Oracle SCM and Oracle OTM to Manage Your Transportation

What is Oracle SCM and Oracle OTM?

Oracle SCM (Supply Chain Management) and OTM (Transport Management) are cloud-based end-to-end solutions for organizations to manage their order to cash process. It is a simple platform that integrates various processes such as transportation planning, demand and supply planning, freight payments, etc. It also automates many steps of the supply chain to make better use of all available resources and streamline the system.

Main Oracle SCM and Oracle OTM Features

Oracle Collaboration and Visibility

The Oracle platform makes data centrally accessible to all supply chain players and thus improves overall visibility. It simplifies communication with partners and clients to encourage collaboration. In turn, this helps managers plan ahead for a smoother supply chain.

Oracle Demand Management

By centralizing communication between all supply chain players, Oracle makes it easier for managers to forecast demand for products and transportation across different modes. This reduces complexities and helps businesses stay ahead of market changes.

Oracle Warehouse and Transport Management

Oracle also provides real-time visibility into cargo at warehouses and port terminals. It automates several processes linked to warehouse management, and thus makes timelines more accurate while optimizing resource management.

Oracle SCM and Oracle OTM Competitors

SAP TM

SAP Transportation Management (SAP TM) is a cloud platform to help organizations manage their logistics and transportation requirements. It can be used to control domestic as well as international cargo movement. In addition, SAP TM offers a number of other productivity solutions to simplify order consolidation, demand management, cargo tracking and reporting. This makes the overall supply chain processes more transparent.

Shipwell

Shipwell is a transport management platform that helps shipping and third-party logistics partners streamline operations. From creating quotes and booking shipments to tracking cargo movement, Shipwell offers a wide range of tools. The logistics coordinator can be easily integrated with most eCommerce platforms for easy order management as well as other supply chain applications to streamline the order and shipping process.

Kinaxis

Kinaxis is a supply chain management solution aimed at helping businesses create a transparent supply chain network with a central database rather than siloing information. It uses AI and Machine Learning to eliminate redundancies and maximize efficiency while also making information easily accessible for quicker, more informed decision making. Kinaxis can help with inventory management as well as supply and demand planning.

Oracle May Not Properly Manage Ocean Transportation

Oracle is a versatile system for supply chain and transportation management. While it provides an excellent overview of all supply chain processes, it has limited capabilities with respect to ocean transportation management. Hence, it may need to be integrated with other solutions such as BuyCo’s Container Shipping Platform. When you’re comparing container shipping platforms, below are some features that you should consider.

Features Needed to Manage Your Ocean Transportation

Complete Access Control

Some TMSs do not allow all parties to collaborate in one centralized place. This is where the need for a collaborative platform comes in. A Container Shipping Platform like BuyCo brings together your teams, freight forwarders, ocean carriers, and end-customers to be able to share information and execute their tasks in one place. In this way, teams are always up-to-date on all shipments, even if a team member is out of the office.

Efficient Container Scheduling and Booking

A general TMS may not be connected to all ocean carrier systems. Hence, when it comes to shipment planning, you need to visit individual websites to check costs, routes, etc. This is slow and prone to human error. Hence, you need to connect it to a container shipping platform that centralizes this search. A platform like BuyCo allows you to search and compare carrier rates, your allocation usage, schedules, emissions, etc. to find the best schedule according to your needs.

Accurate Container Tracking

Along with managing movement of cargo along different supply chain stages, you should also be able to track your containers in real time. For this, you need a platform that can track container movement from your warehouse until destination all while accurately predicting ETD/ETAs. In addition, your container shipping platform should be able to provide alerts when exceptions arise.

Robust Reporting over your Container Shipping

When a TMS is not connected to your ocean carriers, shipping operations such as booking, etc. cannot be processed on the platform. As a result, data linked to the KPIs of these operations such as detention and demurrage, overall volumes, freight forwarder performance, allocation usage, CO2 consumption, etc. are not available. You need to integrate a Container Shipping Platform with your TMS that centralizes processes to generate all needed reports and KPIs over your operations.

Oracle Integration

Lastly, while there are several container shipping platforms on the market, many of these function only as independent solutions. Rather than have to work with multiple platforms, you need to choose a container shipping platform that can be integrated with Oracle and works well together. Data entered in Oracle must be available to the Container Shipping Platform and vice versa.

BuyCo: The Best Solution to Manage Container Shipping along with Oracle

For overall supply chain and transportation management, Oracle is a good, easy to use system. Given its limitations with respect to ocean transportation, integrating it with the BuyCo Container Management Platform can make the system more comprehensive.

Buyco connects you to a network that includes 95% of all ocean carriers. It allows you to search for schedules, routes, etc. offered by all of these carriers on a single platform and compare data required for shipment planning. By centralizing information, it eliminates silos and builds trust amongst all supply chain partners.

Further, BuyCo automates processes to help optimize resource usage and build a transparent system. It allows organizations to maintain control over end-to-end operations. When containers are on the move, it sources information from data points to provide accurate real-time tracking and ETA/ETDs. This not only helps with planning cargo movement but also empowers better communication with customers and thereby better customer service.

BuyCo plays a role in long-term planning by analyzing data and providing detailed reports on KPIs such as internal performance, carrier performance, detention and demurrage, CO2 emissions, etc.

Integrating BuyCo with Oracle creates an all-in-one solution for efficient supply chain and logistics management. It’s time you look into how your business can benefit from it.