HaulageHub, the Liverpool City Region based digital freight marketplace, has secured a major new contact with WS Transportation, one of the UK’s leading logistics firms.
The multi-year partnership with the Runcorn based firm – which specialises in logistics for the construction industry and high and heavy haulage – will harness HaulageHub’s innovative technology to streamline subcontracting operations, enhance logistics efficiency, and support sustainable growth for WS Transportation.
The haulage sector, traditionally marred by inefficiency, faces the significant problem of empty running, resulting in an excess of 30% of all HGV miles in the UK being empty. This staggering inefficiency escalates operational costs for hauliers and shippers alike and also contributes to over five million tonnes of avoidable CO2 emissions annually, exacerbating harmful environmental outputs.
HaulageHub’s platform not only streamlines the haulage industry by bringing shippers and hauliers together but also significantly reduces the carbon footprint associated with empty truck runs. Its cutting-edge digital freight marketplace leverages advanced artificial intelligence to intelligently pair shippers with hauliers. This innovative approach maximizes operational efficiency by allocating loads to hauliers with historically empty routes, effectively reducing their empty miles and augmenting their profitability.
Following a soft launch in October 2021, the platform was put to the test and further refined based on valuable user feedback. This led to a successful full-scale launch in January 2022, marking a new era in the UK road haulage sector.
Now, HaulageHub – based at Sci-Tech Daresbury in the Liverpool City Region – efficiently handles thousands of loads each week and is an invaluable tool for a large number of the UK’s fastest growing haulage companies.
The new partnership will create efficiencies for WS Transportation in terms of supplier costs, reduced administration and positive environmental impact from reduced empty miles.
Scott Robertson, co-founder, Haulage Hub, said: “We’re thrilled to have secured this major new contract with WS Transportation. Being able to deploy our innovative technology at the scale WS operates will allow for major efficiencies to be achieved and – most importantly – significantly reduce empty miles and needless CO2 emissions. It is a particular honour to be deploying our technology with the Stobart family – a name synonymous with the proud history of the UK’s transport industry.
“This new partnership further cements HaulageHub’s standing as the UK’s premier freight marketplace, and reflects the appetite from within the haulage sector for technologies that push the envelope to help make our sector more dynamic and environmentally friendly.”
Ed Stobart, CEO, WS Transportation said: “The implementation of HaulageHub into our subcontracting and brokerage operations further enhances our already industry leading offering. By coupling our state-of-the-art trucks and planning systems with our partnership with HaulageHub, we continue to offer our customers a total solution for all of their road transport needs.”
