Project44 Launches Supplier Visibility Feature

According to a Thursday (March 18) press release, supply chain technology startup project44 has launched Supplier Visibility, which will give shippers a new way to see prepaid freight from suppliers.

The release said the real-time information about the prepaid shipments from suppliers will let the shippers manage inventory levels and carry costs while also looking more at breaking down internal silos between the transportation and demand chain departments.

“We are building the digital infrastructure needed to track the flow of goods across the global economy, regardless of where it’s going or how it gets there,” said project44 Founder and CEO Jett McCandless. “Our unique, open supply chain visibility network is crucial to this. Our customers can use Supplier Visibility to gain visibility and collaborate with suppliers, removing yet another set of blind spots that create friction in supply chains. The only other way to get this level of visibility is to own every truck, every distribution center and every handover.”

The lack of visibility into inbound supplier-managed freight (or prepaid freight) could end up costing Fortune 500 companies as much as $20 million in overspend with inefficient yard and warehouse labor allocation; excess stock and wait times for trucks at the warehouses and distribution centers; and late penalties that add up.

With Supplier Visibility from project44, retailers, consumer goods companies and warehouse manufacturers will gain better labor optimization and increased efficiencies at the warehouse, the release said.

In other news, project44 has raised $100 million in a Series D round, according to PYMNTS, with assistance coming from Insight Partners as well as additional support from Eight Partners VC LLC, Emergence Capital Partners, Omidyar Technology Ventures, Sapphire Ventures LLC, Sozo Ventures and Underscore VC.

Those funds will go toward raising the profile of the project44 software and expanding business for a potential public offering.

Ryan Yost, a vice president at Avery Dennison Corp. — a manufacturer of industrial packaging based in Glendale, California — said COVID-19 had boosted the role of technology for supply chains. He said, “What we thought was on the horizon for 2025 will be implemented in 2021.”