Para encontrar la ruta definitiva que hará llegar antes a tus clientes se deben de tener en cuenta varias características de las paradas, vehículos y restricciones, entre otras. Además de mantener una comunicación sólida ante cualquier incidente que pueda ocurrir, ya sea un factor interno o externo.

If you want to know the key factors for optimizing delivery routes and how to reach your customer faster, take a look!

Distances between delivery points

Entre los principales factores que se piensan primero cuando se habla de optimizar rutas de reparto son las distancias entre el centro logístico y los puntos de entrega. Además de que es más sencillo calcular una ruta concreta en cuanto echamos un vistazo a la proximidad entre varios puntos de entrega.

Generally, if other factors and constraints are not taken into account, one of the best routes is the one that starts with the stop closest to the warehouse. And then follows the second stop close to the first, and so on until you have finished with all orders and return to the logistics center.

However, a simple glance at delivery points can hide narrow and difficult to navigate last-mile streets that can significantly delay deliveries. Consequently, this factor is one of the first to be considered when creating a "sketch" route and then assigning drivers, vehicles and other constraints.

Delivery and staffing schedules

It is known that, with a number of batches or individual orders for a specific day, a delivery time zone is agreed with the users when calculating routes. However, these customers are increasingly requesting more precise time zones, according to their needs. Therefore, such orders must be assigned to the carrier with shifts and agreements that are compatible with the assigned time slot.

It should be noted that special attention must be paid to labor restrictions for carriers. For example, drivers are not allowed to work more than 6 hours at a time without a break in a day, so they must rest for a minimum of 30 minutes. If it is a very long route, the appropriate time slot would be assigned in accordance with the regulations and, if necessary, another carrier would be assigned to cover the shift. Not to be forgotten are the hours when loading and unloading is allowed in the cities or at the logistics center receiving the delivery.

Road and traffic conditions

As mentioned above, last mile distribution is a challenge because of difficult access to certain streets, loading and unloading stops and peak hour traffic congestion. Of course, it is most advisable to unload outside of peak traffic hours, but it is possible to coincide with this time period.

It should be noted that it should not be forgotten that the road and traffic are often conditioned by multiple external factors that can cause cuts on highways and certain streets, from the presence of workers on construction sites to accidents. As these incidents are almost impossible to predict, in this situation it is essential to maintain a solid and effective communication with the customer (either by calls, SMS or WhatsApp) and report the problem in order to find the best possible solution.

Veicoli e merci

Por último, uno de los elementos clave a la hora de optimizar las rutas de reparto es el vehículo y las restricciones adjuntas, como la capacidad de su volumen y peso. Dadas las medidas actuales dentro de ciertas ciudades, como las zonas de emisiones bajas, es posible que vehículos con motor diésel o con cierta antigüedad no puedan entrar en dichos lugares, por lo que se deberían asignar otros vehículos. Por ejemplo, los light electric vehicles are the best option for driving on streets that are difficult to access.

In the same way that the goods are also an important factor in loading the assigned vehicles in the most optimal way possible, either in terms of the maximum weight and the maximum number of pallets or containers that can be transported. In this case, tools to control the loading of vehicles, such as a route optimizer , are of great help in choosing the right truck or van for a particular route.

Además hay que tener en cuenta que ciertos productos necesitan estar regulados y que el vehículo debe disponer de condiciones especiales para que pueda cargarlos con seguridad. 

Conclusion

As we have seen, there are many factors that affect route optimization and that, without an automated tool, are complex to organize. Not only does route optimization help to save fuel and time, but also the customer will appreciate good service and quality support, and good and long-lasting business relationships will be established. Therefore, there is no single answer to the question "how to reach your customer sooner".

In Hedyla tenemos múltiples módulos dentro de nuestras soluciones que se pueden añadir o quitar para trabajar eficientemente con las herramientas necesarias para cada caso de cálculo de rutas.

Meritxell Vázquez

SEO & Inbound Marketing
Video Game Design and Production graduate currently training in Digital Marketing with a focus on SEO and Inbound Marketing.

Creating articles of value and supporting communication to the technology sector.

hedyla.com

We are talking specifically about its route planner function and, relatively recently, adding stops to that path. It's not exactly new because it was created in 2016, but it can be of great use for delivery routes.

Tips for using the route planner

If you want to know how to get the most out of this familiar route planner, here are the tips that may be useful:

1. Set departure time or arrival time.

Most users who open the application create their route based on the actual time. However, Google Maps also gives us the option to change the date of departure or arrival, giving us room to start planning and arrive on time.

This proves to be very advantageous to get more information about certain roads and highways on which we may encounter setbacks more frequently. Apart from the fact that all possible routes are known in advance by means of the route planner.

2. Use several stops

Not only can routes be created from point A to point B, but it is possible to add multiple stops along the way and optimize in the process.

Although this function is widely used by tourists who want to make a customized tour, it is also very useful for transport and logistics. In this way, additional drop-off and pick-up stops can be added to generate the best delivery route.

3. Consult regular or real time traffic

Once the route is prepared, additional information may appear that can be very helpful. The traffic consultation on the routes may be one of the most useful tools of this application.

The traffic level is colored from green (very little traffic) to dark red (a lot of traffic) to better interpret the main routes and other alternatives.

Thanks to it, you can consult the traffic of the streets both with the data that estimate the usual and in real time. In this way, you receive information about traffic jams and blocked roads so that you can easily react to these setbacks.

4. Watch the weather forecast

Among the other possible inconveniences that you may encounter during the delivery is bad weather such as rain and snowfall. Although your smartphone informs you about it in a simple way, Google Maps also gives you the possibility to consult it.

It should be noted that the weather forecast appears only when searching for a particular town or city and not a specific address. Besides that we can see the weather forecast for the following days if we click on its weather icon and it will redirect us to the search engine, with the information mainly provided by Weather.com.

5. Share or send routes to the cell phone

Without a doubt, it is an essential addition to be able to send these routes to carriers and other qualified personnel. In this way, you will have control literally in your hands and have a look at the level of traffic.

However, we must take into account that it only allows us to send these schedules to our own mobile connected to our own Google account. In case we want to send it to other people, we will have to click on Share.

If you want to create a completely customized route adapted to your needs, it is advisable to customize it through the desktop version of Google Maps. The mobile version has certain limits and does not allow you to share this type of routes.

Google Maps vs Hedyla

Mientras que el planificador de rutas de Google Maps está pensado para usuarios individuales y funciona bien como navegador, el optimizador de rutas de Hedyla viene con muchas opciones y más idóneas que te ayudaran a planificar tus rutas mejor.

By simply uploading an excel file to the program, you can calculate all the routes that need to be done on a particular day. It will also take into account all types of constraints you may have such as carrier schedules, delivery times, number of vehicles, etc.

However, Google Maps also functions as an additional tool for carriers' navigation, thanks to the fact that it warns of external factors that may be inconvenient, such as traffic congestion.

Punctuality and forecasting are very important to cover deliveries, therefore, these technological tools will help you manage and plan routes.

Meritxell Vázquez

SEO & Inbound Marketing
Video Game Design and Production graduate currently training in Digital Marketing with a focus on SEO and Inbound Marketing.

Creating articles of value and supporting communication to the technology sector.

hedyla.com