Southwestern Motor Transport announced it has nearly completed the automation of its regional LTL operations. Southwestern’s president, Chris Withers, says implementation of the Cheetah Freight system has been completed at 14 of its 20 terminals
and with 140 of the company’s 210 trucks. The company is using the Cheetah Freight ASP system.
The San Antonio, Texas-based company, which offers LTL and truckload services for the eastern half of the U.S. with through service between Mexico, Canada and the U.S., spent two years in its search for a tracking system to replace their existing defunct system.
“We looked at a number of packages with an emphasis on those that would allow for rapid implementation and a quick return on investment,” Withers said. “Cheetah’s Freight ASP system more than fit the bill.” He stated that increasing fleet productivity and customer retention were also key factors in seeking out a real-time tracking and routing system.
“In just our first week on Cheetah’s system, we could see productivity increases and our drivers were driving less miles per day” said Withers. He noted that the increased visibility of his fleet’s routes and locations enabled them to make a number of routing adjustments almost immediately. Withers also cited a noticeable reduction in phone calls to dispatchers and customer service reps since the implementation.
Southwestern’s IT director, Robert Bernal, said Cheetah’s selection was ultimately based on the company’s philosophy of “keep it simple,” noting that the implementation was far easier than he imagined. “Because Cheetah already possessed an intimate knowledge of our back-end systems, interfacing these with Cheetah Freight was a smooth and virtually painless operation.”
Bernal said that “the system is so straightforward and intuitive that getting the system fully utilized was accomplished with remarkable ease.” He also observed that having a hosted solution spared the company the significant expense in equipment and personnel required with in-house systems.
Westlake Village, Calif.-based Cheetah Software Systems provides real-time logistics solutions for the transportation logistics industry.