manner.”

Ashok Krishnamurthi, Managing Partner at GreatPoint Ventures, added: “We are more excited than ever to have partnered with KlearNow. Digitalisation has become mission-critical for supply chain logistics. KlearNow provides tremendous value for the supply chain logistics ecosystem, demonstrated by the rapid adoption of its platform by importers, transporters, brokers, and freight forwarders.

“We are thrilled that KlearNow has continued to expand beyond real-time shipment visibility, offering new unified workflows. During the pandemic lockdowns when the world and companies needed work from home capabilities, KlearNow stepped up, unshackling employees from the office, scanners, and fax machines. With a smart digital solution, supply chain logistics teams were able to work remotely from home and leave the paper world behind. Visibility, productivity, and sustainability are a great combination.”

Supply chain tech firm KlearNow raises $50m

Posted on by Keith McKinley

KlearNow, a smart Logistics as a Service (LaaS) pioneer founded in 2018, raised $50m in new capital to transform broken supply chains – simplifying and providing real-time cargo visibility to the customs clearance and drayage processes. KlearNow says its AI-powered platform eases the worldwide supply chain disruptions that have left businesses grappling with delays and shortages.

The Series B investment was led by Kayne Partners Fund, the growth private equity group of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, with continued participation from existing investors including GreatPoint Ventures, Argean Capital, and Autotech Ventures, plus new investment from Activate Capital.

Though the global logistics market value is $8.6tr, it is a highly fragmented and archaic industry and one of the last to embrace technology and collaborative innovation. The global pandemic has further exacerbated supply chain bottlenecks, accelerating the need for digital transformation.

Investors were drawn to KlearNow’s platform as it eases import/export burdens by digitising and streamlining complex paper-based logistics processes – reducing manual entry times and human errors. The platform takes the digitised data to power its customs clearance marketplace, providing an unprecedented level of real-time end-to-end visibility, collaboration, and cost savings for its customers.

Since its $16m Series A funding round led by GreatPoint Ventures in January 2020, KlearNow has grown exponentially, increasing its customer base tenfold and its monthly revenue run rate by more than 50 times. During this time, US-based KlearNow has expanded into Canada, and launched its UK service in January 2021 to support UK and EU businesses operating in the post-Brexit landscape.

KlearNow recently added a drayage marketplace to its smart LaaS platform to support drayage companies facing planning and scheduling challenges and importers demanding extended visibility. With both customs clearance and drayage marketplaces, KlearNow provides a single view of multi-leg shipments from port of lading to the warehouse. The Series B investment strengthens KlearNow’s position as the go-to digital supply chain solution for businesses that trade across borders.

“This latest round of funding enables us to aggressively accelerate our technology development and deployment, geographical expansion, and talent investments, helping us transform supply chains that power commerce,” said Sam Tyagi, KlearNow Founder and CEO. “We are excited to have strategic partners and investors with deep knowledge in this space, and we believe that with their support, our technology can lead to a meaningful, sustainable impact on global supply chains.”

“The supply chain and logistics industry is primed for incredible disruption in the upcoming years, and continued investment in technology and tech-enabled infrastructure is a critical component of the solution,” said Nishita Cummings, Managing Partner and Co-Head of Growth Equity at Kayne Partners. “KlearNow is the leading technology partner in this space, with an advanced AI-based platform that removes friction in moving goods across borders in an easy, efficient, and cost-effective manner.”

Ashok Krishnamurthi, Managing Partner at GreatPoint Ventures, added: “We are more excited than ever to have partnered with KlearNow. Digitalisation has become mission-critical for supply chain logistics. KlearNow provides tremendous value for the supply chain logistics ecosystem, demonstrated by the rapid adoption of its platform by importers, transporters, brokers, and freight forwarders.

“We are thrilled that KlearNow has continued to expand beyond real-time shipment visibility, offering new unified workflows. During the pandemic lockdowns when the world and companies needed work from home capabilities, KlearNow stepped up, unshackling employees from the office, scanners, and fax machines. With a smart digital solution, supply chain logistics teams were able to work remotely from home and leave the paper world behind. Visibility, productivity, and sustainability are a great combination.”

