How Technology is Accelerating Transportation

IFDA’s latest research shows that technology is playing important roles in enhancing distributors’ transportation strategies. These approaches are driving innovation for use cases ranging from route planning optimization to driver safety. The data comes from IFDA’s 2025 Foodservice Distribution Industry Technology Report.

Here are a few insights.

• Routing and Delivery: Eighty four percent of companies are using routing and delivery software and about two-thirds of that group find it effective.
• Truck-Related Automation: Among companies using truck-related automation, the most common technologies are truck-specific GPS (74%), driver cameras (63% outward, 60% inward), and automated driver behavior alerts (57%).
• Interest in Future Implementation: Among companies not currently using certain truck-related technologies, the greatest interest for implementation in the next year is in hand-held delivery scanners—especially mobile devices with scanning software (45%) and single- purpose devices (31%).
• AI Use Cases: Meanwhile, 37% of companies use or plan to use AI for route planning/optimization and a similar percentage for driver behavior monitoring.

The IFDA Solutions Conference expo will spotlight a range of companies offering innovative technology solutions that support fleets/transportation. These include applications for cost management, revenue growth, driver and vehicle safety and route optimization.

Here are just a few of these companies and their solutions.

• Samsara (Booth 329): AI Multicam is a complete multicamera visibility system that detects risks around a vehicle, alerts drivers instantly, and accelerates incident resolution.
• Loop (Discovery Zone Kiosk): Loop’s transportation cost management platform uses domain-driven AI to transform complex supply chain data into meaningful metrics and actionable insights.
• KEYper Systems (Booth 108): KEYper MX manages keys to fleet or distribution vehicles and logs miles, gas and other data.
• BFC Software (Booth 628): Driver Bid Optimizer enables transportation teams to reduce driver costs and streamline bid package creation by automating and optimizing how drivers are aligned to routes and unassigned work.
• ArrowStream (Booth 464): Crossbow provides purchasing and transportation teams centralized visibility of the inbound logistics network to reduce costs and increase freight revenue.

For more on transportation, the IFDA blog has profiled conference sessions that will address fleet/transportation. These include a piece about the importance of using data-driven processes  and another on the use of predictive analytics to support driver safety and efficiency.