A regional LTL carrier replaced 3 carrier portals, 2 spreadsheets, and a whiteboard with one platform.
The client operated a regional LTL operation across 6 terminals with a quoting, dispatch, and tracking system that was 80% manual. We built a custom logistics platform — quoting engine, dispatch board, driver mobile app, and customer tracking portal — in 16 weeks.
Manual dispatch operations running on spreadsheets and phone calls, with no customer-facing tracking visibility
The client ran a 6-terminal LTL operation in the Pacific Northwest. Their technology stack: a legacy DOS-based dispatch system from 2003 that they'd been maintaining with one IT contractor for 20 years, a spreadsheet-based load planning system built in Excel, and carrier rate tables managed in printed binders that were updated quarterly. Customer shipment status inquiries were answered by phone — a dispatcher would look up the shipment in the DOS system and read the status out loud.
The trigger for the rebuild: the DOS system's vendor announced end-of-support. The IT contractor who maintained it retired. And a national competitor entered the client's key lane with a modern platform offering real-time tracking via a web portal — the feature the client's largest customers started asking for.
Full logistics operations platform with quoting engine, dispatch board, driver mobile app, and customer tracking portal
Stack: Next.js (web application), React Native + Expo (driver mobile app), Convex (database + real-time), Clerk (auth), Stripe (customer billing), Mapbox (route visualization), Vercel.
Quoting engine: Rate calculation based on origin/destination zip codes, freight class, weight, and applicable accessorial charges. Fuel surcharge applied from the current fuel surcharge table (updated weekly via an admin interface). Quote PDF generation.
Dispatch board: Real-time dispatch board showing all active shipments by terminal, with status, driver, and expected delivery window. Drag-and-drop load assignment. Driver status updates pushed in real time via Convex live queries.
Driver mobile app: React Native app for iOS and Android. Route card with all stops for the day. Delivery confirmation with photo capture and electronic signature (Expo Camera + expo-signature). Exception reporting (delivery attempt, damage, address correction required) with photo documentation.
Customer tracking portal: Real-time shipment tracking for customers. Status updates and estimated delivery window. Proof of delivery delivery with signature image available for download. Accessible without login via a tracking number link in the shipment notification email.
One honest number to start.
Fixed-scope, fixed-price. The number below is the starting point — final scope is built from your brief.
Full logistics operations platform with quoting engine, dispatch board, driver mobile app, and customer tracking portal
Three steps, every time.
The same repeatable engagement on every project. No surprises, no mystery, no billable ambiguity.
Brief & discovery.
We send you questions, then get on a call. Output: a written scope with every step, feature, and integration listed.
Build & ship.
Fixed schedule, weekly reviews. No scope creep unless you change the scope — and if you do, we reprice it transparently.
Warranty & retainer.
30-day warranty on every launch. Most clients stay on a monthly retainer for ongoing features and maintenance.
Results
- Phone-in tracking inquiries reduced by 78% in first 3 months
- Dispatch time per load reduced from 18 minutes to 4 minutes
- Customer satisfaction scores improved in first quarter post-launch
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Read moreQuestions, answered.
The DOS system had a flat-file data export capability. All historical shipment, customer, and lane data was exported, transformed, and imported into the new Postgres database via migration scripts.
Delivery confirmation, signature capture, and exception reporting work offline via Expo's local storage. Events are queued locally and synced when connectivity is restored — important for terminals in rural areas with unreliable cellular coverage.
Full logistics operations platform with driver mobile app: from $55k. Fixed-price.
Tell Ryel about your project.
Describe what you’re building and what outcome you need. You’ll have a written, fixed-price scope within the week.