3L Energy Solutions is using FleetPanda’s unified dispatch platform to merge three small fuel distributors into one modernized, 50-plus-truck logistics operation.
The move also allowed 3L’s parent company, commodity trading firm Spec Oil, to vertically integrate into the downstream oil and gas sector, where it can make last-mile distribution more profitable through automated fuel operations, FleetPanda said.
“It was clear to us that to bring three companies with different cultures and processes together as one cohesive unit, and at the same time set them up to scale and grow, we needed to leverage technology,” Alex Salazar, vice president of operations at 3L, said in a news release. “FleetPanda impressed me because it’s a modular logistics software based in the cloud. It lets us bring everyone onto a single paperless system customized to how we work.
“This was something legacy software [platforms] didn’t offer.”
The company said it launched FleetPanda in four days across more than 50 trucks in its transport and tank wagon lines serving three different market segments in Texas. FleetPanda employees rode with drivers, teaching them step by step how to use the software. Salazar credited a “white-glove” implementation process for achieving results so quickly, including a shorter order-to-cash timeline.
“FleetPanda has not only allowed our dispatch operations and billing to become more efficient and seamless, but now we actually have real-time data that we can use in analytics and making business decisions on how we want to proceed in growing the company,” Salazar said.
Growth is a priority as Spec Oil plans to acquire more distributors across Texas and other states, the company said. 3L can become more efficient as it grows, too, FleetPanda added. With fully automated fuel operations, the distributor can apply advanced technologies, like using machine learning to analyze its data.
That will enable Salazar and his colleagues to run the company as an enterprise.
“I'm very excited that we finally have a foundation in place to leverage our operations and our strengths to further grow the company,” said Salazar, who also joined FleetPanda as a design partner to help develop new modules such as tank monitoring, best buy, and routing.