Tanger Med reports container traffic record

Posted on by Keith McKinley

7,173,870 TEU of containers were handled in Tanger Med port complex, up by 24% compared to 2020. This traffic results from the steady ramp-up of Tanger Med 2 port after the successive commissioning of the terminals TC4 in 2019 and TC3 in 2021.

This result confirms the leadership of Tanger Med in the Mediterranean and Africa, and consolidates the position of this major hub for global maritime alliances led respectively by Maersk Line, CMA CGM and Hapag Lloyd.

101,054,713 tons of goods were handled for the first time in Tanger Med port complex, up by 25% compared to 2020. Indeed, the tonnage handled by Tanger Med port complex represents more than 50% of the overall tonnage handled by all Moroccan ports.

The port complex handled 407,459 trucks in 2021, up by 14% compared to 2020. This traffic was mainly driven by the resumption of industrial exports as well as by the good performance of the agricultural season and agro-industrial exports.

429,509 new vehicles were handled at the two vehicle terminals of Tanger Med port in 2021, an increase of 20% compared to the previous year. The traffic mainly includes:

  • 278,651 Renault vehicles including 250,532 for export
  • A rise in exports of PSA vehicles: 100,030 cars exported

Liquid bulk traffic has increased by 9% compared to 2020. It recorded a total traffic of 8,744,900 tons of hydrocarbons handled. Solid bulk traffic recorded a total of 342,804 tons processed, an increase of 13% compared to 2020 driven by the traffic of steel coils, wind blades and grain. 587,320 passengers crossed Tanger Med Port in 2021, down by 14% from 2020. 10,902 vessels called at Tanger Med in 2021, up by 12% from 2020. Over the past year, the port complex has welcomed nearly 929 mega-ships (over 290m in size).

These performances accomplished during 2021 affirm the position of the port complex as a major strategic hub but also its key role as a privileged logistics platform serving the national logistic competitiveness.

The achievements are the result of the continued collaboration of all the partners of Tanger Med port complex. Particularly ship-owners, concessionaires, local authorities and administrations.

project44 attracts $420m investment

Posted on by David Priestman

project44, a leading supply chain visibility platform, has received an investment totalling US$420m.  A syndicate led by Thoma Bravo, TPG and Goldman Sachs Asset Management with participation from Emergence Capital, Insight Partners, Chicago Ventures, Generation Investment Management, Sapphire and Sozo Ventures acquired equity interests resulting in a pre-money valuation of $2.2bn, and Sixth Street committed to make available additional funding, in support of the company’s strategic acquisition program and product development activities.

When combined with its $202m equity raise in May of 2021, project44 has set a funding record for Logistics Tech enterprise SaaS companies. These investments position project44 to accelerate its mission to help leading brands optimise the movement of products across supply chains, delivering better resiliency, sustainability and value for their customers.

“Today, project44 is helping companies solve supply chain challenges ranging from inflationary pressure and lockdowns to unpredictable weather and bottlenecks at ports,” said Jett McCandless (pictured), Founder & CEO of project44. “Our growth over the past year speaks to these macroeconomic tailwinds and the competitive edge we can provide to our customers. With ongoing support from our investors, we can offer even more value to our customers and solidify our position as the global network that powers the future of the supply chain.”

Throughout 2021, project44 cemented its position as the #1 company in supply chain visibility with global port-to-door coverage across all modes of transportation. The company now generates more than $100m in annual recurring revenue (ARR), the largest Generation 2 logistics tech in the world.

The most influential analysts within the logistics industry also rank project44 ahead of its competitors. Placing first in FreightTech 25, Gartner Voice of the Customer and G2 have all awarded project44 their highest honours. In addition, Chicago Inno named project44 among the best 100 places to work in the city.

“Supply chain visibility has become increasingly important as shortages, delays and bottlenecks ramp up.  project44’s potential to solve even the most complex of these issues is unparalleled,” said Robert (Tre) Sayle, Partner at Thoma Bravo. “By continuously evolving to meet customer needs, project44 has developed a revolutionary platform that adds significant value to the entire global supply chain.”

“project44 has been scaling at an impressive pace, executing decisively on its vision of a global end-to-end supply chain visibility platform,” said Malte Janzarik, Partner at TPG based in Europe. “Supply chain visibility has become a critical technology to solving large-scale problems in the world today, and project44 has emerged as the global market leader. The breadth of data project44 offers and ease of access for shippers, logistics providers and carriers are unmatched. We believe that project44’s next-gen platform and highly valuable network will continue to drive tremendous growth.”

