As a recognized innovator in delivery management, Descartes has offered market-proven routing and scheduling solutions for over 20 years. Its comprehensive suite of Routing, Mobile & Telematics solutions meets the needs of manufacturers, retailers, distributors and their logistics services providers by managing the entire delivery process, and enabling them to optimize and gain real-time control over their logistics assets and mobile workforce. By integrating design, planning, execution, performance management, mobile solutions and telematics, Descartes maximizes private fleet and contract carrier productivity, improves customer service, provides visibility to global and regional supply chain performance, and captures the necessary data to drive world class logistics operations. Descartes’ comprehensive Routing, Mobile & Telematics solutions play an integral part in supporting and improving a number of key logistics functions and processes. Download to read more.

1. Descartes Solutions
Routing, Mobile and
Telematics
Tracking, information gathering, measuring,
delegating and optimizing the use of assets and
people that are involved in the movement of goods.

2. Fleet and Resource Management
For organizations with delivery fleets, mobile resource management is critical, yet poses some significant challenges.
Whether performing deliveries and pickups, scheduling on-site inspections, or visiting clients to discuss merchandising
or take inventory – the need to communicate in real-time and optimize resources in the field is essential to maintaining
margins and profitability.
Many operators today function on a manual, decentralized and fragmented model, without the help of optimization or
decision support technology. As a result, routing schedules tend to be static with little to no ability to manage dynamic
jobs and/or route changes. This leads to added costs, fragmented fleet planning and underutilization of assets in the field.
Addressing the Challenge
There are many approaches to route planning functionality. The most basic approach has been to work with spreadsheets
and static calendars. As this is not an automated process, it requires the daily development of a new plan and the ability to
break down data elements into individual or regional route packages. As a result, managers do not have insight into the
entire route planning and dispatch process.
Some users have adopted a range of tracking technologies to pinpoint the location of vehicles and/or personnel. Beyond
knowing where field resources are at any given time, the information provides limited benefits. Dispatch managers are
still left with the inability to monitor and execute schedules against the plan in a way that optimizes delivery performance
and customer service while controlling costs.
Others do have some level of control through designated route planners. However, the problem of unmanaged mobile
assets remains unchanged. Mobile sales personnel and merchandisers, for example, are not part of the core delivery
fleet, so managers have very little day-to-day control over the plans they are working against. As a result, there tends
to be an extremely high degree of variability in efficiency. Self-reporting of miles and work done is not reliable and
prone to inaccuracies and in some cases, abuse of the system. This becomes even more problematic from a compensation
standpoint. Reconciling the activities of field personnel with a less than accurate reporting system, in most cases, leads to
overpayment for services.
There are a few companies that have explored the option of using route planning packages that interface with separate
dispatch packages and mobile provider solutions to enable interaction with trucks on a day to day basis. Integrating and
managing all three elements, however, is difficult. Especially with multiple vendors, integration costs can be high and
budgeting more unpredictable, leading to cost overruns and an impact on reliability. In addition, almost all in-house
approaches require companies to identify and install software behind the firewall, increasing capital costs and risk.
Descartes Routing, Mobile, & Telematics Suite:
Comprehensive Solutions for Mobile Resource Management
As a recognized innovator in delivery management, Descartes has offered market-proven routing and scheduling solutions
for over 20 years. Its comprehensive suite of Routing, Mobile & Telematics solutions meets the needs of manufacturers,
retailers, distributors and their logistics services providers by managing the entire delivery process, and enabling them to
optimize and gain real-time control over their logistics assets and mobile workforce.

