FourKites issues Q4 2020 Premier Carriers List

Chicago-based FourKites, a provider of real-time tracking and visibility solutions across transportation modes and digital platforms, recently issued its fourth quarter 2020 Premier Carrier List.

This is the third year FourKites has published this list for its customers, while also offering a public version of it, too.

FourKites said that this list is comprised of 382 carriers, brokers, and 3PLs that “have achieved the highest standards of visibility-related operational excellence, as demonstrated by their ability to provide high-quality, consistent, accurate data on the vast majority of their loads.” And they added that the carriers included on this list, on average, hauled 20% more loads in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to the third quarter of 2020, at 2.5 million loads, with 119 carriers having made the list for more than four straight quarters and 28 having qualified for Premier status since the program was established.

For a carrier, broker, or 3PL to qualify for the list, FourKites said that carriers must demonstrate their operational excellence by meeting a set of stringent qualifications, and also noted that FourKites’ consistency metric evaluates both the number of location updates on a given load and the quality of those updates. Premier Carriers must track with 85% consistency and compared to non-premier carriers, Premier Carriers, on average, achieve 30% better on-time delivery performance, manage more than 2 million pieces of equipment and see 15% annual growth in load volume.  

Jason Eversole, Director of Carrier Strategy for FourKites, said that visibility-related operational excellence is defined using FourKites’ derived consistency score, noting that, at its core, a consistently tracked load has stop-level in and out times and regularly provided location updates in real time during transit.

“Carriers that can provide that highly detailed level of visibility on the vast majority of their shipments have proven their strong operational foundation as a business,” he said.

When asked how carriers that provide high-quality visibility data will continue to experience dramatically reduced wait times, Eversole said that the company’s consistency metric requires high-quality data not only from a location perspective, but also with the events that happen at the facilities themselves.

“When a shipper is able to truly see what is happening at their locations, they can now take action to continually improve the operations and efficiency of those facilities,” he explained. “This real-time high-quality information takes what was previously assumed and validates that data, giving shippers the confidence to make lasting changes to their supply chain. Carriers benefit from working with these shippers committed to improving the supply chain for all parties involved.”

In terms of how the FourKites’ Premier Carrier List can help shippers from an operational and efficiency perspective, Eversole said that carriers on the Premier Carrier List provide a wealth of information about their company (regions of service, equipment type, service offerings, contact information, etc.) and FourKites’ shippers customers benefit from having access to this exclusive list.

“Using FourKites' Insights, shippers can identify areas in their supply chain that would benefit from using a Premier Carrier, and cross-reference the Premier Carrier List to find the carriers that fit their needs,” he said.