Full steam ahead for start-up striving to tackle issues crippling one of Australia’s oldest industries

Sydney:In a move set to disrupt the Australian road freight industry, Sydney-based start-up Loadsmile has launched its technology platform designed to empower the long tail of struggling small to medium-sized carriers.

Loadsmile CEO and Co-Founder Geoffroy Henry said the sector is riddled with inefficiencies, most of which are addressable through technology.

“Today’s road freight industry is incredibly wasteful ― millions of empty kilometres are being driven, trucks are underutilised, and overheads have increased. Currently, 30% of trucks in Australia are running with empty loads, and even when a truck has a load, it is rarely entirely full,” Henry said.

“What’s more, we have spoken to hundreds of small and medium carriers who have said their drivers and trucks on average spend 2.8 days per five-day week (40%) without work², and almost one-third (30%) of the costs they spend on resources are going to overheads not directly related to the truck or driver².

“This is due to an imbalance of power in the market, which is placing even more pressure on the small to medium trucking companies that are already chasing their tails to compete with the larger players.”

In order to address the significant issue of wastage in the industry, Loadsmile’s digital platform live matches quality shippers with vetted and reliable carriers ― reducing empty miles and idle time for small to medium businesses and ultimately providing better service at a lower price.

Funded by global incubator and investor Rocket Internet, this tech start-up has already secured interest from one of Australia’s largest shippers — BeCool, the last mile logistics arm of HelloFresh, will use Loadsmile’s services from day one. Loadsmile has on boarded more than 100 carriers already, providing access to thousands of trucks.

Loadsmile aims to generate a minimum of AU$10 million in revenue for its first year of operations, though with invites to tender for major Australian shippers with a potential combined contract value of more than AU$85 million, it could easily surpass these targets.

A team of 18 today, Loadsmile plans to recruit an additional 15 people by the end of the financial year, with a particular focus on building its technology team and investing heavily to develop full automation and machine learning tools.

“There’s the age-old adage that ‘without trucks, Australia stops’, and it couldn’t be truer. We hope to empower trucking companies of all sizes, support more sustainable business operations today and into the future, and build a more efficient road freight industry,” Henry said.

In addition to operations in Australia, Loadsmile is launching simultaneously in Indonesia to target the two largest transport and logistics economies in the APAC region, outside of China and India. To find out more, visit www.loadsmile.com.au