Technology news and briefs for the week of Dec. 11, 2022: 

Canada nears 60 certified ELDs

Transport Canada has approved another electronic logging device.

Verizon Business’s Verizon Connect Fleet platform, which is integrated with the Verizon Connect fleet management system, has received Canadian ELD Certification from a third-party organization ahead of full ELD mandate enforcement on Jan. 1.

The mandate requires federally regulated motor carriers and drivers who maintain daily paper logs for recording hours of service to replace existing electronic recording devices – or upgrade software – and paper logs with ELDs that have been tested and certified by an accredited, third-party certification body.

So far, 58 devices have been approved for Canada’s EDL list, compared to more than 600 in the U.S.

Locus expands Dispatch Management Platform

Locus Technologies has launched a new feature of its Dispatch Management Platform that aims to help improve delivery speeds in last-mile logistics.

The feature, Delivery Linked Checkout (DLC), is an integrated capability that enables retail businesses to deliver orders on customer-preferred timelines while maintaining optimal capacity and service efficiencies.

The new feature offers several key functions:

• Optimizing deliveries via capacity-led slot bookings – This feature accounts for available capacity, logistics costs and business constraints, identifying and offering only the available slots upon checkout for end-consumers. This powers first-attempt and on-time delivery rates.

• Multiple delivery window options – By providing a wide range of preferred delivery options across 10-minute, express, 2-hour, same-day or next-day fulfillment, retailers can satisfy customer expectations and capture a broader set of shopper segments. The feature also incentivizes customer loyalty by unlocking preferred delivery windows for high-value customers.

• Customer-friendly post-fulfillment journey – This allows customers to choose alternate dates and times for shipment delivery even after order dispatch. It also enables them to cancel an order via the tracking page, resulting in a positive customer experience.

• Route optimization – This feature creates precise delivery schedules by factoring in customer availability, clustering deliveries and reverse shipments from the same service areas to limit the instances of reattempts and failed deliveries; this helps offset carbon emissions, reduce empty miles and ensure optimal load capacity. It also gives customers options to choose sustainable delivery time slots that facilitate more carbon-efficient route plans.

Two new trackers hit global market

Global telematics company ATrack Technology Inc. has launched two new products to enable the industry to improve fleet and asset management efficiency and reduce overall operating costs.

The AK300 vehicle tracker, with numerous interfaces, can support multiple vehicle applications suitable for various commercial vehicles, assisting logistics operators in improving fleet management efficiency.

It can monitor real-time vehicle positioning and detect important data, including mileage, speed, fuel consumption and engine status. It can detect abnormal vehicle status and negative driving behavior such as idling and speeding. This allows for early detection to perform preventive maintenance and to improve driver behavior – all of which can improve fleet management efficiency. In addition, the AK300 can be equipped with various sensors for driver identification (RFID), SOS emergency assistance or temperature sensor, etc., and supports wireless Bluetooth communication. The tracker can also be equipped with tire pressure sensors to monitor tire pressure and temperature or detect abnormal conditions such as deflation to avert accident risks.

The AS500 long standby asset tracker meets the IP69K standard for waterproof and dustproof housing design and combined with high-efficiency power-saving technology can operate for up to 10 years under continuous daily use. It enables the industry to effectively manage high-value assets without requiring a power supply 24/7 using cloud-based management.

With a wide operating temperature range of -40°C to 80°C, the AS500 can operate stably in extreme conditions. It is suitable for the management of high-value unpowered assets, including containers, heavy machinery and other assets.

The AS500 has 4G LTE Cat. M1 and NB-IoT communication, as well as built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Beacon technology, which can support both outdoor and indoor positioning. In addition, it can be used in a variety of applications in conjunction with software capabilities and accessories. These include motion detection, which can determine whether the monitored object is moving or calculate the work hours of machinery via the built-in acceleration sensor and establishing a geofence to ensure that the monitored assets are located or operated within an expected area.

In addition, there is an abnormality alarm to detect either assets going out of a defined work area or asset theft. Itcan be equipped with a door-opening detection magnet to monitor whether a container door is opened at an inappropriate time or place. The AS500 can also be equipped with a tamper detection magnet, which will automatically send a notification when the device is improperly removed to prevent the theft of important assets.

New Amazon application aims to increase supply chain visibility

Amazon.com Inc.’s Amazon Web Services (AWS) has launched AWS Supply Chain.

The new application helps businesses increase supply chain visibility to make faster, more informed decisions that mitigate risks, lower costs, and improve customer experiences.

AWS Supply Chain automatically combines and analyzes data across multiple supply chain systems so businesses can observe their operations in real-time, find trends more quickly and generate more accurate demand forecasts that ensure adequate inventory to meet customer expectations.

AWS Supply Chain improves supply chain resiliency by providing a unified data lake, machine-learning-powered insights, recommended actions and in-application collaboration capabilities.

Customers can set up a unified supply chain data lake using AWS Supply Chain’s built-in connectors, which use pre-trained machine learning models based on Amazon.com’s nearly 30 years of supply chain experience to understand, extract and aggregate data from ERP and supply chain management systems. The application then contextualizes that information in a real-time visual map, highlighting current inventory selection and quantity at each location. Inventory managers, demand planners and supply chain leaders can view machine learning-generated insights for potential inventory shortages or delays and create watchlists to receive alerts to take action as risks appear. Once a risk is identified, AWS Supply Chain will automatically provide recommended actions, such as moving inventory between locations, to take based on the percentage of risk resolved, the distance between facilities, and the sustainability impact.

Teams can solve problems and collaborate using built-in chat and messaging functionality.