Sims Global Strengthens Carrier Vetting, Onboarding, & Monitoring with Descartes MyCarrierPortal™

Sims Global Solutions (SGS) is a third-party logistics (3PL) provider specializing in complex freight—particularly open-deck and oversized shipments. Seeking to improve operational efficiency, enhance security, and reduce fraud and risk across its carrier onboarding processes, SGS deployed Descartes MyCarrierPortal™ (MCP). Seamlessly integrated with its transportation management system (TMS), the Descartes solution enabled SGS to streamline and automate carrier vetting, onboarding, and ongoing monitoring, while ensuring compliance and preventing fraud. 

North American 3PL Provider 

Descartes MyCarrierPortal™ 

• Time-consuming manual processes 

• Onboarding not integrated with TMS 

• Difficult to find carriers with the right equipment 

• Incomplete vetting, onboarding, and monitoring process 

• Fraud and non-compliance risk exposure 

• Automated and streamlined vetting and onboarding 

• VIN validation to ensure carrier identity prior to onboarding 

• Risk protection with real-time IP address detection, Form MCS-150 change alerts, and insurance monitoring 

• Customizable carrier questionnaires to find carriers with the required equipment 

• More than 2X team productivity boost  

• Seamless integration between onboarding and TMS 

• Comprehensive fraud prevention 

• Real-time risk visibility and alerting 

“Descartes MyCarrierPortal really helped us streamline vetting and onboarding carriers. With our current tech stack—including MCP—two reps can handle the workload of four or five reps.” 

— Chris Woods, VP of Operations, Sims Global Solutions

Based in Lenexa, Kansas, Sims Global Solutions (SGS) offers transportation and logistics services for Fortune 100 and small businesses alike across North America, including truckload, less-than-truckload, expedited, intermodal, specialized, and international freight. SGS is a service-driven company providing customized logistics solutions. 

Prior to adopting Descartes MCP, SGS relied on a time-consuming manual carrier onboarding process that was susceptible to human error. In addition, inconsistencies in the company’s vetting practices left the company vulnerable to bad actors. SGS specializes in high-risk freight types like open-deck and oversized loads and, without capabilities such as VIN validation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) company record (Form MCS-150) change alerts, and insurance policy monitoring, SGS was exposed to a range of fraud tactics and compliance issues. 

“Before using MyCarrierPortal, we weren’t as focused on due diligence. We were missing steps in vetting our carriers,” recalls Chris Woods, VP of Operations at SGS. “We needed to ensure that our carriers were not the fraudulent bad actors we’ve come to know in the industry these days.” 

SGS deployed Descartes MCP to automate and fortify its carrier onboarding process; today, the solution has become a foundational component of the company’s tech stack, seamlessly integrating with its TMS. “MCP really helped us streamline vetting and onboarding carriers,” Woods affirms. 

For example, SGS relies on MCP’s VIN validation feature, allowing the team to confirm the equipment belongs to the correct carrier and is located where it should be. “It’s a key capability for us right now because when we’re bringing on a new carrier, we can actually validate the VIN to the specific truck and make sure they are who they say they are,” he explains. “It’s all about security and making sure that our client’s freight is hauled on a trusted carrier.” 

Woods cites a specific case where red flags popped up when negotiating rates with a carrier: “We pulled up the carrier in MCP and quickly noticed the MCS-150 had changed. We also saw that Incident Reports were filed against the carrier and that their rating had dropped by a few stars. With MCP, we were able to avoid what could have been a catastrophe.”  

In addition to using MCP’s geolocation and IP detection to identify location-based anomalies during onboarding, SGS also leverages certificate of insurance (COI) monitoring to ensure each carrier’s coverage is current and the company is not exposed to unnecessary liability. The solution provides a competitive advantage as well. “One capability that definitely stands out is the ability to customize carrier questionnaires and understand the different trailer types we want to capture during onboarding,” Woods says. “Being able to now target those types of carriers with MCP is key for our success.” 

Woods concludes, “Proprietary information is what keeps us alive in this industry, and one of the most valuable advantages of Descartes is that our data is kept private. Many other pricing and tendering models share your data but, with MCP and Descartes, our data is secure and safe.” 

MCP automates carrier vetting and onboarding, leveraging the industry’s largest network of active, vetted carriers. By eliminating manual processes, SGS can quickly identify the best carrier for each load. 

MCP integrates seamlessly with SGS’s TMS, empowering its carrier sales reps to work faster and smarter. With the current SGS tech stack—featuring MCP—two reps now handle the workload of 4–5 reps. 

MCP’s VIN validation is mission-critical to help SGS verify carrier identity and prevent fraud, and red flags (e.g., overseas IP addresses, recent FMCSA changes) are identified automatically by the solution. 

MCP monitors carriers in real-time and proactively alerts SGS with status, risk and compliance updates (e.g., changes to insurance coverage, ratings, FMCSA safety records, inspections, DOT numbers).