Telegraph, a Chicago-based startup building next-generation software for the freight rail industry, and Watco, a highly diversified transportation company, recently announced their new collaboration.
“At Watco, we are committed to finding the best way to serve our customers. Working with Telegraph has been one of the best opportunities to bring our vision for a customer-centric platform to life,” said Watco Senior Vice President Lynda Patterson.
Using Telegraph’s groundbreaking software, Watco combines advanced technology with its decades of rail logistics experience to help shippers solve their toughest logistics challenges, especially rail transportation. The enhanced platform gives customers visibility of their railcars beyond Watco facilities or tracks.
“We recognized a distinct need for software designed for the rail-centric supply chain,” explained Telegraph co-founder Shachar Astor. “The industry presents unique challenges that this collaboration allows us to address. Together, we’re making rail a more compelling option for shippers.”
To make the connections between the roughly 600 railroads serving North America and the network of transloading facilities, intermodal terminals, and ports, the Watco team needs to connect and collaborate in one place. Telegraph helps railroads, shippers, logistics providers, and railcar lessors work more efficiently via a singular platform. The company uplevels the consumer experience, making it easier for businesses to incorporate rail into their procurement and execution processes.
“Telegraph’s tool helps us be more effective and efficient so we can focus on solving common rail issues for our customers. It’s quick, easy, and powerful,” said Watco Vice President of Logistics Sales Michelle Bowling. “We help our customers keep their freight moving and provide significant cost-saving opportunities such as rate negotiations and demurrage risk mitigation.”
Over the past decade, every major mode of transportation has experienced rapid technological innovation — except rail. Telegraph provides exceptional predictability and visibility for carload and intermodal shipments. Leveraging EDI, API, and telematics integrations, the platform delivers best-in-class forecastability and pipeline management. To date, the company has saved customers thousands of hours in manual work and millions of dollars in accessorial charges.
The structure of the industry — both highly capital intensive and highly efficient — presents a unique opportunity to build a fully integrated solution that allows for better access and collaboration. However, “Collaborative environments must exist for an explicit purpose,” added Amaro Luna, another of Telegraph’s co-founders. “Other industries have upgraded their tech stack. Instead of just meeting the bar, we’ve built with operators in mind, delivering intuitive software that empowers users to make proactive decisions in a primarily reactive space.”
“It’s a pleasure to build alongside the team at Watco. Both organizations share an operational grit and customer focus that has unlocked immense value. We’re excited about our shared pursuit of making it easier for everyone to incorporate rail into their supply chain,” added Telegraph CEO Harris Ligon.
Watco sees the partnership as the beginning of a new era of rail shipping. “We serve every transportation need of a broad mix of customers,” shared Bowling. “The question we continue to ask ourselves is: How can we bring the benefits of shipping by rail to a larger group of customers faster? With Telegraph, we’ve found the answer.”
About Telegraph
Telegraph provides a cloud-based operating system for railroads, shippers, logistics service providers, and railcar leasing companies. With an innovative platform that provides price transparency, shipment visibility, and proactive business intelligence, Telegraph empowers customers and makes shipping by rail easier and more effective. For details, visit www.telegraph.io
About Watco
Watco is a leading transportation service and logistics company that provides transportation, material handling and warehousing, logistics, railcar repair, and design and development for customers throughout North America and Australia. For details, visit www.watco.com