Bulk carriers drive up to 40 percent of the total distance with an empty trailer. Bulkio can match those empty miles to available bulk transports by making smart use of data. The platform takes into account the specific requirements that apply to bulk transport, beneficial for all parties: carriers drive more full miles, and shippers have shipments carried out at a favourable rate.
Unique platform
“This platform is specifically designed for bulk transport,” says Pirke van den Elsen, managing director at Bulkio. “It offers benefits in a broad sense. It not only simplifies administration and payment; Bulkio is also an empty miles broker. For carriers, we actively search for the match between an empty trailer and an available shipment. This ultimately leads to higher transport revenues for carriers. For shippers we offer a full guarantee that the shipment will be executed.”
Technological growth
The platform has grown incredibly in the past five years. “The team has delivered an outstanding performance,” says Van den Elsen. “At the moment 25,000 shipments are placed on the market every year. The fact that other parties are now able to post bulk shipments – in addition to Van den Bosch – will further accelerate growth. The technology behind the Bulkio platform is designed for this. Thanks to the support of eighty parameters, advanced algorithms and smart sensors, the team can quickly find the right matches.”
Future
Van den Elsen explains that Bulkio believes shippers will increasingly distribute their transports via platforms in the future. “The success for Van den Bosch proves the potential benefits for other shippers. By making smart use of technology, we build a large community of carriers and shippers that we can bring together. That is how we reduce the number of empty miles for carriers and the transport costs for shippers.” Additional positive consequences are less congestion and fewer harmful emissions. Van den Elsen is looking forward to the new challenge: “With this new name and this new service we are going to change the market of bulk transport for the better. It’s a great adventure!”