At its annual users conference in Birmingham, Ala., McLeod Software (www.mcleodsoftware.com) on Thursday, Oct. 4, introduced new products and features related to its three principal lines of software business – trucking management, brokerage/logistics management and document imaging.
RANS and Symphony
For its flagship trucking enterprise system, LoadMaster, McLeod is offering a new module called the Rapid Alert Notification System (RANS), which allows users to define conditions that will prompt an immediate e-mail, message window or a custom audible alert. The feature complements color-coded alerts already in LoadMaster. “RANS turns LoadMaster into a proactive exception management system,” says President Tom McLeod. Users can configure any number of custom alerts, but among the pre-defined alerts are:
In another development related to LoadMaster, @Road, GeoLogic Solutions’ AutoAlerts, Qualcomm’s Portal and PeopleNet’s Pacos v2.6 all are fully integrated with LoadMaster through the system’s Symphony Mobile Communications Module. Symphony provides a common user interface for multiple mobile communications solutions, particularly useful for carriers that want to switch vendors seamlessly or to test several mobile communications systems, the company says. “What makes Symphony unique is that it gives our software engineers a simple integration path,” McLeod adds.
Other in-cab vendors integrated through Symphony are Carrier Web, DriverTech, Teletrac and TransCore. Trailer-tracking systems integrated are GE VeriWise, Qualcomm, SkyBitz and TransCore.
EDI for Logistics
For its PowerBroker brokerage/logistics enterprise system, McLeod Software introduced a new EDI for Logistics Module, giving brokers and logistics operations electronic data interchange capability to allow them to handle higher volumes, engage larger carriers and serve larger customers more effectively. With EDI for Logistics, customers can offer tenders (outbound 204) to a carrier, and receive acknowledgements (997), responses (990) and status updates (214) in real time and without manual intervention, the company says. McLeod Software’s EDI transmits data in a true format, allowing the option to bypass a VAN and character fees associated with it.
HirePower
For its Document Imaging System, McLeod Software is offering HirePower, a new module designed to reduce hiring times by allowing remote data entry of applications and to ensure a controlled, consistent application process.
HirePower allows drivers to complete their applications through a secure, remote website. The application is automatically made available to all members of a recruiting team, assigning tasks to minimize work while simultaneously verifying and storing the 30 or more qualifying documents in a typical application package.
The module flags with automatic task lists and alerts to help personnel responsible for verifying DOT compliance, drug screenings and employment history. Driver data is verified and stored, while forms that require a driver’s signature are scanned back into recruiting files and automatically indexed into an organized recruiting “filing cabinet.” HirePower also automatically recognizes gaps in employment history. The Smart Packs creates prefilled forms to reduce the time needed to complete final paperwork at orientation.
“With HirePower, our customers can focus on meeting their hiring goals with a tool that offers a seamless and painless approach to the hiring process from both sides of the driver/carrier relationship,” McLeod says.
