DC Velocity - November 2017

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Logistics startup Haversack Logistics will team up with technology companies MercuryGate International Inc. and project44 to provide an unconventional combination of software and consulting services to shippers.

Davidson, N.C.-based Haversack defines itself as a logistics management service that will empower shippers to manage their own logistics and transportation tasks more efficiently, as opposed to taking over those functions like a traditional third-party logistics (3PL) firm.

Haversack says its approach also varies from traditional 3PLs’ because it charges fees based on the savings a customer achieves compared with industry benchmarks and historical data, as opposed to the up-front margins charged by 3PLs. “A 3PL offers convenience, where you give your work to the 3PL and they handle it all for you. Where it’s problematic is in [the lack of] transparency and efficiency, and in the upcharge to working with a 3PL,” Haversack President Christopher Nadeau said in an interview.

The company opened its doors with a “soft launch” on March 1 and has been working with customers in the food warehousing, automotive, aviation, and plastics industries, Nadeau said. As part of its latest announcement, the company said it is now making its solution available to the larger market.

Haversack will help its customers operate more efficiently by acting as a certified reseller of the cloud-based transportation management system (TMS) software from MercuryGate and the network of application programming interface (API) data connections from project44, the company said. The firm will also provide professional services to help its customers derive the greatest value from that technology or any other TMS platform they may already have installed.

Haversack will work with each client to identify opportunities for cost savings and performance improvements, providing experts to plan and execute freight transportation and logistics operations, the firm said. Haversack can act as a “first-party logistics provider” (1PL) because of the collaborative relationship it will have with each client, the company said.

Haversack’s approach is less expensive than outsourcing the work to a traditional 3PL firm and more effective than keeping the functions strictly in-house, where most companies have a small array of tools and technologies to deploy, Nadeau said. Haversack also doesn’t tack on fees to the shipper’s logistics spend. Instead, it claims a percentage of the client’s savings.