Mayor Garcetti today announced that Venice-based CARGOMATIC is testing its mobile app to speed up the flow of containerized cargo at the Port of Los Angeles (POLA), the number #1 port in America.
Cargomatic matches trucking capacity with shipments; their Free Flow program is a web-based solution that optimizes container moves for cargo owners, terminals, and trucking companies.
“We have forged an important relationship between Cargomatic and the Port of Los Angeles that will help our city effectively compete in today’s technology driven marketplace,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.
Says Cargomatic COO Brett Parker (who co-founded the company with CEO Jonathan Kessler), “We provide the technology and do all the coordination between shippers and carriers so cargo can get where it needs to go.”
Cargomatic launched in 2013 as an online marketplace where trucks with unused capacity and shippers needing to move LTL (less-than-truckload) freight and full loads can find each other.
Last year, Cargomatic began adapting its technology for port drayage. That led to the current program at West Basin Container Terminal (WBCT) where Cargomatic is working with cargo owners, drayage companies, WBCT and Ports America to demonstrate its web-based service. Participating businesses include Perry Ellis and Williams-Sonoma.
Any party – beneficial cargo owner (BCO), motor carrier or independent owner operator – can enter the online market by registering with Cargomatic. Drivers are vetted to ensure they meet all required licensing, insurance and certifications.
“We support trucks picking up a specific container, as well as the free-flow model where trucks stream through for any container in a designated stack,” Kessler said.
A smartphone is the only special equipment a driver needs. Documenting the pick-up by entering or photographing the container number and confirming the delivery triggers the tracking and payment functions.
Cargomatic sets the rate for drayage service booked through its platform. “That’s part of our service,” Parker said. “We also bill the shipper, pay the carrier and collapse the process so carriers are paid within eight to 15 days.”
Cargomatic’s goal is to move at least 1,000 containers a week through the Port of Los Angeles. Other marine container terminals in the San Pedro Bay and the Port of New York and New Jersey are now participating in the program.
This initiative is part of Mayor Garcetti’s effort to use technology to enhance the way Angelenos live, work, and play, such as with the previously-announced partnerships with Waze and Pulsepoint.
The Port of Los Angeles is North America’s leading seaport in terms by container volume and cargo value; the Port facilitated $290 billion in trade during 2014, more than 148,000 jobs (about one in 12) in the City of Los Angeles, and 531,000 jobs (or one in 16) in the five-county Southern California region. The San Pedro Bay Ports support more than 1 million California jobs and 3.1 million nationwide.
