The primary benefits of route planning software involve cost, efficiency and customer experience. 

• Reduced planning time, allowing planners to concentrate on exceptions. 

• Routes optimized for distance, time and cost while adhering to time windows. 

• Improved customer experience from more accurate ETAs and increased on-time delivery. 

• Reduced costs and fuel consumption from cutting planned miles. 

The solution offered by Descartes is built to handle large numbers of stops, routes and drivers. The software can evaluate all the possible routes and sequences and optimize route plans while factoring in time windows, vehicle constraints and business rules.

Route planning and route optimization are related but not the same. Route planning is the process to assign orders to routes and determine the delivery sequence. This can be done manually or semi-manually without optimization software. 

Route optimization software evaluates the potential combination of options and constraints to produce the most efficient and cost-effective routes than adhere to promised time windows. 

Descartes’ route planning software uses route optimization to automatically build the most profitable and time-efficient routes for your business. This significantly reduces planning time, so route planners can concentrate on exceptions.  

Businesses with complex delivery operations and large private fleets stand to get the most value from route planning software. That includes: 

• Food and beverage distributors 

• Building Supply distributors 

• Retailers of big and bulky goods 

• Pharmaceutical and medical supply distributors 

• Wholesale distributors 

These industries typically see a significant ROI from reducing miles driven, reducing planning time and improving the customer experience. 

Route planning software is built to integrate with Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Enterprise Resource Management (ERP), telematics, mobile and Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS). 

Descartes partners with many leading software providers and has a range of pre-built integrations and APIs.

Descartes can provide an integrated mobile app to enable driver workflows, capture proof of delivery and track execution.

Yes, software from Descartes integrates with tools like Google Maps, Waze and Here for routing, real-time traffic and visualization.

Routing software from Descartes can consider real-time and historical traffic data.

Descartes offers an integrated mobile solution for drivers including routes, configurable workflows and proof of delivery capabilities. Auto-arrive and auto-depart functionality helps to accurately track service times and improve future plans. 

The software can also integrate with your existing mobile and telematics tools. 

Descartes’ route planning software is built to handle complex delivery requirements. 

• The software can handle large numbers of vehicles from multiple depots.  

• The software supports branch-based and centralized routing. 

• Strategic planning software can help you make decisions about where to open or close depots. 

• Best depot selection can automatically choose the most efficient depot to serve each customer. 

• It is possible to share resources across depots to improve vehicle utilization. 

• The software takes into account delivery constraints to select the best type of vehicle for each job. 

A number of factors influence the cost of route planning software, including: 

• Feature set: Essential elements like route sequencing and real-time tracking may be included in basic packages, while more advanced vendors may offer capabilities like true continuous optimization, geofencing, predictive analytics, and dynamic rerouting. 

• Scalability: While it may be tempting to choose a lower-cost, less scalable option, this could lead to costly migrations and replacements down the road. 

• Licensing and deployment model: Factors such as the number of users or devices, concurrent connections, the number of vehicles, deliveries, and stops, or the scale of deployment can influence the pricing structure. 

• Vendor Reputation, Support, and Maintenance: Before opting for a vendor with minimal support and maintenance, think about the long-term effects of any potential downtime or technical concerns.