TPG is investing in project44 out of TPG Tech Adjacencies (TTAD), an investment vehicle focused on flexible capital solutions for the technology industry.

Meeting critical need

As the supply chain connective tissue, project44 offers the largest carrier network of any supply chain visibility provider with more than 142,732 multimodal carrier integrations and 2.7 million trucks.  Shippers and logistics providers depend on project44 to help them navigate today’s increasingly complex supply chains, improving their sustainability, building transportation resiliency and meeting the evolving demands of their customers.  project44 supports more than 1,000 organisations across industries including leading brands such as Amazon, Baker Hughes, Coop, CNHI, Danone, Dollar General, FedEx, General Mills, Goodyear, Kuehne & Nagel, Lenovo, McKesson, Mondelez, Nestle, The Home Depot and Unilever.

project44’s momentum speaks to its differentiation and immense lead in the supply chain visibility space. Following an exceptional Q3 2021, project44 has landed $12.7m of newly-booked ARR in Q4. The company has closed 117 logos over that timeframe, contributing to YoY bookings increase of 170% and YoY logo growth of 216%.

In addition to new business wins, net retention for 2021 is at 133%, while annualised gross retention was 96%. project44’s ARR has reached over $100m with a subscription gross margin of 70%, which is up 3% year-over-year. To build on this success, project44 will be nearly doubling its investment in product and engineering in 2022 to deliver improved real-time visibility across more modes of transportation in more regions.

project44 continues to expand its international footprint, offering supply chain visibility in 166 countries. More than 1,000 team members work with project44 at its 17 global offices. Over the coming year the company plans to hire hundreds of new talented team members in China, Europe, Latin America, North America, and Japan.

project44 also hired its first director of diversity, equity, inclusion & culture executive, Ivana Savic-Grubisich. The company is committed to hiring team members who reflect the rich diversity of the communities in which it operates.

In 2021, project44 added five new executives to the team to manage its growing footprint. Charlie Ungashick joined as Chief Marketing Officer in February and Diane Gordon joined as SVP, Global Customer Success in March. In November, Elliot Rodgers joined as Chief People Officer, Jennifer Coyne was appointed General Counsel and Andy Grygiel returned as Chief Brand Officer. These experienced executives bring unique insight to accelerate project44’s growth.

Throughout 2021, project44 increased its value to shippers and logistics providers through acquisitions of leading companies in the market offering complementary solutions. The September acquisition of Convey has enabled project44 to extend real-time visibility and exception management to last-mile, including parcel, courier, white-glove doorstep delivery, and visibility into item returns.

Ocean Insights, acquired in March, brought much-demanded visibility into cargo at sea. ClearMetal, acquired in May, established project44 as the leader in artificial intelligence and machine learning with automation that reduces costs throughout the supply chain.

Customer quotes

“project44 has enabled us to meet our commitment to customers in a year of unpredictability,” said Pat Kenefick, Vice President, Global Distribution and Logistics at AbbVie. “With awareness of where our goods are located, we can adapt to interruptions and make proactive decisions to ensure that our distributors are stocked with inventory. Supply chain visibility is a game changer for our ability to drive growth and enhance patient experiences in a challenging economic environment.”

“Haribo is committed to delivering our beloved products on time and at the high level of quality our brand is known for,” said Stefan Sorce, Head of global logistics and managing director in the Haribo Logistics Company, at Haribo. “This is a core piece of what has allowed us to become a successful business. We benefit from being a global company with a decentralised manufacturing structure. A perfectly coordinated global supply chain is essential for us and that is why we continuously invest in it. We chose to work with project44, the leader in real-time transportation visibility. These insights will help us increase the resiliency of our supply chain and enable faster and smarter decisions that will get Haribo’s products into the hands of our customers.”

“The ongoing events of the last two years have placed unprecedented strain on the supply chains of consumer products manufacturers, and this has only served to highlight the critical need to mitigate risk and increase supply chain resilience,” said Alessandro Bonanno, Head of Global Logistics and Customer Service at Beiersdorf AG. “Partnering with project44 will provide Beiersdorf with improved visibility into our transportation flows and shipments, which will help us cope better with any future supply chain disruptions and fulfil consumer demand.”

