FR8 Revolution, Inc., an Oakland-based company that develops free cloud-based tools to improve efficiency in freight transportation, has launched a fully integrated freight rate estimator and booking platform for open deck loads at www.fr8star.com. FR8Star offers a marketplace where shippers of large and heavy materials can receive bids on loads and book directly with heavy haul and open-deck carriers.

FR8Star simplifies the load bidding process so shippers can easily manage carrier relations without a broker. Among the benefits to shippers is direct knowledge of the marketplace, what carriers themselves are bidding, not the marked-up quotes from brokers. Benefits accrue to both parties in a transaction, and shippers are particularly empowered to easily participate directly in this specialized marketplace.

A free FR8Star account enables shippers to directly access FR8Star’s load marketplace which includes a unique, patent-pending rate calculator for pricing oversize/overweight loads, including up-to-date state permit fees and escort costs. FR8Star provides carriers with free dispatch software and an app that includes tracking and communication to keep shippers informed of load status automatically.

To use FR8Star’s free estimator, a shipper goes to www.fr8star.com, sets up an account and begins operating. The shipper can then post loads in the FR8Star platform and receive bids from carriers.

For decades, brokers have facilitated transactions between shippers and carriers. But pricing information is not evenly distributed. Broker interaction can increase this lack of pricing transparency resulting in higher rates for shippers and lower rates for carriers.

“We believe the United States truck freight market operates most efficiently when carriers and shippers work directly with one another,” said Matthew Kropp, CEO of FR8 Revolution. “Given our patent-pending heavy haul rate estimator and our experience in the heavy haul market, focusing on this underserved space was an obvious decision.

“We designed FR8Star to provide better service to shippers by allowing them to both contract directly and share real-time information about loads,” Kropp added. “FR8Star helps each side of the transaction to make more profit while eliminating the need for a pricey middleman. The FR8Star platform continues to build on the fr8.guru dispatch platform launched a year ago and has been the result of a deep collaboration with our customers and our VW-MAN and Velocity Vehicle Group strategic partners.”

FR8Star was founded in 2015 to build data-driven, cloud-based tools aimed at reducing inefficiencies in the $700 billion US trucking market that result in lost revenue, more pollution and traffic, and poor working conditions for the 3.5 million drivers it employs. FR8’s tools help carriers manage their fleet schedules, identify available capacity on freight truck routes, and sell this capacity to shippers that need it. The platform allows shippers to manage and track their spot loads in real time and the FR8 mobile app provides truck drivers with tools to manage their life on the road. Volkswagen is an investor in the company.