Perry County’s challenges building reliable daily schedules as well as monitoring a fleet of vehicles represented just a couple issues the agency faced prior to implementing Ecolane software. Difficult-to-maintain two-way radios had also been their standard but were costly and unreliable in the rural terrain which made up Perry’s operating area. Additionally, the agency’s dependence on manual scheduling led to inefficient, and often inaccurate, data entry. Reports which were subsequently run on that inaccurate data added to the headaches. One of Perry’s largest struggles was the staff’s inability to perform compliance checks on their provided services. Poor Data Entry, Cumbersome financial management, Difficulty managing route changes, Operational deficit.

Arlington Handitran originally contracted with Ecolane to replace an outdated, inefficient and manual scheduling and dispatching system. An inaccurate on-time-percentage, unreliable tracking of drivers and an overall user-unfriendly system added to Arlington’s woes. The key goals for the replacement were to increase productivity via schedule and dispatch automation and incorporate AVL functionality. Additionally, installation of MDT’s for data communications was a requirement. The overarching goals for the project included increasing the number of rides per hour, improving data collection, and enhancing reporting.

Estuary Transit District needed a solution that could schedule both demand response and route deviation vehicles in the same software package. Their requirements included AVL, fully automated scheduling as well as dispatching and data communication.

With a large demand for paratransit service, Akron METRO was looking to upgrade their inadequate paratransit and AVL software for a fleet of 77 paratransit buses and 4 supervisor vans. They were forced to outsource some rides to a local taxi company because they couldn’t handle the capacity. The previous outdated system was unable to handle their large volume of trips. A more agile and automated platform was needed.

Fayette County Transportation was in need of a software upgrade to create more efficiency and improve overall transit operations while, at the same time, maintaining and increasing customer satisfaction. They were looking at the following areas specifically for improvement: Passenger/client database management, Response time/no-show management/trip denial documentation, Periodic re-optimization of standing orders, Subscription management, Will-call return management, Performance monitoring/evaluation.

TRIPS/WSOS Community Action was struggling with the need for a solution that would improve efficiency for rural transit scheduling and dispatching. They had been stuck in the dark ages with excel spreadsheets and 2-way radios to handle scheduling and dispatching for far too long. They were looking to improve in operational efficiency and were interested in modern software to take the place of their archaic processes. Not being able to handle same-day reservations hindered their ability to keep up with demand.

Verbal communication and manual entry were standard practice for scheduling and dispatching. Knox Area Transit was looking for a way to get away from these time-consuming and archaic processes in order to expand and improve their transportation services while, at the same time, improving operational efficiency and customer satisfaction. Some specific areas of improvement outlined by Knox Area transit managers included: Dispatch and Scheduling accuracy and efficiency, Passenger/client database management, Response time/no-show management/trip denial documentation, Periodic re-optimization of standing orders, Subscription management, Contract fare management, and Performance monitoring/evaluation.

With an influx in ridership and an outdated software system, PART was seeking to continue to expand and improve transportation operations while maintaining or increasing efficiency and customer service/satisfaction. The following are some specific areas of improvement that PART was looking for with the implementation of modern scheduling and dispatch software: Passenger/client database management, Response time/no-show management/trip denial documentation, Periodic re-optimization of standing orders, Subscription management, Will-call return management, Performance monitoring/evaluation.

Larger transit agencies face unique challenges compared to smaller transit agencies. Large transit systems face more complex scheduling, dispatching, and billing processes because of the sheer size of their fleets, their day of service operations, and the fact that they are often dealing with multiple providers. Large transit agencies have a longer span of operational requirements, more days of service, and usually, multiple depot locations for vehicles. DDOT is no exception, and was facing challenges that were hindering operations and efficiency. Examples of specific issues they were dealing with include: • Poor or disjointed communication issues between management and drivers due to paper manifests and reliance on antiquated technology • Coordination between DDOT, the previous broker, and subcontractors were cumbersome due to the largely manual process of scheduling and moving trips • Limited visibility into driver data, scheduling, and execution • Manual scheduling that resulted in drivers always running behind schedule Additionally, DDOT was not seeing any real benefits with their legacy scheduling software, and in fact, it was contributing to the overall operational challenges that they were facing. DDOT’s frustration with the previous legacy software stemmed from several issues including: • Staff was required to collect all pick-up calls for the next day by 4:30pm and pool all of the trips into a report to send to each provider manually, which created disjointed delivery of customer trips • Zero visibility into how the trips were being booked • Because of the way that the trips were scheduled, they could have three provider vehicles all driving down the road at the same time to pick up one customer Ultimately, DDOT’s goal was to be more efficient, increase their rides per hour, and improve customer service. So, how did they get there?

