Overdrive

March 2017 | Overdrive | 31 ating more or less like a traditional bro- kerage, with a technological assist. Another newer startup is the Overhaul app founded by Barry Conlon and others in early 2016. Their big idea was similar to the holy grail of "Uber for trucking" brokerages – to attract high-end shippers that move their freight via the contract freight market to a load-matching situation more resembling the spot market. In Overhaul's marketplace, owner- operators and small fleets would build credibility through adherence to mile- stones tracked by the technology. With each milestone hit, the system would deliver better rates and access to high- er-end freight, with no brokering. By this year, however, Conlon had bowed to reality. Who was most interested in his tech platform? "The broker market as it exists today has really embraced what we're doing," he says. "Everybody who's trying to set themselves up to disintermediate the broker market to create this really cool technology – well, it doesn't take much for an existing broker to really roll out this technology themselves." C.H. Robinson in May announced its Carrier Advantage program, intended to reward its highest-performing carri- ers with first access to freight. Carriers that work closely with C.H. Robinson, meeting volume requirements in relation to carrier size and showing consistency of on-time performance and excellence in other measures, will "get unbridled [and earlier] access to freight," said Bob Biesterfeld, the com- pany's president for North American Surface Transportation. Biesterfeld said that while automa- tion in customer interactions wasn't moving quickly toward any kind of disintermediation effect in Robinson's business, the "technology continues to get more relevant" to the freight transaction and movement process. Independents might not bypass the broker as their principal freight source anytime soon. But increased speed and GET INTO YOUR COMFORT ZONE Configure yours today at www.bostromseating.com GET INTO YOUR COMFORT ZONE Configure yours today at www.bostromseating.com www.bostromseating.com Wide Ride Core Since 1935 1-800-459-7328 | www.facebook.com/bostromseating O P T I O N A L " S M A R T " D U M P + M E M O R Y V AL VE reduced friction in interactions with freight partners could deliver closer partnerships and more predictable revenue, and more brokers are mov- ing in the same direction. As Drew Herpich of Coyote Logistics noted in the Truckstop.com Connected panel, speaking to brokers, "If you're not jumping on technology, you're going to fall behind."

• Cover
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• Dodging the middleman: While no one service will be “Uber for all” in the fragmented brokerage market, on-demand load-matching services are seeing some success at circumventing traditional brokers and promising gains for owner-operators in rates, freight
• $25,000 awaits top owner-operator: Three owner-operators – Gary Buchs, Philip Keith and Kevin Kocmich – are finalists for the 2016 Owner-Operator of the Year award, produced by the Truckload Carriers Association and Overdrive.
• Maintaining your wheels: A pre-trip inspection for cracks and rust is usually sufficient for maintenance of aluminum and steel wheels. A few other best practices, though, can almost ensure that wheels last as long as your truck.