PNE's propane exchange network serves over 2,000 retail locations with prefilled propane cylinders. To support and accelerate growth, PNE initially engaged Descartes in a consulting project to optimize master routes. Excellent results were achieved by balancing distribution territories and assets against growing customer requirements to improve service and overall margins. This success paved the way for PNE to extend its relationship with Descartes by implementing the Route Planner On-demand solution to better manage daily routing operations.
"Operating as efficiently as possible while providing great service to our major retail clients like Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Rona, Lowe's, Petro-Canada, Esso, Loblaw Company Limited Grocery Stores and others is critical to our business," said Yann Baillargeon CA, Vice President of PNE. "Descartes' approach and domain expertise helped to ensure we first had the right master routes in place, and now, a platform in place that empowers our dispatchers and drivers to best execute those plans and respond to changes required in the field throughout the day."
Part of Descartes' Routing, Mobile and Telematics suite, Route Planner On-demand is a cloud-based solution that enables customers to continuously build reliable routes using fewer trucks, miles and drivers. Combined with an integrated GPS-based mobile application, it enables PNE to optimally plan, dispatch and track the progress of the deliveries on those routes in real-time.
"We're pleased that we've delivered results for PNE that have enabled them to modernize their distribution systems and operate more efficiently," said Edward Ryan, Chief Commercial Officer at Descartes. "The powerful combination of route planning and mobile applications helps logistics-intensive businesses like PNE understand plan versus actual delivery performance to help them improve service, increase productivity, and reduce the environmental impact of their distribution operations."