As a smaller urban agency serving a mostly rural population, rabbittransit faced some unique challenges. With York County being the only urban area out of all of the other counties that rabbittransit serves, the agency had to quickly adapt and find ways to address the unique challenges that are presented when serving rural communities such as longer distance trips, longer wait and ride times. rabbittransit was looking for a uniform platform to have consistent service and reporting throughout the ten counties. They wanted service procedures using one vendor and platform to avoid inconsistency and fragmentation in service. They also needed to find a way to maintain operations and efficiency to achieve profitability without compromising excellent customer service.

Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System faced several challenges in their transportation services. They needed a software solution to support on-demand transportation, which included automatic software upgrades to increase efficiency through continuous, real-time optimization. Additionally, they required a sophisticated reporting system with ad-hoc reporting tools to generate detailed reports. Another critical need was a rider-facing self-service portal and mobile app to enhance user experience and streamline the booking process.

Shoreline Metro faced several challenges that needed addressing to improve their operational efficiency and environmental impact. Firstly, they needed to gain additional control over revenue hours to optimize their service delivery. Increasing hourly ridership was another critical goal, as it would enhance the overall efficiency and effectiveness of their transportation services. Additionally, Shoreline Metro aimed to reduce their carbon footprint, which required a significant reduction in vehicle usage and emissions. Another challenge was their reliance on maintaining a high vehicle inventory, which was not cost-effective and added to their operational complexities. Lastly, they needed to streamline their data management processes to ensure accurate and timely reporting, which was essential for making informed decisions and improving service quality.

Generations Unlimited faced several challenges in their operations. They needed to improve customer service and increase efficiency through continuous, real-time optimization. Additionally, they required a sophisticated reporting system with ad-hoc reporting tools to better manage their operations. Another significant challenge was the need for a rider-facing self-service portal and mobile app to increase rides per hour. The organization also needed to ensure automatic software updates and upgrades to keep their systems current and efficient.

Maple Grove Transit faced several challenges, including the need to increase productivity and realize cost savings. They required a sophisticated reporting system with ad-hoc reporting tools to monitor daily operations and provide a service dashboard for real-time monitoring of paratransit services. Additionally, they aimed to improve customer service and increase efficiency through continuous, real-time optimization. A rider-facing self-service portal and mobile app were also needed to increase rides per hour.

Orange County Public Transportation faced several challenges, including the lack of real-time efficiency information, reliance on guesstimates for data, and the need to increase revenue by optimizing trips and reducing costs. They also aimed to reduce manual data entry and paper usage to enhance operational efficiencies. Additionally, they needed a system capable of managing both on-demand trips and fixed routes, and the ability to use past performance reporting to influence future potential.

Cass County Council on Aging faced several challenges in their operations. They needed to increase overall efficiency to respond to customer urgencies and improve productivity to realize cost savings. The organization was also looking to move away from manual processes to accommodate more riders and required a sophisticated reporting system with ad-hoc reporting tools. Additionally, managing deviated fixed routes with flexible programming was a significant challenge.

Bis-Man Transit faced several challenges that needed addressing to improve their overall operations. They aimed to increase productivity to realize cost savings and improve on-time performance for better customer service. Additionally, they sought to reduce costs through improved efficiencies and required a sophisticated reporting system with ad-hoc reporting tools. Real-time vehicle GPS positioning and a daily operations service dashboard to monitor paratransit in real-time were also essential needs.

rabbittransit faced several challenges, including the need for uniform service procedures through a single vendor and platform to avoid inconsistency and fragmentation in service. They also needed to address the unique challenges of serving rural communities, such as longer distance trips, increased ride times, and meeting mobility needs while improving accessibility. Additionally, they needed to maintain operations, efficiency, and profitability without sacrificing customer service. Finally, they required a scalable software solution that would enable growth as they expanded service areas into ten counties.

In March 2012, Link Transit released an RFP for Paratransit Scheduling and Automated Software/Hardware. Link Transit was using outdated software and dedicated mobile data terminals in their vehicles. Both were no longer supported by the previous software provider. They did not want to move to the previous provider’s primary product so they decided to look for another solution. This led them to look for a comprehensive solution that would continue to support mobile data communication, provide solid global positioning information, and would allow them to operate feeder service in outlying communities. Link Transit also had the goal of providing better general public service to the less densely populated communities and knew that real-time scheduling would be crucial to meeting this goal.

Maui Economic Opportunity faced several challenges in managing their transportation services. They needed an automated scheduling and dispatching system to keep up with the increasing demand for ridership. Additionally, they aimed to realize cost savings through improved efficiencies. The organization required specific reports for county and federal governments, necessitating a sophisticated reporting system with ad-hoc reporting tools to move away from manual processing and Excel exports. Real-time vehicle GPS positioning was essential for their operations, along with a daily operations service dashboard to monitor paratransit and demand-response services in real time.