“Our team brought on project44 because of its global visibility into import and export arrival and departures,” said Hiroshi Etani, Managing Executive Officer, at Yamato Transport Co., Ltd., Japan’s largest delivery company, “The broad network of multimodal transportation tracking brings more predictability to our business and helps us better communicate with our customers.”

project44 attracts $420m investment

Posted on by David Priestman

project44, a leading supply chain visibility platform, has received an investment totalling US$420m.  A syndicate led by Thoma Bravo, TPG and Goldman Sachs Asset Management with participation from Emergence Capital, Insight Partners, Chicago Ventures, Generation Investment Management, Sapphire and Sozo Ventures acquired equity interests resulting in a pre-money valuation of $2.2bn, and Sixth Street committed to make available additional funding, in support of the company’s strategic acquisition program and product development activities.

When combined with its $202m equity raise in May of 2021, project44 has set a funding record for Logistics Tech enterprise SaaS companies. These investments position project44 to accelerate its mission to help leading brands optimise the movement of products across supply chains, delivering better resiliency, sustainability and value for their customers.

“Today, project44 is helping companies solve supply chain challenges ranging from inflationary pressure and lockdowns to unpredictable weather and bottlenecks at ports,” said Jett McCandless (pictured), Founder & CEO of project44. “Our growth over the past year speaks to these macroeconomic tailwinds and the competitive edge we can provide to our customers. With ongoing support from our investors, we can offer even more value to our customers and solidify our position as the global network that powers the future of the supply chain.”

Throughout 2021, project44 cemented its position as the #1 company in supply chain visibility with global port-to-door coverage across all modes of transportation. The company now generates more than $100m in annual recurring revenue (ARR), the largest Generation 2 logistics tech in the world.

The most influential analysts within the logistics industry also rank project44 ahead of its competitors. Placing first in FreightTech 25, Gartner Voice of the Customer and G2 have all awarded project44 their highest honours. In addition, Chicago Inno named project44 among the best 100 places to work in the city.

“Supply chain visibility has become increasingly important as shortages, delays and bottlenecks ramp up.  project44’s potential to solve even the most complex of these issues is unparalleled,” said Robert (Tre) Sayle, Partner at Thoma Bravo. “By continuously evolving to meet customer needs, project44 has developed a revolutionary platform that adds significant value to the entire global supply chain.”

“project44 has been scaling at an impressive pace, executing decisively on its vision of a global end-to-end supply chain visibility platform,” said Malte Janzarik, Partner at TPG based in Europe. “Supply chain visibility has become a critical technology to solving large-scale problems in the world today, and project44 has emerged as the global market leader. The breadth of data project44 offers and ease of access for shippers, logistics providers and carriers are unmatched. We believe that project44’s next-gen platform and highly valuable network will continue to drive tremendous growth.”

TPG is investing in project44 out of TPG Tech Adjacencies (TTAD), an investment vehicle focused on flexible capital solutions for the technology industry.

Meeting critical need

As the supply chain connective tissue, project44 offers the largest carrier network of any supply chain visibility provider with more than 142,732 multimodal carrier integrations and 2.7 million trucks.  Shippers and logistics providers depend on project44 to help them navigate today’s increasingly complex supply chains, improving their sustainability, building transportation resiliency and meeting the evolving demands of their customers.  project44 supports more than 1,000 organisations across industries including leading brands such as Amazon, Baker Hughes, Coop, CNHI, Danone, Dollar General, FedEx, General Mills, Goodyear, Kuehne & Nagel, Lenovo, McKesson, Mondelez, Nestle, The Home Depot and Unilever.

project44’s momentum speaks to its differentiation and immense lead in the supply chain visibility space. Following an exceptional Q3 2021, project44 has landed $12.7m of newly-booked ARR in Q4. The company has closed 117 logos over that timeframe, contributing to YoY bookings increase of 170% and YoY logo growth of 216%.

