Rain Check: The Weather Company's Dashboard Solution for Freight and Logistics

by Joel Kranc - Published: 5/15/2017

One of, if not the biggest, unknown for trucking and logistics companies is the weather. Most situations, repairs, road closures due to construction etc. can be planned for, but the weather is ever changing and always unpredictable.

Disruptive weather creates trucking congestion costing up to $250 billion per year according to IBM, and accounts for 28 percent of highway crashes and 19 percent of all fatalities, and wastes up to 32.6 billion hours in weather-related trucking.

A new solution for such issues is being introduced today – a new Operations Dashboard for Ground Transportation. The Weather Company, an IMB Business, announced the service today, which is meant to increase productivity and route selection with customizable information on weather and road conditions, fog, ice and pooling water and more. The dashboard also allows freight companies to integrate real-time traffic flows and incident data.

“By providing freight and logistics companies with a single view of critical weather and traffic information, we are providing them with the ability to make proactive decisions that can reduce inefficiencies and potentially keep their drivers out of harm's way,” said Mark Gildersleeve, vice president and head of business solutions, The Weather Company. “We understand that weather can be disruptive, but with the right insight companies can be prepared to make proactive decisions.”

The dashboard will allow all layers of a freight and/or logistics companies to integrate data with access to information. For example, dispatchers will be able to view a comprehensive dashboard featuring their personal network of vehicles and the locations of vehicles, with the ability to see each route’s relevant traffic, weather and safety-related information.

The Weather Company's dashboard will also allow distribution center executives to access a safety-related view of weather and traffic and see conditions that may impact operations of facilities and personnel.

Additionally, the dashboard will also drivers to receive live, location-based alerts on their route pertaining to their current location and any upcoming locations based on a driver’s desired trajectory. Drivers will also be able to use the dashboard to view weather and traffic in planning travel for the day or while on break from driving.

The customizable aspect of the dashboard lets users review mapping, distance and annotations. Field workers are kept safe with alerts of hazardous weather and the dashboard can let drivers know of hazardous conditions along their route.

The Weather Company offers accurate, personalized, and actionable weather data and insights to millions of consumers, as well as thousands of marketers and businesses via Weather's API, its business solutions division, and its own digital products from The Weather Channel and Weather Underground. The company delivers tens of billions of forecasts daily. Its products include a top weather app on all major mobile platforms globally, a network of 250,000 personal weather stations, one of the world's largest IoT data platforms, and industry-leading business solutions.