Transportation Insight Holdings, a provider of logistics and freight brokerage solutions, has acquired Platinum Circle Group, a parcel transportation technology and managed services company, for an undisclosed sum, adding transportation management and ecommerce technology to the mix.
“Platinum Circle Group has set the standard for technological innovation in the parcel transportation industry by incorporating real-time tracking, yield capacity and margin analytics directly into its transportation management system (TMS), which allows shippers to optimize their strategy right from the point of a shopping cart order,” said Ken Beyer, CEO of TI Holding Company, in a release. “By pairing our deep domain expertise and robust technology capabilities, we are bringing our customers breakthrough solutions across the transportation value chain.”
John Haber, founder and CEO of parcel strategy firm Spend Management Experts – itself acquired by Transportation Insight in late 2020 – said Platinum Circle Group was a “very strategic part of the puzzle” in terms of technology, consulting services, industry experience and its client base. Platinum principal and co-founder Tim Geiken worked with Haber at UPS as a sales executive in the 1990s, and was also a managing director at AFMS. Geiken’s partner is co-founder Jim Hamilton.
Like Spend Management Experts, Platinum Circle Group will retain its branding post acquisition.
“Not only do they have great customers, but they’re very well respected, with fantastic technology,” Haber said. “We really believe it makes us well positioned to deliver tremendous value for a huge range of customers, from SMBs all the way to the enterprise sector, the largest shippers in world. Shippers are really looking for organizations that can make their lives easier by delivering a broad variety of solutions. By incorporating Platinum into Transportation Insight, it brings so much synergy.”
Platinum’s proprietary technologies include data analytics and visualization tools, freight management systems, reporting solutions and a transportation management system (TMS).
“They provide visibility to customers in real time,” Haber said. “Shippers can integrate it into their shopping carts, preventing problems from happening before they hit the (carrier) invoice. With that visibility ingrained on the front end, it helps companies identify where to locate inventory, and which products are selling profitability with shipping costs loaded in.”