A Department of Transportation program that aggregates forward-looking supply chain data from various stakeholders to help identify volume and capacity issues, including shippers, carriers, chassis and drayage, rail and port operators, will begin providing insights to participants this summer.
“We’re entering the dissemination phase, where we’ll push out daily booking information on supply chain nodes and logistics assets available,” Andrew Petrisin, a supply chain advisor for the DOT, told attendees of Home Delivery World in Philadelphia. “We’re working with the initial group, who can start to integrate the flow of data into their analytical tools.”
While a tentative agreement has been reached between a dockworker union and West Coast port operators, and volumes are down across the board, several speakers at Home Delivery World noted supply chain disruption can come at any time, from a number of fronts.
Petrisin said the program, called Freight Logistics Optimization Works or FLOW, was born out of the massive West Coast port logjams that began in the fall of 2021. He said FLOW is capturing data on 60% of all bookings in international intermodal cargo, based on estimates from Alphaliner of carriers participating in FLOW. Those include MSC, Maersk, CMA, Hapag-Lloyd and Evergreen.
“You don’t need 100%,” he said. “It’s a statistically important sample over time that goes into modeling and forecasting.”
Petrisin also stressed that data privacy is protected, with the DOT acting as a neutral information clearinghouse, adding FLOW is not conducting “track and trace” of individual containers. A key aspect is that all FLOW data is forward looking, using freight booking and shipper purchase order information 60 to 90 days out, helping participants to improve planning and forecasting. Charts are available as CSV downloads.
“Historically, demand is modeled out using a moving average, which is somewhat delayed,” Petrisin said. “This is a novel source of information to smooth out demand and better optimize assets.”
Retail participants in FLOW include Walmart, Best Buy, Home Depot, Costco, Target, Tractor Supply, Nike, Gap, Ralph Lauren, Dollar General and Ulta Beauty. Several large 3PLs are involved as well, including CH Robinson, DHL, FedEx, UPS, Gemini Shippers and STG Logistics.
Petrisin said FLOW creates “situational awareness” for all participants. For instance, he said, data from marine terminal and rail operators provides a broader picture of available slots, aiding shippers in their planning and forecasting.
“We aggregate it and share out information on baseline infrastructure across all data elements, providing a picture of supply chain fluidity,” he said. “It helps everyone understand the system dynamics of intermodal freight. The commercial benefit is better matching of supply to demand in a proactive way.”