In addition to new business wins, net retention for 2021 is at 133%, while annualised gross retention was 96%. project44’s ARR has reached over $100m with a subscription gross margin of 70%, which is up 3% year-over-year. To build on this success, project44 will be nearly doubling its investment in product and engineering in 2022 to deliver improved real-time visibility across more modes of transportation in more regions.

project44 continues to expand its international footprint, offering supply chain visibility in 166 countries. More than 1,000 team members work with project44 at its 17 global offices. Over the coming year the company plans to hire hundreds of new talented team members in China, Europe, Latin America, North America, and Japan.

project44 also hired its first director of diversity, equity, inclusion & culture executive, Ivana Savic-Grubisich. The company is committed to hiring team members who reflect the rich diversity of the communities in which it operates.

In 2021, project44 added five new executives to the team to manage its growing footprint. Charlie Ungashick joined as Chief Marketing Officer in February and Diane Gordon joined as SVP, Global Customer Success in March. In November, Elliot Rodgers joined as Chief People Officer, Jennifer Coyne was appointed General Counsel and Andy Grygiel returned as Chief Brand Officer. These experienced executives bring unique insight to accelerate project44’s growth.

Throughout 2021, project44 increased its value to shippers and logistics providers through acquisitions of leading companies in the market offering complementary solutions. The September acquisition of Convey has enabled project44 to extend real-time visibility and exception management to last-mile, including parcel, courier, white-glove doorstep delivery, and visibility into item returns.

Ocean Insights, acquired in March, brought much-demanded visibility into cargo at sea. ClearMetal, acquired in May, established project44 as the leader in artificial intelligence and machine learning with automation that reduces costs throughout the supply chain.

Customer quotes

“project44 has enabled us to meet our commitment to customers in a year of unpredictability,” said Pat Kenefick, Vice President, Global Distribution and Logistics at AbbVie. “With awareness of where our goods are located, we can adapt to interruptions and make proactive decisions to ensure that our distributors are stocked with inventory. Supply chain visibility is a game changer for our ability to drive growth and enhance patient experiences in a challenging economic environment.”

“Haribo is committed to delivering our beloved products on time and at the high level of quality our brand is known for,” said Stefan Sorce, Head of global logistics and managing director in the Haribo Logistics Company, at Haribo. “This is a core piece of what has allowed us to become a successful business. We benefit from being a global company with a decentralised manufacturing structure. A perfectly coordinated global supply chain is essential for us and that is why we continuously invest in it. We chose to work with project44, the leader in real-time transportation visibility. These insights will help us increase the resiliency of our supply chain and enable faster and smarter decisions that will get Haribo’s products into the hands of our customers.”

“The ongoing events of the last two years have placed unprecedented strain on the supply chains of consumer products manufacturers, and this has only served to highlight the critical need to mitigate risk and increase supply chain resilience,” said Alessandro Bonanno, Head of Global Logistics and Customer Service at Beiersdorf AG. “Partnering with project44 will provide Beiersdorf with improved visibility into our transportation flows and shipments, which will help us cope better with any future supply chain disruptions and fulfil consumer demand.”

“Our team brought on project44 because of its global visibility into import and export arrival and departures,” said Hiroshi Etani, Managing Executive Officer, at Yamato Transport Co., Ltd., Japan’s largest delivery company, “The broad network of multimodal transportation tracking brings more predictability to our business and helps us better communicate with our customers.”

VisionNav introduces driverless forklifts to Europe

Posted on by David Priestman

VisionNav Robotics – the driverless, vision-guided industrial vehicle specialist – is bringing its range of fully automated, vision-guided forklift trucks and intelligent operating systems to the European market.

The VisionNav range includes driverless counterbalanced forklift trucks, reach trucks, stackers and tow tractors and, in keeping with the company’s global marketing strategy, VisionNav Robotics is looking to appoint distribution partners throughout Europe.

Nestle, DHL and Walmart are among the high-profile businesses to have already adopted the VisionNav driverless truck system, while countless small- and medium-sized forklift users are also benefiting from the solution.

In simple terms the ‘vision-based’ navigation technology at the heart of VisionNav’s operator-free forklifts uses a vehicle-mounted camera to sense the environment in which the vehicle is operating. Information concerning the structural design and storage system lay-out of the facility where trucks are deployed is stored as off-line maps which the visual navigation system matches with real-time images received from the camera to navigate the forklifts efficiently and safely around the store. With multiple vehicles controlled by the system, the trucks are directed to their next location via the shortest, fastest and safest route for optimum throughput performance.

