Digital logistics platforms are revolutionising supply chains by reducing empty miles and cutting emissions

Emerging digital collaboration platforms like Flexe and Convoy are transforming freight management by optimising cargo utilisation, significantly reducing empty truck miles, and delivering major environmental and cost benefits across the supply chain industry.

Supply chains today face significant inefficiencies when trucks return empty after deliveries, wasting fuel, increasing costs, and contributing heavily to carbon emissions. Collaborative logistics platforms are in...

creasingly emerging as vital solutions to these challenges, harnessing advanced technologies to optimise freight, reduce empty miles, and support sustainability goals. Industry reports suggest these digital platforms can help firms save up to 20 percent in logistics fees while simultaneously slashing CO₂ emissions, providing a compelling dual benefit in cost reduction and environmental impact.

One of the standout examples is Flexe, which leverages machine learning and sensors to identify and utilise idle warehouse bays, leading to logistics fee reductions of around 20 percent and notable cuts in carbon emissions by improving space utilisation. This on-demand warehousing solution promotes horizontal collaboration among suppliers, enabling better scale and synergy across supply chain management routines. Importantly, it maintains jobs within third-party logistics providers while delivering “soft savings” through enhanced data transparency and efficiency.

Convoy, a leading digital freight network, has taken these principles further. Its Automated Reloads program bundles multiple shipments into single jobs, reducing empty miles dramatically. Industry figures show a typical truck operates at just 57 percent capacity, with up to 35 percent of miles driven empty. Convoy’s program cuts empty miles by nearly half—from 35 percent down to 19 percent—and lowers greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 40 to 45 percent. This translates to massive environmental gains; if adopted industry-wide, it could reduce CO₂ emissions by an estimated 32 million metric tons annually, equivalent to removing nearly 7 million passenger vehicles from the roads. Convoy’s approach includes real-time tracking, telematics, IoT devices, and advanced algorithms that optimise routes and load combinations, increasing earnings for carriers and trimming freight costs for shippers. The impact is clear through customer success stories, such as a Chicago electronics haul that reduced its empty leg miles by 64 percent, and partnerships with major corporations like Anheuser-Busch to meet sustainability targets.

Transplace integrates transportation management systems with machine learning-powered optimisers to reduce transport distances and emissions by roughly 20 percent while improving service quality by 5 to 10 percent. This platform benefits from new EU collaborative logistics regulations that promote shared resource usage, encouraging digital linkages between partners to pool less-than-truckload (LTL) freight loads. Such legislative backing helps boost environmental credentials and corporate reputations, turning sustainability into a strategic advantage.

Other notable platforms include Uber Freight and Cargomatic, which use cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and blockchain technology to reduce idle truck mileage and local carbon footprints by up to 20 percent. Uber Freight streamlines booking and compliance processes, enhances security through blockchain’s open ledger, and fosters collaboration with nonprofits and social enterprises to accelerate green transitions. Cargomatic focuses on local shippers and carriers, coordinating real-time data flows and messaging for last-mile deliveries using electric vans, trucks, and short rail legs. This focus on local freight pooling and shared backhauls significantly cuts mileage and CO₂ emissions while improving delivery reliability.

Freightos and Shipwell further enhance global logistics by consolidating LTL shipments, sharing data through IoT sensors, and applying blockchain to secure international trade records. Freightos’ platform reduces shipping rates by 20 to 30 percent and transit times, while Shipwell automates customs filings and supply chain documentation to reduce paperwork burdens. Both platforms contribute to more sustainable supply chains by smoothing inventory flows and promoting trust and collaboration among stakeholders.

Flock Freight employs artificial intelligence to pool shipments into fully loaded trucks, reducing carbon emissions by up to 54 percent and cutting shipping costs by 57 percent. Its use of AI, IoT, and blockchain ensures real-time tracking and secure data sharing, underpinning new governance models that protect partner information and support decarbonisation strategies throughout transport networks.

Collectively, these ten collaborative logistics platforms demonstrate how integrating digital technology with horizontal collaboration can turn supply chain inefficiencies into opportunities. They function much like neighbours sharing a lawn mower—optimising underutilised assets, maximising vehicle capacity, and trimming empty runs to benefit both the environment and the bottom line. Their successes have garnered praise from global forums such as the World Economic Forum (WEF), which supports pilots and shares best practices to drive the adoption of greener, leaner supply chains.

Surveys within the trucking industry reinforce the urgency of these efforts. For instance, a Convoy study found that nearly 70 percent of small and midsize trucking companies rank reducing empty miles as a top business priority, reflecting the shared recognition of operational and environmental gains from such initiatives.

As digital logistics platforms continue to evolve, they are set to play a critical role in global efforts to reduce carbon footprints and create more resilient, efficient, and collaborative supply chains. By linking shippers, carriers, and partners through advanced data analytics, machine learning, IoT, and blockchain technologies, these platforms are not only trimming costs but also paving the way for a more sustainable future in freight transportation.

Source: Noah Wire Services