Transport companies and computers: good, bad or ugly?
There was a time when all trucking companies needed, aside from a few vehicles and a pallet jack or two, were a couple of phones and some basic desks and chairs. If it was really technologically advanced, it may have also had a photocopier, a telecopier (the original name for a fax), and perhaps a telex machine. That, of course, has all changed and transportation companies have been just as affected by the technological revolution as everyone else.
However, perhaps not all of these changes have been entirely desirable. Take the former shipping clerk for example. There was a time when you could phone shipping companies to request a quote, read over the phone the details of about 10 different shipments with their weights and dimensions, and expect an almost instant response, since the calculations and costs had been calculated. mentally as you spoke. However, nowadays we all rely more on computer systems and this may have weakened some of our mental abilities. It may also have reduced our ability to spot things that just can’t be right, since we automatically assume that if “the computer says yes” then it must be so.
In truth, we may all have been guilty of it at one time or another. If you’ve ever sat down and looked at a shipping note and didn’t see that the pickup and delivery addresses were identical, you’re probably a victim of this syndrome! Other real life examples include:
• a delivery address indicating “Berlin – France”;
• a beautifully routed air cargo shipment to a final destination in ‘Australia’;
• A vehicle assignment sheet showing that a 7-ton vehicle was dispatched to pick up an 18-ton load;
• a timetable showing collection in Glasgow at 9am and an estimated delivery time in Norwich at noon (yes, same day);
• a single driver assigned to pick up three different trailers from separate locations, all at the same time;
• a vehicle sent to make two European deliveries that were listed as ‘close to each other’, one in Salzburg and the other in Naples;
• booking the same vehicle on separate ferries on the same day, one departing from Dover and the other from Portsmouth.
Lots of trucking companies will admit to having similar automation issues, so most of us will probably say they were caught in advance and rectified before the humiliation(?)
However, it’s doubtful that in the old days of the much feared shipping or dispatch managers, such things would have been allowed to begin with.
Of course, shipping companies have had to embrace the new technology, and overall it’s been a huge benefit. Maybe we just need to keep our wits about us when using it!