Visual navigation technology is not only highly efficient, it is quick and easy to install and brings a rapid return on investment. The highly flexible technology allows driverless industrial trucks to be adopted with minimal disruption to a site’s existing intralogistics process and, typically, ROI is achieved after a period of 18-24 months.

Capable of operating outside and inside in even the most dimly lit buildings, VisionNav driverless forklifts undertake every type of task that would be expected of a traditional manually operated forklift – including vehicle loading and unloading, pallet put-away and retrieval in both standard and very narrow aisle racking configurations, as well as pallet and stillage movements throughout the warehouse.

In addition to the obvious savings in labour costs that driverless forklifts bring, other benefits delivered by VisionNav automated lift trucks include: reduced damage to goods, racking and trucks; greater picking accuracy; and more efficient use of the available storage space.

Established in 2016, VisionNav Robotics is among the fastest-growing operator-free industrial vehicle manufacturers in the world. Between the beginning of 2019 and 2021 the company’s turnover increased 10-fold while from 2020-21 order volume grew by more than 300% year-on-year. During the same period, VisionNav’s typical contract value increased by 150% with new business from existing clients accounting for nearly half of the company’s order intake.

Jason Zang, VisionNav Robotics’ Head of Sales – Europe, comments: “When it comes to running a lift truck fleet, the forklift driver is often the biggest cost. Salaries, bonuses, training and myriad other expenses combined with hidden extras such as the damage to goods or a building’s infrastructure caused by a carelessly driven truck or, worse still, injuries to personnel, all add up to a considerable sum.

“In addition, across the world there is a shortage of forklift drivers, so it is not surprising that more and more companies are adopting automated materials handling equipment (MHE) to optimise the efficiency of their warehouse intralogistics processes.

“The VisionNav range of driverless forklifts uses 5G communication and artificial intelligence to deliver flexible unmanned lift truck technology that can be easily adopted by every truck user to upgrade their warehouse operations.”

VisionNav introduces driverless forklifts to Europe

Posted on by David Priestman

VisionNav Robotics – the driverless, vision-guided industrial vehicle specialist – is bringing its range of fully automated, vision-guided forklift trucks and intelligent operating systems to the European market.

The VisionNav range includes driverless counterbalanced forklift trucks, reach trucks, stackers and tow tractors and, in keeping with the company’s global marketing strategy, VisionNav Robotics is looking to appoint distribution partners throughout Europe.

Nestle, DHL and Walmart are among the high-profile businesses to have already adopted the VisionNav driverless truck system, while countless small- and medium-sized forklift users are also benefiting from the solution.

In simple terms the ‘vision-based’ navigation technology at the heart of VisionNav’s operator-free forklifts uses a vehicle-mounted camera to sense the environment in which the vehicle is operating. Information concerning the structural design and storage system lay-out of the facility where trucks are deployed is stored as off-line maps which the visual navigation system matches with real-time images received from the camera to navigate the forklifts efficiently and safely around the store. With multiple vehicles controlled by the system, the trucks are directed to their next location via the shortest, fastest and safest route for optimum throughput performance.

Visual navigation technology is not only highly efficient, it is quick and easy to install and brings a rapid return on investment. The highly flexible technology allows driverless industrial trucks to be adopted with minimal disruption to a site’s existing intralogistics process and, typically, ROI is achieved after a period of 18-24 months.

Capable of operating outside and inside in even the most dimly lit buildings, VisionNav driverless forklifts undertake every type of task that would be expected of a traditional manually operated forklift – including vehicle loading and unloading, pallet put-away and retrieval in both standard and very narrow aisle racking configurations, as well as pallet and stillage movements throughout the warehouse.

In addition to the obvious savings in labour costs that driverless forklifts bring, other benefits delivered by VisionNav automated lift trucks include: reduced damage to goods, racking and trucks; greater picking accuracy; and more efficient use of the available storage space.

Established in 2016, VisionNav Robotics is among the fastest-growing operator-free industrial vehicle manufacturers in the world. Between the beginning of 2019 and 2021 the company’s turnover increased 10-fold while from 2020-21 order volume grew by more than 300% year-on-year. During the same period, VisionNav’s typical contract value increased by 150% with new business from existing clients accounting for nearly half of the company’s order intake.

