Create a Transportation Management System
How efficiently is your business managing its transportation and logistics? Whether you’re coordinating a fleet of trucks, multiple shipping providers, or complex delivery routes, staying on top of operations can be challenging without the right tools. A Transportation Management System (TMS) improves logistics processes by centralizing everything into one platform.
With features like route optimization, real-time tracking, fleet management, and automated reporting, a TMS is a necessity for transportation operations.
Imagine managing your logistics seamlessly through a customized Transportation Management System, hosted securely on your own platform.
In this article, we will guide you through the steps to create your own TMS in just three phases. We also provide an alternative option for those who don’t want to build their own.
Speak to a Transportation Management System Expert
Our team of experienced developers has successfully built and launched custom transportation management systems for businesses of all sizes. Contact us to discuss your system requirements, and discover how we can streamline your fleet management and logistics processes.
What is a Transportation Management System?
Think of a Transportation Management System (TMS) as your logistics command center – it’s a platform that brings all your shipping and delivery operations under one roof. Instead of juggling multiple systems and spreadsheets, you get a single dashboard to plan routes, track shipments, and make data-driven decisions.
What makes a TMS so valuable is how it turns chaotic logistics into a smooth, automated workflow. No more endless email chains or manual route planning – the system handles these tasks intelligently while giving you real-time visibility into where every truck and package is. You can spot issues before they become problems, optimize delivery routes on the fly, and keep your operations running like clockwork.
A good TMS helps you deliver faster and more reliably while cutting costs.
Key Benefits of a Transportation Management System
Fleet Performance Optimization
Your TMS can be your analytics hub, hub, tracking critical fleet metrics and spotting trends you might otherwise miss. By centralizing driver and vehicle performance data, you can pinpoint exactly where to make improvements and back every decision with solid data.
Improve Shipment Visibility
Real-time tracking and updates provide a clear view of shipments, routes, and delivery statuses. This increased visibility not only helps reduce missed deliveries but also enhances customer satisfaction and enables better decision-making.
Automate Route Planning
A TMS finds the best delivery routes, saving time and cutting costs. It considers factors like traffic, delivery time windows, and fuel expenses to create the most efficient plans.
Compliance Management
Stay on top of regulatory requirements with automated compliance tools. A TMS centralizes tasks like checking driver certifications, maintaining fleet records, and managing cargo documentation, reducing risks and saving time on paperwork.
Build or Buy Your Transportation Management System
When implementing a Transportation Management System (TMS), businesses face a key decision: should you build a custom solution or buy an off-the-shelf product?
Every organization’s logistics needs are unique, from specific workflows to reporting requirements. Off-the-shelf solutions may be packed with unnecessary features or require extensive customization, which can be time-consuming and expensive.
Our advice? Build a custom TMS and start small.
A custom-built TMS allows you to focus on the features your business truly needs without the excess bloat. It also gives you the flexibility to implement your system quickly, with the option to add new functionalities over time.
Option 1: Use Five’s Low-Code Tool to Build Your Own TMS
Five is a powerful low-code platform that allows businesses to build their own custom applications, including a Transportation Management System, quickly and efficiently. With Five, you can:
- Create secure, web-based solutions with login-protected access.
- Automate workflows like route planning, shipment tracking, and compliance management.
- Add features over time, ensuring your system scales with your business.
The Five platform allows you to take control of development without requiring extensive coding expertise. Its robust features make it easy to build, test, and deploy your TMS in days, not months. Businesses looking for an affordable, flexible way to customize their logistics solutions will benefit from Five’s user-friendly development environment, allowing you to retain full control of your system.
However, while Five simplifies the process, it does have a learning curve, especially for businesses new to low-code platforms or those without prior experience in application development. Understanding how to design workflows, integrate data sources, and customize features can require time and technical support. For those seeking faster results or additional guidance, Five’s professional services can help.
Option 2: Five’s Professional Development Services
For businesses that prefer to work with experienced developers, Five also offers professional software engineering services to design and build a custom TMS for you. Our team works closely with your business to:
- Define your specific logistics needs and create a detailed system architecture.
- Develop a scalable, cloud-based TMS with seamless integration into your existing systems.
- Deliver a fully tested, documented solution ready to enhance your logistics operations.
With Five’s development services, you can focus on your core business while our experts handle the entire application lifecycle, from concept to deployment and maintenance. We ensure your TMS is not only tailored to your current needs but also built to adapt and grow with your business.
Create a Transportation Management System In 3 Steps
1. Start with the Right Tool
To develop a user-friendly, secure, and scalable TMS, you need access to the right platform. Five offers a low-code tool that enables businesses to rapidly design and deploy custom applications, including transportation systems, without the need for extensive coding knowledge.
By signing up, you gain access to everything you need to create a custom TMS, from route optimization and fleet tracking to compliance management and reporting dashboards.
2. Define Key TMS Features And Requirements
Begin by outlining the core features and attributes that your TMS will require to support your logistics operations. Consider what matters most to your transportation management, such as:
- Route planning and optimization
- Real-time shipment and fleet tracking
- Driver and vehicle performance data
- Delivery schedules and timelines
- Compliance tracking and document management
- Inventory and order integration
- Reporting and analytics tools
Your TMS should act as a “single source of truth” for transportation operations, centralizing data and processes. Start small by focusing on automating and streamlining critical workflows like route planning or tracking deliveries in real time. As your system grows, you can add additional features incrementally to meet evolving business needs.
For instance, automating delivery performance reports and digitizing compliance tracking are excellent starting points. These features not only reduce manual effort but also provide a scalable foundation for managing increasing volumes of shipments and data.
3. Design for Usability and Branding
Once you’ve defined your TMS’s core features, focus on creating an intuitive user experience (UX) and branding the system to align with your business identity.
Five provides tools to design a clean, user-friendly interface tailored to your operations. You can assign different roles and permissions for users, ensuring that drivers, dispatchers, and managers only see the data relevant to their tasks. This role-based design improves efficiency and security while keeping the system easy to navigate.
A well-designed TMS also benefits from visual tools like charts, dashboards, and performance metrics. With Five, you can create custom dashboards for real-time tracking, performance overviews, and actionable insights, helping teams make better decisions faster.
Additionally, Five offers advanced search capabilities, allowing users to find information quickly, whether they’re searching by route details, shipment history, or driver performance. All features can be customized to fit your company’s branding, creating a cohesive and professional user experience.
Five’s mobile-optimized interface ensures that your TMS works seamlessly across all devices, allowing drivers, dispatchers, and managers to access critical tools and data from anywhere.
Once your TMS is ready, launching it with Five is as simple as clicking a button. The system generates a secure, cloud-hosted application, accessible via a unique URL.
Conclusion: Transportation Management System
If building your own Transportation Management System feels overwhelming, Five’s development services provide the perfect solution. Our team of experienced developers works closely with you to design and deploy a TMS tailored to your exact requirements.
From defining workflows and integrating real-time tracking to creating branded, mobile-optimized dashboards, we handle every aspect of the development process.
With Five’s professional services, you can bypass the learning curve, save valuable time, and ensure your TMS is robust, scalable, and aligned with your business goals. Let Five’s experts help you build a custom solution that streamlines logistics and drives efficiency.
