Your freight spend is rising. Know why.
Connect spending to the operations that explain it. Compare periods, flows and providers within a clear scope to prepare purchasing and service decisions.
A total does not explain a change
Transport spending has increased. Is it linked to more shipments, a different mix of modes, greater use of one lane or different costs? Before concluding that rates have risen, the team needs to understand which operations make up the total.
OneChain brings transport data together to analyze costs and performance by period, flow and provider. Reporting gives purchasing, operations and finance a common starting point: a question, a scope and the shipment files that explain the result.
Spending rises on one lane
The team wants to understand the increase before discussing rates.
- Activity
- Number of shipments and modes used
- Costs
- Items and providers concerned
- Comparison
- Same period and scope
Distinguish a change in activity from a price variation or an additional service.
Compare operations on the same basis
A useful comparison specifies the period, mode, lane and type of amount. Comparing a month with more air freight to a mostly ocean-freight month can hide the effect of the activity mix. A budget and an invoiced amount also describe different financial stages.
Framing the question before reading the chart avoids drawing a conclusion from an overly broad total. Teams define the indicator and its underlying information so everyone can interpret the same result.
Try it yourself · Interactive demo
Start with a question, then explore the operations
Review costs in the demonstration, then the budget and performance views. Filters refine the scope; each view provides a different perspective on the fictional activity.
Try it yourself · Interactive demo
Compare actuals with the budget.
Review budget and actual amounts for the demonstration period.
Try it yourself · Interactive demo
Compare operational reliability.
Review lead times and operational indicators by provider.
Move from the chart to a decision
When spending rises on a lane, the team isolates the operations concerned and examines providers and cost items. It then seeks to distinguish a change in activity from different rates or an additional service.
The analysis prepares useful checks. A variation concentrated in a few files calls for a different review from a change across an entire lane. The information found gives operations and purchasing a starting point for discussion.
Read service alongside cost
Provider comparisons become more useful when transit times and information quality can be examined within the same scope. The cheapest provider does not necessarily meet the required service best. Teams prepare reviews using defined indicators and the files that explain them.
The outcome is a more precise discussion: which flow should be reviewed, which data needs completing and which terms should be renegotiated? Reporting helps turn the observation into an action the team can examine.
Prepare your implementation
Details to work through using your flows and organization.
Which indicators are useful for a transport review?
Start with the decisions to make: spending changes, flow costs or service quality. Then define the data, period and scope needed for each indicator.
How should budget and invoicing be compared?
Specify what each amount represents and when it becomes known. Budget, chosen offer and invoiced amount may answer different questions.
How should providers be compared?
Choose comparable operations in terms of mode, lane and service. Costs become meaningful alongside transit times and available information quality.
Start with your management questions
Choose a cost or service question, then the data and operations that would help answer it.