Jason Zang, VisionNav Robotics’ Head of Sales – Europe, comments: “When it comes to running a lift truck fleet, the forklift driver is often the biggest cost. Salaries, bonuses, training and myriad other expenses combined with hidden extras such as the damage to goods or a building’s infrastructure caused by a carelessly driven truck or, worse still, injuries to personnel, all add up to a considerable sum.

“In addition, across the world there is a shortage of forklift drivers, so it is not surprising that more and more companies are adopting automated materials handling equipment (MHE) to optimise the efficiency of their warehouse intralogistics processes.

“The VisionNav range of driverless forklifts uses 5G communication and artificial intelligence to deliver flexible unmanned lift truck technology that can be easily adopted by every truck user to upgrade their warehouse operations.”

Supply chain crisis drives consumers to buy locally

Posted on by Keith McKinley

As the global supply chain crisis continues to disrupt the retail industry, consumers are being forced to change their shopping habits and buy local (within their own countries) for speed and availability, new global research from SOTI has found.

Consumers are feeling the effects of supply chain issues first-hand, with over half (57%) of global consumers (58% UK) saying they have recently experienced one or more items not being available, have had to purchase alternatives when preferred products were not available, or have had to go to different retailers to find items in stock. Worse still, over one third of shoppers (35% global/38% UK) said items they wanted to purchase have not been available at all.

Compounding these supply issues, more than a third (34% global/30% UK) said they feel delivery times have been slower than usual and more than half (53% global and UK) said that shipping/delivery time is the most frustrating aspect of ordering online.

Unwilling to compromise on speed and availability, consumers are now paying special attention to the purchasing journey. More than a third (36% global and UK) said that if delivery or pick up of an item takes longer than two days, they will look elsewhere. Meanwhile, with deliveries from outside their own country now taking longer to arrive, more than half of consumers (52% global/60% UK) have changed their habits, saying they are now less likely to order an item that requires shipping from overseas than they were a year ago.

As part of the From Clicks to Ships: Navigating the Global Supply Chain Crisis 2022 Report, SOTI surveyed 10,000 consumers across the UK, US, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Sweden, France and Australia to understand how consumers are responding to the supply chain crisis, as well as their expectations of brands and retailers to cope with it.

It’s clear from the findings that consumers are unwilling to give retailers any leeway. When asked about their expectations and intentions:

  • Over two-thirds (68% global and UK) agreed that they now expect to know where their order is throughout the delivery process at all times
  • More than half (61% global/60% UK) agree they are continuing to shop with brands that can deliver goods the fastest
  • More than half (52% global and UK) agree they would be more likely to shop from a retailer’s store if multiple return points were offered
  • Over one third (35% global and UK) agreed that knowing who a retailer’s delivery partner is has resulted in them not completing an order with that retailer

The onus is now on retailers to adapt to these behaviours and match up with consumer preferences.

“Brands and retailers are having to rethink how they approach customer relationships and go-to-market strategies in response to this state of flux,” explains Sarah Edge, Director of Sales, UK and Ireland at SOTI. “It’s imperative they have the right data at their fingertips to cater to these changing consumer preferences. The brands that have the flexibility that allows them to provide the best possible customer experience, no matter how or where customers shop, will be the most resilient.”

Looking to the future, when asked if they would consider using any of the following alternative delivery options in 2022, 63% (global and UK) said they would consider in-store delivery/collection (“click and collect”/buy online and pick up in-store) and half (50% global/46% UK) would consider delivery to a designated drop-off point.

Consumers are also open to even more significant changes in the way they receive their goods as technology advances. Almost half (46% global/45% UK) said they would consider either autonomous vehicles to deliver larger packages to their home or other convenient location, or delivery drones to deliver small packages (43% global/39% UK).

“Having the right mobile technology will help retailers to improve both their communications and customer experience across all their channels. Ensuring they have mobile-enabled operational intelligence, will give brands and retailers the ability to diagnose problems quickly and adapt fast to meet ever-changing consumer needs and preferences. The only certainty is uncertainty in this current retail environment. But, by ensuring their consumers have choice and flexibility, brands and retailers, as well as their logistics partners, can prepare themselves for all eventualities,” concludes Edge.

CLICK HERE to read the full report

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