Online Tools Help Freight Brokers Quickly Match Loads, Trucks

Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

n 1978, Al Jubitz founded DAT Services at his network of truck stops, based on his notion of Dial-A-Truck. Jubitz would call other truck stops and have them place notes that carriers could answer, said Don Thornton, a vice president of TransCore Inc. — the owner of DAT since 2001.

Eventually, the process evolved to electronics — from phones to fax machines to computers. After the freight was posted electronically on computer monitors, drivers would call the brokers or shippers when they saw something that looked interesting, Thornton said.

Since the time when Jubitz started scribbling notes, modern freight brokering has benefited substantially from the inclusion of computer technology.

Starting with 10 monitors on Interstate 5 on the West Coast, today the company has 1,200 digital network displays in major truck stops around the country, Thornton said.

For the full story, see the April 12 edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.