Knox County VanGo faced several challenges in their operations. They wanted to transition from paper scheduling to an automated system with same-day trip capability to better serve riders. Additionally, they needed fast, accurate, real-time reporting to track ridership each day and the time it takes between pick-ups and drop-offs. The goal was to operate more efficiently and streamline operations internally. Another significant challenge was to improve the efficiency of demand-response services to all riders, especially individuals with mobility restrictions.

Akron METRO faced significant challenges with their outdated paratransit and AVL software, which was unable to handle the large volume of scheduling required. This inadequacy forced them to outsource some rides to local taxi companies, as their system couldn't manage the capacity. The previous system's limitations led to inefficiencies and a lack of real-time optimization, which hindered their ability to provide timely and reliable services to their customers.

Arlington faced significant challenges with its outdated, inefficient, and manual scheduling and dispatching system. The reliance on paper manifests led to inaccuracies in on-time percentages and unreliable tracking of drivers. The overall system was user-unfriendly, causing operational inefficiencies and dissatisfaction among users. The need for a more reliable, automated, and user-friendly system was evident to improve the overall efficiency and accuracy of the transportation services.

Dana, a major supplier in the automotive industry, faced significant challenges in managing their complex supply chain. With over 100 manufacturing sites, thousands of supplier sites, and nearly 10,000 supply paths globally, Dana needed a more efficient way to gather information and respond to customer inquiries during supply chain disruptions. Additionally, they lacked sufficient data to monitor risks related to geographic regions, such as natural disasters or geopolitical events. This made it difficult for Dana to proactively manage risks and ensure the stability of their supply chain.

Nokia faced significant challenges in managing its complex supply network, which included nearly 30,000 suppliers and over 10,000 orders per day from more than 120 countries. The company had undergone a series of mergers and acquisitions, nearly doubling in size and distribution within a few years. This rapid expansion led to a supply network with more than four tiers, where suppliers often used the same sub-suppliers. Consequently, a problem with one sub-supplier could impact the entire network. Nokia needed a solution to manage these complexities and mitigate risks effectively.

Safeguarding supply and preventing supply disruptions are high priorities for R&M. Potential risks such as natural disasters, fires, strikes, currency fluctuations or political unrest can have devastating consequences and must therefore be included in risk assessment. It is imperative for R&M to assess potential risks on a preventive basis and react to risk events rapidly. To accomplish this, R&M uses risk-methods‘ technology-based solution to provide prevention-based analysis through risk intelligence, send notifications and immediately deliver relevant data on affected suppliers, supply chains and production plants. R&M includes its strategic suppliers, bottleneck suppliers, selected sub-suppliers, logistics hubs and production sites in its risk assessment to ensure risk monitoring along the entire supply chain. Risk mitigation is also a high priority for compliance. As a good corporate citizen committed to sustainability and social responsibility, R&M strives for fairness and expects the same from its business partners – an important factor in public relations. Their commitment to good corporate citizenship is stated in their Code of Conduct and published in the CSR Report. To ensure that suppliers and business partners adhere to the spirit and the letter of the Code of Conduct, R&M includes working conditions, corruption, human rights, fair competition and sustainability in its risk assessments.

A leader in novelty gifts production and distribution was struggling to fulfill orders on-time while experiencing a higher amount of split shipments that increased their shipping costs. Due to a lack of visibility of available products in different warehouses, each warehouse had the wrong combination of SKUs and volumes of products.

CEAT, a world-leading manufacturer and distributor of tires, was experiencing difficulty obtaining insights into their supply chain. A Sales team of 200+ depended upon the forecast to sell products and drive the top line. The supply chain team was constantly connecting the dots between disparate systems including Production, Warehouses, and Business for the allocation of inventory and avoiding excess inventory.

The business situation faced by Fastmore Logistics was the need to increase the visibility provided to customers on active loads and reduce the time and effort required to make check calls. The lack of driver and load information created a domino effect of missed opportunities, leading to inefficiencies and potential customer dissatisfaction. The company needed a solution that could provide real-time, accurate information about the location and status of brokered loads, thereby improving operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.

The Shaker Group, a full-service transportation provider, faced significant challenges in tracking their brokered freight. While they could receive and deliver status updates for asset-based shipments, brokered loads often went six to eight hours without any location updates. This lack of real-time tracking was particularly problematic for their expedited and time-sensitive shipments, which accounted for more than 40% of their business. The company needed a solution to meet strict tracking requirements and improve their competitive edge in the market.