3. By integrating design, planning, execution, performance management, mobile solutions and telematics, Descartes
maximizes private fleet and contract carrier productivity, improves customer service, provides visibility to global and
regional supply chain performance, and captures the necessary data to drive world class logistics operations.
Descartes’ comprehensive Routing, Mobile & Telematics solutions play an integral part in supporting and improving a
number of key logistics functions and processes, including:
Strategic Delivery Planning – helps companies build new services, sales territories and replenishment strategies
that maximize customer service and profit. Solutions perform complex service scheduling for regularly occurring
deliveries, and provide fleet management applications for vehicle routing and tracking. It also evaluates geographic
distribution and sales potential for each customer to help establish optimal territories and routes.
Daily Route & Load Planning – accelerates a company’s ability to continuously create reliable routes using fewer
trucks, miles and drivers. As each new order is placed solutions re-optimize in real-time, allocating resources to help
maximize operating efficiencies; deliver priority service to the most profitable accounts and routes; and maintain overall
customer service objectives.
Mobile & Wireless Fleet Management – integrates planning, dispatch, delivery status and wireless commu-
nications to improve customer responsiveness and minimize the impact of service interruptions and exceptions. Descartes
solutions provide delivery dispatch, monitoring and two-way wireless communications, enabling asset tracking and
monitoring of people in the field.
Reservations – enables real-time reservation scheduling, easy delivery dispatch and real-time delivery management
through route optimization software. It also facilitates the online scheduling of deliveries or services.
AVL – helps improve customer responsiveness through real-time status updates, forward predictability and enhanced
exception alerting. This can reduce the need to track every aspect of a schedule and emphasize the implications of service
interruptions and exceptions.
Dispatch – leverages integrated wireless devices to enhance real-time communication with drivers to improve customer
service. This offering coordinates drivers, dispatchers and call centers for operational improvements and customer
responsiveness. It facilitates new order assignments and manages exceptions along with recommendations for taking
action and communicating with drivers.
Fleet and For Hire – provides an easy and affordable way to route plan, optimize, dispatch, track and monitor delivery
fleets in real time. This on demand fleet management solution optimizes both static and dynamic routes to maximize
efficiency, by taking into account geographic zones, time windows and other constraints when planning delivery fleets.
It also provides a real-time global view of driver movement and delivery status to improve operational efficiency, reduce
costs and improve service.
Telematics – enables real-time, highly configurable field data capture including in-cab, turn-by-turn navigation, new
trailer and cab sensor integration and trailer action alerts (e.g. temperature, movement and other sensory inputs).
Reporting Services – a standard reporting tool that allows for easy drag and drop report generation so users can
create and modify sophisticated reports in minutes.

4. The Descartes Advantage – Optimize Route Planning, Reduce Fuel Costs
and Improve Asset Utilization
Descartes Routing, Mobile & Telematics solutions Features include:
are designed to meet the needs of organizations • Web-based access to a full suite of route planning and
regardless of size or complexity, enabling optimal optimization tools;
route planning, a reduction in fuel costs and • Central hosting and provisioning;
significant improvements in asset utilization. • End-to-end functionality for planning, dispatch and
Through its software-as-a-service (SaaS) model mobile connectivity;
for mobile resource management, organizations • Advanced reporting and analysis tools;
can access advanced route planning capabilities • Support for passive tracking (e.g. GPS) and driver
on demand, avoid the need for a high capital
interaction (e.g. handheld computers) in real time;
cost investment, and reduce in-house IT staffing
• Support for a full range of mobile devices (e.g. black
needs. As an established service provider with
boxes, Java phones, BlackBerry devices, Windows
a long and proven history in logistics solutions,
Mobile devices, and touch screen PCs);
Descartes offers an easy-to-deploy and use Web-
• Telematics functionality for truck and driver behavior
based SaaS solution that provides end-to-end
analysis available as add on services;
functionality for local logistics needs. Descartes’
• Engine diagnostics using fault codes;
strategic delivery planning solution for dispatch
• Driver driving behavior;
supports operators throughout the process, from
• Maintenance scheduling;
initial planning to execution and analysis.
• State mileage reporting;
With its on-demand, pay-as-you-go model, • Fuel efficiency reporting; and
Descartes can address a full range of planning • Hours of Service for DOT regulations compliance.
and execution needs for operations of any size –
from 10 to 10,000 trucks. Rather than adopting Through the Descartes United by Design Partner
a standalone approach to problems, Descartes program, logistics-intensive organizations also benefit
solutions are integrated and geared towards from seamless interoperability between Descartes’
simplifying complicated and difficult problems logistics management solutions, and those provided by
throughout the end-to-end logistics process, supply chain partners around the world, encompassing
enabling users to identify opportunities for all markets, modes and logistics related processes. This
improvement. In addition, Descartes Routing, interoperability is based on open standard collaborative
Mobile, & Telematics solutions can easily be scaled interfaces (SCIs).
up or down accordingto business needs without
the need for infrastructure changes.
The Descartes Systems Group Inc. Descartes (TSX: DSG) (NASDAQ: DSGX) is the global leader in logistics technology. If logistics is critical to your business, Descartes connects
the people and technology to put your organization in motion. Descartes’ Logistics Technology Platform combines the power of the Global
TSX: DSG | NASDAQ: DSGX Logistics Network with the industry’s broadest array of modular and interoperable web and wireless logistics applications. Descartes is
headquartered in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada and has offices and partners around the world.
120 Randall Drive, Waterloo, Ontario
© Copyright 2011 Descartes Systems Group Inc. All rights reserved. Descartes, the Descartes triad logo and all product names used are
Descartes trademarks unless specifically identified as the trademarks of a third party.
N2V 1C6, Canada
Toll Free 800.419.8495 | Int‘l 519.746.8110
info@descartes.com | www.descartes.com