Con-way Lands In Top 100 of Informationweek 500 for 2006
Company's Adoption of Service-Oriented and Event-Driven Architecture Cited for Leadership, Innovation
SAN MATEO, CA - August 03, 2006
Con-way Inc. today announced that it has been named among the top 100 companies profiled for industry-leading, innovative use of technology by InformationWeek magazine in its annual Top 500 ranking.
The company was cited for its pioneering use of service-oriented and event-driven architecture, an advanced system-development and application design method which the company employs today as the platform for two primary business systems:- Con-way Freight Service Center Operations System. This mission-critical operating system, the most significant operating platform advancement in the company’s history, enables Con-way Freight dispatchers, inbound and outbound planners, dock supervisors and customer service staff to dynamically set, adjust and execute shipment pickup, delivery and line-haul freight flow plans. As the business day progresses dispatchers utilize the system, which features an intuitive, interactive map, to assign freight shipments to the best route and sequence based on parameters such as location, minimum driving time, distance, capacity and other constraints. The interactive map helps dispatchers visualize customers’ proximity to each other as well as to drivers already on their pickup or delivery runs. It enables operations to better balance shipment and driver workloads, and respond quickly to issues and opportunities, such as schedule changes or new customer requests entering the system.
- Menlo Worldwide Carrier Network Optimization System. This system also leverages the enterprise Service Oriented Architecture design as the foundation for an application platform that plans and optimizes truckload volumes and multiple carrier capacity over a customer’s network, at the lane level, based on price and capacity. The SOA platform enabled Menlo to implement a reusable J2EE-based Web service and can be leveraged by other customers and other applications in the enterprise. The system utilizes an existing transportation management application and database, coupled with a third-party, constraint-based linear optimization engine through an XML Web Service. The system brings a new level of planning sophistication and efficiency, process control, automation and cost savings to a function that was once highly manual and relied on a collection of disparate software tools. In its initial deployment, the Menlo network optimization system is on track to save $2 million for the company’s transportation management customers in 2006.
Con-way Freight is one of North America’s largest providers of high-performance regional and national less-than-truckload freight transportation services. Menlo Worldwide is a leading provider of third party logistics services specializing in transportation management, warehousing and distribution operations and supply chain re-engineering services globally.
“We’re honored to be recognized by a respected and authoritative industry voice such as InformationWeek for leadership and innovation in technology,” said Jackie Barretta, vice president and chief information officer for Con-way. “We saw early on the potential of service oriented architecture. Our new systems are a tremendous accomplishment for our team that’s allowed us to realize SOA’s potential today – in more efficient operations and responsive service for our freight transportation and logistics customers.”
Con-way’s exact rank on the 2006 InformationWeek 500 will be revealed at an awards ceremony held during the InformationWeek 500 Conference in Rancho Mirage, Calif. from September 10-13.
For the past 18 years InformationWeek has identified and honored the nation's most innovative users of information technology with its annual listing. The list is unique among corporate rankings because it spotlights the power of innovation in information technology, rather than simply identifying the biggest IT spenders.
“The InformationWeek 500 honors today’s leading companies who set the benchmark for business technology strategies and projects,” said InformationWeek publishing director, Fritz Nelson. “The companies on our list are some of the most innovative users of technology.”
Details on the InformationWeek 500 can be found at www.informationweek.com/iw500.com, while more information about the conference is at www.informationweekconference.com
About Con-way -- Con-way Inc. (NYSE:CNW) is a $ 4.2 billion freight transportation and logistics company with businesses in less-than-truckload and full truckload freight services, truckload brokerage, contract logistics, warehousing, supply chain management and trailer manufacturing. The company and its subsidiaries operate across North America and in 20 countries. More information about Con-way, its operations and services can be found on the Web at www.con-way.com.
About InformationWeek --InformationWeek sets the agenda for business technology executives, covering the full range of information access points IT decision-makers use today. A trusted, authoritative source and information filter, InformationWeek helps community members understand and focus on what’s important up-to-the-minute – in print, online, through independent research and at live, peer-to-peer events. Through its cross-media platform, InformationWeek delivers content to complement the print publication to its community of business technology leaders when and how they want it, 24/7. The InformationWeek community includes an audience of 2.5 million CIOs, IT executives and business managers who cut across industries, job titles, company sizes and global borders.
InformationWeek is consistently recognized for its commitment to excellence and thought leadership by the IT community, receiving many of the industry's top media accolades, including several awards from the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE).
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