Container Shipping Platform Overview - Buyco
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Container Transportation Management System — Overview

BuyCo’s Container Transportation Management System centralizes the members of the supply chain to enhance visibility, increase control, and simplify container management so you can spend less time managing ocean freight and more time caring about your customers.

Trusted by Modern Shippers Worldwide

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Centralizing Your Maritime Supply Chain Has Never Been Easier

100%

API driven and connected to your stack: ERP / SAP / TMS, to transfer data instantly and automatically

97%

of global ocean carriers are connected, streaming live data in real time to one single platform

100+

forwarders and booking agents are already connected to improve collaboration and reliability with your partners

Collaborate effectively with a shipping management system

SHIPPING OPERATIONS

Drive All Your Maritime Operations From One Digital Hub

Execute all your shipping operations from one place to gain more visibility and control over your processes or coordinate better with your Freight Forwarders. Streamline responsibilities in the container lifecycle, from vessel scheduling and booking to shipment planning.

Automate Your Operations

Automate your container shipping operations to increase your productivity even more. Let BuyCo search and select the best schedules for you according to your goals. Send booking requests automatically in bulk and at scale. Automate shipping document generation.

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DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT

Make Sure Documents
Are Accurate And On Time,
Every Time

Document errors no longer exist with BuyCo. Welcome an intelligent way to handle ocean transportation documents and create personalized document workflows. Follow a process that ensures you have correct, accurate documents in-full and on-time, every time.

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Collaborate effectively with a shipping management system
Collaborate effectively with a shipping management system

CONTAINER TRACK & TRACE

Get Unparalleled Visibility With World-Class Container Tracking

React faster to exceptions and prevent exceptions even before they occur. Track containers in real time from door to door and keep all parties updated with the status of your containers. Access the most reliable ETDs and ETAs on the market with live, reliable, multi-sourced data.

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REPORTING & ANALYTICS

Capture Critical Insights
Into Your Operations

Get the insights you need into every aspect of your operations to make better, faster decisions. Take advantage of smart reports and KPIs to understand your flows and improve your performance. Track internal, carrier, and partner performance to optimize productivity and cost efficiency.

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Collaborate effectively with a shipping management system
Collaborate effectively with a shipping management system

COLLABORATION

Say Hello To Seamless
Supply Chain Collaboration

Bring your teams, partners and forwarders together to facilitate collaboration and increase efficiency. Provide visibility to all parties so they can work more effectively as a whole. Include your customers to keep close contact and improve the customer experience.

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DATA-FIDELITY

Access The Most Reliable,
Accurate Data On The Market

Create a reliable foundation for your decisions. Centralize real-time data coming directly from 97% of all ocean carriers to get the fastest, most accurate data. Cross check carrier data with other sources to enhance accuracy even more.

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Collaborate effectively with a shipping management system
Collaborate effectively with a shipping management system

INTEGRATION

Integrate Ocean Freight With The Rest of Your Supply Chain

BuyCo is an 100% API driven platform. You can easily connect BuyCo’s data with your stack to transfer data instantly and automatically between your systems and teams. Integrate your maritime operational data with your ERP, SAP, TMS, Freight Forwarder TMS, and more.

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SECURITY

Entrust Your Supply Chain data security to highest standards

Rest assured that your data is protected by our strong rules and procedures. BuyCo has been awarded the globally renowned ISO 27001 certification, ensuring the highest standard of Information Security Management Systems (ISMS). This guarantees that your users’ data on the BuyCo platform remains confidential, intact, and accessible.

Collaborate effectively with a shipping management system

Discover BuyCo
in 3 minutes

See how our digital, collaborative platform streamlines maritime container-flow management for large volume shippers.

400,000+

containers are managed digitally
on BuyCo each year

50 Million

Container events tracked
each year

Container Transportation Management System – FAQ

What is a transportation management system?

A Transportation Management System (TMS) is a software solution that helps businesses plan and execute transportation of incoming and outgoing goods over land, sea or air. A TMS for container shipping has the following main functions: compare rates, routes and schedules of different carriers, book directly with your carriers, properly manage documents, improve collaboration between parties, increase visibility over container movement, and generate KPIs to help improve your operations. A TMS can function as an independent standalone solution or be integrated within an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Supply Chain Execution (SCM) suite.

What should you look for in a transportation management system?
When you’re comparing transportation management systems, some of the factors to be considered are:

  • Global network size
  • Document sharing and storage capabilities
  • Ease of use
  • Real-time tracking capabilities
  • Ability to react to exceptions
  • Integration capabilities with other existing systems
  • Level of automation offered
  • Reports and analytics
  • Security against data breaches
How much does a transportation management system cost?

The total cost of ownership of a transportation management system can vary quite a bit. Many go up to hundreds of thousands of dollars. There are multiple factors to be considered. First there are the TMS licenses to account for. In addition, companies may need to pay annual maintenance, support, or training fees for some TMS solutions. Hence, it is important to read the fine print when choosing a transportation management system, and find a solution with a straightforward payment structure.

What are the benefits of a container transportation management system?

Using a container transportation management system has several benefits including:

  • Easier comparison of routes and rates to reduce freight expenses.
  • The ability to compare available allocations and rates by different carriers helps make the most of these contracts.
  • Real-time visibility over movement of cargo lets you maintain control over operations and take informed decisions to minimize delays in case of exceptions.
  • More data becomes available to evaluate and understand the performance of internal teams and third-party carriers.
  • End-to-end visibility and control helps provide better customer service and communication. 
What are the differences between a general TMS and a container specialized TMS?

A general TMS helps organizations manage the transportation of goods over land, air and sea. That said, when it comes to ocean shipping they may not have the specialized knowledge and network required to optimize these operations. A container specialized TMS like BuyCo overcomes this hurdle by connecting shippers to multiple carriers from a single dashboard. It allows businesses to view rates and schedules by different carriers, book directly with the carriers, manage documents, and gives end-to-end visibility with the ability to track container movement. 

Why do you need a maritime transportation management system?

A general TMS is not connected to ocean carriers. Hence, businesses need to look up carriers individually to get rates and schedules. It also limits the tracking capabilities to information shared by the carrier. 

On the other hand, a maritime transportation management system like BuyCo is connected to 97% of all ocean carriers. In this way, businesses can view rates and schedules by different carriers side by side and choose the best route for their goods. It also takes into account the allocations available with different carriers to make the most of their contracts. A centralized document exchange ensures that all players have access to the latest documents. Further, once goods are on the move, it offers end-to-end visibility by tracking container movement against movement in and out of ports and other checkpoints.

What are the best transportation management systems?

There are several transportation management systems available. The best solution is not only one that suits your budget but also a software that can be integrated with other existing systems. If your goods are frequently transported over ocean routes, a maritime transportation management system like BuyCo is ideal. It connects you to 97% of all ocean carriers, gives you the option of automating several tasks and provides end-to-end visibility and control over shipping operations. 

Can a transportation management system help you meet sustainability goals?

Choosing the right transportation management system can play a big role in helping you meet sustainability goals. First, it helps you choose routes according to, not only rates, but also other KPIs such as the shortest route and vessels with the lowest carbon emissions.  Having end-to-end visibility over container movement helps businesses spot opportunities for order consolidation and splitting so as to reduce empty miles. Once the goods have been delivered, the reports provided by your TMS can help assess the operations impact on your overall carbon footprint and identify areas and processes that can be optimized. 

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