Logistics has grown far beyond simply transportation services. With the wake of technology and the implementation of new methods of business, it has become diverse and dynamic, involving multiple processes, across a variety of services, involving a global network of stakeholders. This evolution has brought growth to logistics enterprises, as well as numerous challenges including maintaining costs, errors in coordination, tracking fuel and others. Fortunately, logistics tech providers are making it easier for enterprises to overcome these challenges. These solution providers are helping streamline and grow the logistics industry immensely. So is Gravity Supply Chain.
Gravity Supply Chain is one of the leading logistics technology solutions providers. It has developed a cloud-based platform that enables logistics providers, retailers and manufacturers to achieve a real time view of their entire end to end supply chain. With real time visibility and accurate information accessible in seconds, all stakeholders across these organizations can make better decisions, faster.
The Gravity platform breaks down a supply chain’s silos by providing a single point to view and execute operational processes in real time. It provides all the parties involved the same real time visibility of goods as they move along the supply chain, whether in production, in transit, at receipt or in a DC. It does so by integrating existing systems (ERP, WMS, TMS, etc) and filling in the gaps where time consuming, manual processes like shared spreadsheets and emails are currently being used.
Diversifying Solutions
The majority of retailers and manufacturers manage their business in pockets, like departments, product categories or countries that operate like silos. This leaves data scattered across multiple teams, systems, customers, suppliers and partners. When problems pop up, it becomes difficult to understand the full impact on the business and share that information across the network quickly.
By using Gravity’s solutions, logistics providers can help their customers, including retailers and manufacturers, solve the problem of fragmentation. This is because Gravity connects the people, data and processes involved in their customers’ operations, from product concept to destination, on a single platform. This includes connecting customers to their own suppliers, so all parties have real time visibility and up to date performance metrics are just a click away. Ultimately, when silos are eliminated and all parties have the same real time visibility of information, communication is more effective, collaboration improves and smarter decisions are made more quickly. Having everyone on one platform automates and saves time on many previously manual processes, like data entry and emails.
A Leader’s Tale
Darren Palfrey is the Co-Founder and the COO of Gravity Supply Chain. He has nearly 20 years of experience in the supply chain industry. Palfrey recalls entering the industry working for a garments supplier to a multinational retailer, at a time when the phrase ‘supply chain’ wasn’t widely used or understood. Procurement, manufacturing, shipping, delivery, and finance were not seen as interconnected or interdependent processes, but as individual tasks. In 1999, he joined a logistics provider that was developing services above and beyond the physical movement of cargo. That was the first time he started referring to ‘supply chain management’ instead of ‘freight management’.
Palfrey was involved in the design and execution of some of the largest, most innovative and fastest-moving global supply chains. But he saw supply chain managers continue to struggle with the speed at which supply chains grew more global and fragmented, and the sheer volumes of data they had to collect, analyze and use to make inward-facing business-critical decisions.
According to Palfrey, the key is not to gather as much data as possible, it’s to identify the right data and know how to use it. That’s why he jumped at the opportunity to co-found Gravity, and built a unique team of people who have a wealth of experience in managing supply chains, as well as the technical capabilities to provide managers with technology solutions that enables them to direct and not just react towards the supply chain.
Distinctive Approach
Gravity has differentiated itself from the competition by providing best-in-class features including a simple and effective user interface enabling faster access to user data, as well as an end to end solution from product conception to a product’s arrival at destination.
Growth Story
The company has witnessed tremendous growth over the last financial year, including an investment of $7 million backed by Singapore-based venture capital firm, Wavemaker Partners and an ever-increasing global footprint in Australia, Europe and the U.S. This growth further includes a strategic partnership with US headquartered UST global, a leading digital technology solutions company, that has been working with Fortune 500 companies for 18 years. And most recently, Gravity announced a strategic partnership with Microsoft, one of the world’s biggest and most innovative tech companies, to help accelerate the digital transformation of supply chains by having Gravity’s solutions available on and powered by the Microsoft Azure cloud platform.
Aspiring Success
In the next 3 years, Gravity intends to significantly increase its market share in the supply chain visibility space as a supply chain tech company providing real time solutions for the supply chain industry, built by supply chain users and industry experts. The company is planning to push the boundaries and expectations for supply chain executives. The overall opportunity is endless and it will certainly evolve into more than just the supply chain management visibility sector. Gravity has a strong vision, growth plan and roadmap, plus a lot of future ideas coming from its clients as they evolve and use the platform.
Emblem of Satisfaction
“Gravity understands our business, but they also understand the retail space and the challenges that we have in our business. Understanding both sides is something we found very unique.”- Ole Sanders, Managing Direct, Greater China, Röhlig Logistics
“We discovered the Gravity software at a wonderfully serendipitous moment in time where we recognized a need to incorporate an integrated system which could support the needs of our current clients and also increase our marketability, attractiveness to potential clients, and wins for coveted project tenders.”- Rick Tankir, Owner, KTL Logistics
“By partnering with Gravity, we combine our unique end-to-end intelligent supply chain approach and existing infrastructure with a best-inbreed technology platform that delivers market-leading visibility and advanced analytics. This combination will allow Advanced Supply Chain to further deliver truly innovative solutions to the retail sector, who continue to grapple with the complex challenges and huge opportunities associated with leveraging on-line and Omni-channel sales.”- Simon McKnight, International Supply Chain Director, Advanced Supply Chain
“Our white-labeled Gravity Purchase Order Management software has allowed us to enhance our supply chain and transport management offering, and deliver greater transparency and visibility into our customers’ business. It differentiates us in what continues to be a highly-competitive market and continues our commitment in leading our sector in providing high-quality solutions combining people, facilities and technology.”- Karen Van Brussel, Supply Chain Manager, Gosselin Logistics.
URL: gravitysupplychain.com
Source: The 10 Most Recommended Logistic Tech Solution Providers, 2018
