C.H. Robinson Partners with Microsoft to Provide High Visibility to Shippers

C.H. Robinson has partnered with Microsoft to provide increased inventory visibility for shippers using its Navisphere platform, the companies announced Tuesday. The two companies created Navisphere Vision, which uses Azure IoT technology, machine learning and predictive analytics to forecast potential disruptions. Microsoft has also begun using the platform within its supply chain. "Our platform is providing visibility to all shipments in the supply chain, whether it's sitting or in transit," Jordan Kass, the president of managed services at C.H. Robinson, said in an interview with Supply Chain Dive. The inventory data pairs with outside sources of information, including weather and traffic, and the system will use predictive analytics in an attempt to anticipate supply chain disruptions, Kass said. Suppliers can connect to the system either directly or through the cloud and send in purchase orders to the Navisphere system as they come in, which will begin the process of tracking the inventory. On the outbound side, customer orders will be sent to C.H. Robinson's ERP system and picked up directly by Navisphere, which will begin the process of route optimization and carrier selection management.