Please describe your proposed solution.
The specific problem to target is the over payment of transportation cost by businesses big and small and the under payment of businesses big and small that provide the transportation service. While working the third party logistics field your goal is to find a party that needs help and try to exploit that need as much as possible.
To exploit the party that needs help 3rd party logistic companies (3PL) communicate a specific cost based on questionable market KPIs to a party that needs assistance in finding a transportation provider.
When the party receives the cost from these middlemen communicate a price that is in many cases 10x and sometimes 100x + what the actual cost to provide the service from location A -to- location B. The 3PL then puts the load (item/s from the party in need) on a loadboard that only they along with other 3PLs post on.
The loadboard is then watched by logistic service providers who pay a subscription fee to access the board and then call the number placed on the load with general information such as TO: location B , FROM: Location A, WEIGHT: , and a few other optional fields if needed. The transportation service provider then asks how much they are paying for the load. The 3PL then tells them a price which is almost always much lower than the price paid by the initial party who needed the the service.
This happens because the 3PL takes on responsibility of the load while it is being transported. However if something was to happen to the load during transportation the transportation service provider is still the party that pays for the losses and/or damages to the product. Thus the 3PL simply relies on the insurance the transportation service provider has to cover its potential losses in the event there is a loss/damage. Inherently, giving the 3PL the ability to make pure profit with virtually no risk.
This is a rudimentary example but one of many that this proposal wishes to solve through education to parties that seek and service logistics that they do not always need these 3PL middlemen and definitely do not need to pay the amounts asked by the 3PLs.
Please describe how your proposed solution will address the Challenge that you have submitted it in.
Our goal is not to eliminate the 3PL as they are also welcome to use the application. But every transaction they make would be transparent to every service seeker and service provider allowing every party involved to see the details of the transaction as it is currently hidden. This would allow everyone to receive a fair exchange for the services provided. Once the service is provided the parties receiving payment would also receive their funds instantly upon completion. Currently it can take up to 90 days and in some cases more for the parties involved to receive payment. Furthermore, other features such as tracking, expenses, bills of landing, and other documents that are highlighted by all parties would also be visible on the cardano blockchain. This would also bring in a new user base to the cardano blockchain that have likely never used blockchain technology before. The industry we look to make an impact in is one of the largest and most used industries in the world.
What are the main risks that could prevent you from delivering the project successfully and please explain how you will mitigate each risk?
-not enough funding to complete the MVP.
- If needed we may attempt to raise more funding in future funds and/or go to other parties for seed capital once we have been able to dedicate enough time producing a MVP parties can interact with.
-Harsh criticism and attacks from current 3PLs as they are some of the wealthiest companies
- In this event we will make sure to follow all necessary rules and regulations needed to complete and establish a true decentralized logistics platform for even them to use
We are sure there are more risks that may arise by taking on this task to decentralize logistics via the Cardano blockchain. If given the chance we would like to address any risks, questions, or concerns that anyone has or can come up with at this stage.