E-Gistics looks to revolutionise parcel delivery with disruptive “Uber-style” technology

Freight forwarding technology company E-Gistics has landed a government-funded £131,000 cash injection for its new online distribution platform which matches vendors and independent hauliers.

E-Gistics’ platform offers smaller hauliers, pallet members and freight forwarders the ability to digitise the pricing and booking of deliveries carried out by combinations of independent firms, performing this task online rather than via emails and phone calls.

The consolidaton software is so groundbreaking, according to E-Gistics, that it met all the tests to qualify as research and development (R&D) under the government’s R&D tax credit scheme, resulting in funding of £131,000.

The scheme rewards firms with either a reduction in their limited company’s corporation tax bill or a cash lump sum for any work that seeks to resolve a scientific or technological uncertainty, whether that’s a new process, product or service.

In a statement the company said: “The distribution sector has been expanding rapidly in recent years, however, the software being used by new entrants to the market is typically still stand-alone, with little or no compatibility with other companies’ systems.

“The pandemic has brought renewed focus on how technology may be able to increase that rate of growth among smaller operators.

“E-Gistics’ software now gives clients a transparent overview of their dispatches with pricing information for hundreds of combinations from hauliers, couriers and freight providers.

“This means quotes can be provided typically within six seconds, regardless of the road, sea or air freight provider. These innovations have resulted in some clients making savings of more than 19%.

“The platform has already helped a furniture and household goods auction house distribute stock around the EU, using the the E-Gistics platform’s dynamic pricing once a winning bidder was identified.”

Fraser Harper, chief executive of E-Gistics, added: “The freight forwarding sector has a digitisation requirement but some companies have been unsure how to go about it.

“In the end, it was probably inevitable that a third party software specialist would bring them all together and that’s what we’ve done.

“Digital freight is destined to become more like other areas of the transport sector where automation and digitisation have turned things on their head. Uber in the personal transport space is a prime example.

“We knew we were investing heavily in technology and tax incentives like these make it so much easier to continue to do that. The government was clever to introduce this scheme. It encourages businesses to invest in technology and if companies don’t embrace digital, they don’t have a great future ahead of them.”

Richard Armstrong, partnerships director of specialist R&D tax consultancy Catax, added: “Fraser and the team are a great example of a SME that is using the R&D tax credit regime to support the future growth of their business.

“Technology is at the heart of what they do and their innovations promise to revolutionise the way the parcel delivery sector functions, not just in the UK but across Europe.”