Freight Dispatching

Freight dispatching is the operational coordination that happens after a load is tendered and a carrier has accepted. It encompasses confirming pickup appointments, communicating load specifics to drivers, managing day-of schedule changes, and ensuring the freight actually moves on time. Dispatching is where planning meets reality – and where things most often go sideways.

In asset carrier operations, dispatching means assigning a specific truck and driver to the load, confirming equipment availability, and routing the driver to the pickup location on schedule. In brokerage, the dispatcher coordinates between the shipper's requirements and the carrier's available capacity, often juggling multiple loads across multiple drivers. For shippers, the dispatching function typically sits on the carrier side – but the shipper's visibility into dispatching status determines how quickly they can react to problems.

Dispatching failures – a driver assigned to the wrong location, a missed pickup window, an equipment mismatch – create cascading disruptions. Late pickups push back delivery windows, trigger detention charges, and may cause dock scheduling conflicts at the destination. For temperature-sensitive freight, a dispatching delay can compromise product integrity entirely.

Shippers can't control carrier dispatching directly, but they can influence it through clear, timely tender information, automated appointment scheduling, and real-time visibility tools that flag when a pickup is at risk before it becomes a missed load.