Increasing delivery traffic: from stress factors to safety risks
The success of a company today depends far more on efficient, reliable and secure processes in delivery traffic than it did a decade ago: globalisation and more complex value chains have led to an increase in suppliers and an increase in delivery traffic.
Geopolitical conflicts and increasing regulation by authorities mean that delivery traffic management no longer works without complex authorisation processes.
The article describes the importance of software-supported tools such as VISIT Logistics in making the complexity of authorisation processes manageable.
Why delivery traffic management is not the same as supply chain management
The term delivery traffic management used here is one of many synonyms for delivery management or so-called supplier management. There is no exact definition for the term delivery traffic management. It is categorised between related terms such as supplier management (describes the customer-supplier relationship) and supplier management.
In simple terms, delivery traffic management describes the organisation of freight and all approval processes: Beginning with the arrival of the freight in the lorry on the company premises through to the departure of the empty lorry or vice versa: lorry without load arrives and collects goods on the factory premises. Data capture by a software solution therefore includes not only the vehicle but also the driver and the haulage company/subcontractor. The importance of legally compliant, ideally software-supported authorisation processes today is demonstrated by cases of fraud, which can cause millions in damages.
How delivery traffic management systems work
Software such as VISIT Logistics records the arrival time of each delivery vehicle at the upstream company site. To manage complex delivery traffic, logistics managers can create transport orders for each location. All relevant data such as delivery note numbers and type of freight can be stored here. This view gives those responsible an overview of all freight movements on the company premises without having to be present themselves.
Whether with or without gate personnel: the first point of contact in the authorisation process serves to verify the driver. The software uses an ID card scanner to record the driver's personal details and thus legitimises their access to the site. The driver's destination loading point is also verified here. When an access card is issued, the driver is given restricted access rights, e.g. to the bathroom.
The next step in the approval process is the access release of the truck, which is now allowed to move from the waiting position (e.g. external car park) to its destination position, which was recorded when it arrived. At this point, good delivery traffic management offers several options for communicating with the waiting lorry: Firstly, a radio message receiver can be used, which the driver receives on arrival. Alternatively, the driver can orientate himself on a display and wait until his number plate is ‘called’. Depending on the type of radio message receiver, data such as arrival time, time of call-off and acknowledgement of the call-off are recorded or acknowledged. All data is archived. Another option for access is to notify the driver via SMS on his mobile phone. Modern systems for delivery traffic management offer users several options for communicating with drivers and organising the handling of goods efficiently, transparently and safely.
Once the driver has delivered his freight to a company, leaving the premises must also be documented in a legally secure manner. This is done by lorry acknowledgement. The prerequisite for this is that all loading and unloading operations have been completed and the load has been secured. If a driver drives a lorry to several loading ramps, an individual transport order can be acknowledged at each ramp. The visit process is only acknowledged once all individual transport orders have been acknowledged. Once the visit process has been acknowledged, the driver is authorised to leave the company premises. This time - as well as the time of entry - is recorded and stored and documented in a data record together with all relevant personal, vehicle and freight data. When leaving the premises, the driver only has to hand in his access card at the card reader and can leave the premises.
From retail to the defence industry: without delivery traffic management, things get critical
The workflow described above is already established for many companies today, as is the use of VISIT. Companies with strict security regulations in particular require a delivery traffic management system with additional functions: In these areas, it must be ensured that highly restricted access areas can only be entered or driven through by authorised persons. High-security companies therefore require software-supported delivery traffic management and visitor management systems with integrated identity verification at the highest technical level. Access is not only subject to authorisation, but always involves checking a sanctions list. Companies achieve maximum transparency with software such as VISIT, which takes all documentation requirements into account. Especially in politically uncertain times, delivery traffic and visitor management systems are becoming indispensable solutions for high-security facilities.
The future of delivery traffic management: companies must face these challenges
The geopolitical situation and extreme events such as the coronavirus pandemic show that the globalisation model is being called into question in many places and that companies are willing to think more in terms of localisation. This in no way calls into question the usefulness of delivery traffic management. Even the increased use of local transport companies and service providers does not work without rules, authorisation processes or transparency. It can even be assumed that the increasing local networking will bring a plus in flexibility and speed, but also a wider range of service providers/transport companies. Good delivery traffic management makes even large volumes of data easy to handle, supports flexibility in the supply chains, makes processes transparent and relieves the burden on those responsible. In this way, delivery traffic management also helps companies to become more resilient and have the necessary robustness in times of crisis. Keyword robustness: Logistics operates in an area of tension in which increasing traffic meets limited infrastructure. Although software-supported delivery traffic management does not relieve congestion on the roads, it does at least prevent congestion on the surrounding infrastructure through structured processes. Delivery traffic management systems such as VISIT are also technically designed in such a way that companies can efficiently manage the increasing regulatory requirements.