project44 heralds API transaction milestone

A significant milestone was announced today by Chicago-based project44, a technology services provider offering standardized, secure Web service API (application programming interfaces) integrations enabling 3PLs and shippers to connect with carriers in real time

That milestone came in the form of project44 announcing it has now integrated more than 1,000 transportation APIs into its platformed network. As defined by project44, these Web service API (application programming interfaces) integrations enable 3PLs and shippers to connect with carriers in real time.

The company has established itself as a major player in the less-than-truckload (LTL) sector. Going back to 2014, it has “maintained critical mass” in the $37 billion LTL market, with 99.9 percent of LTL carriers connected into their platform, which it said provides a level of real-time connectivity and proactive transportation management that in turn reduces the need for manual back and forth communications while saving time and money for all parties involved.

What’s more, project44 said its API-based Software-as-as-Service integration platform currently facilitates around 2.1 million instant API transactions per day, with plans to expand into the truckload and intermodal sectors, as well as what it called other data “black holes” in the supply chain.

“The majority of our build out has been in the LTL space, but this is an indication that we are pivoting into other modal segments,” said project44 President Tommy Barnes in an interview. “Our view of the global supply chain is full integration of all these APIs across various modes, with all of this expansion into the larger global supply chain space to further add value to every type of organization as they continue to enhance technology platforms for communications purposes.”

He added that at its core it is essentially the facilitation of real-time communication of clear and concise information to make better supply decisions.

The roughly 2.1 million daily API transactions facilitated by project44 represents a combination of all project44’s clients that leverage the 1,000-plus API’s set up by project44, explained Barnes.

“When we talk about the issues today, nobody talks about the core issue of e-commerce and in the world we live today in supply chains that the center point is around data and until we address the latency of issues around data, we are never going to solve the larger issues,” he said. “So until we do that are we are doing is pulling the [levers] along the way versus fixing the core that will enable everything to flow.”

From a competitive standpoint in terms of what this announcement means to the market, Barnes said it is clear project44 has global, multimodal aspirations and is trying to solve supply chain issues, rather than a singular domestic mode.

“We have a vision of everybody using APIs from our platform and facilitating that communication stream across all groups, and our model is very agnostic in trying to enable that,” he said.

Last March, project44 rolled out a new volume LTL (less-than-truckload) rating API, which has been deployed by Sunset Pacific Transportation, the largest LTL consolidator in Southern California.

According to project 44, this new API offering facilitates real-time volume rate exchange between carriers and their shipper, broker, and 3PL customers.  And it added that what makes this different from traditional rate bureaus is that fulfilling rate requests through project44’s Freight API eliminates the need for a carrier to manually respond to rate requests, noting that a volume rating API offering through the project44 network increases Sunset’s ability to communicate with a larger customer base.

Barnes said this effort is going very well and is making strong progress, with the company currently launching several other customers now.

“What is neat about all the models we are deploying with these volume-rated APIs is that we are solving legitimate problems,” he said. “This is not only from a cost or productivity stand point but also from a revenue enhancement standpoint, too,” he said. “There are multiple segments it can really add value to and it is going very well.”