Freight exchange

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A freight exchange or freight exchange is a market for transportation services for cargo . What all freight exchanges have in common is that providers of freight meet providers of cargo space. At some freight exchanges, the brokerage takes place via an auction process; at others, the interested parties negotiate the contracts outside the exchange.

history

Freight exchanges exist in many ways on the Internet, but they are not fundamentally derived from it. The concept of the freight exchange itself was founded at a time when more and more goods had to be transported on the roads. The German transport industry was booming in the 1970s. And although more and more freight forwarders were pushing their way into the market, the range of cargo to be shipped grew much faster. For many freight forwarders, this meant that fixed freight contracts could not be kept because vehicles or drivers were simply already occupied.

At this point the first freight brokerage arose. Freights were brokered by telephone. A forwarding company that could not transport a cargo to be transported itself, but at the same time had to ensure that it was transported, gave the cargo e.g. B. by phone in the freight exchange.

Other freight forwarders, which z. B. had an empty return trip on a tour , asked the freight exchange for a corresponding load, received the order and took care of the transport. In this way, free transport capacity and cargo were brought together. The contracting company was able to keep its contracts , the transporting company was able to optimize its empty trips.

This concept was then expanded very quickly. The manufacturing industry quickly came up with the idea of ​​putting out loads that were not to be transported on a regular basis directly via a freight exchange. The character of the freight exchanges changed. From this point on, it was no longer just a matter of finding cargo for empty trips; a price war began which promised the freight provider the most profitable price.

Internet-based freight exchanges

With the further spread of the Internet, the market changed completely again. Long-established providers began to expand their offerings on the Internet as well. In addition, new companies emerged that were not previously active in the transport industry but had the necessary technical know-how. The first electronic freight exchange with the name Teleroute was founded in 1985 . In the years that followed, other electronic exchanges, some of which were very specialized, emerged which, for example, deal exclusively with the brokerage of bulk goods . In the last ten years alone, around 20 Internet freight exchanges have been brought onto the market in the German-speaking area, which today are responsible for a good part of freight traffic on European roads. The concept of freight exchanges on the Internet is similar, but easier to use for freight forwarders.

The freight exchanges differ in detail. In some cases, special software is required to participate, but often only a browser . Some freight exchanges charge a monthly basic flat rate for use, some charge for each transport, others are free for carriers .

The freight exchanges usually specialize in a niche of the market: Some providers auction container transports , others are palletized goods from industry, while others deal with removals and small transports. There are also freight exchanges that are open to private individuals.

An important aspect of freight exchanges is the trust between the participants, since cargo theft, late payment and disregard of relevant regulations (e.g. the minimum wage applicable in Germany) are not uncommon. Some operators of freight exchanges therefore subject new customers to a thorough check, while others guarantee payment for the transport service or offer debt collection services.

Carpooling for packages

A concept based on the freight exchange is the ride-sharing option for parcels , which is based on the same principle as the ride-sharing option for people. The aim is to establish contact between two private individuals, one of whom wants to send an item (packages, electrical appliances, furniture, etc.) and the other who would like to take this item with her as part of a planned trip. The transport and delivery of an object allows the driver to reduce his travel and fuel costs by receiving the amount from the sender that was agreed between the two partners as an expense allowance. The sender can reduce the postage costs by negotiating the shipping costs himself. This means that even heavy or bulky goods can be shipped cheaply.

See also

literature

  • Frank Sänger: Electronic transport markets. Studies on the optimization of road freight transport , German University Press (Gabler Edition Wissenschaft), 2004. ISBN 3-824-48120-0 .