Case · Planning and case files

Alnik Logistics: first find out where the time went, then four agents

A two-week discovery showed which work took the most time. Four agents followed: for email, quote requests, purchase invoices and choosing the cheapest transport option.

Estimated back per month

22 hours

At Alnik the work went well, but it passed through too many hands. A request came in by email, someone looked up the rates, someone else asked carriers for quotes, and the purchase invoices that followed were checked by hand. Each piece was small; together it was a working week per month. The question was not which tool to add, but where that time actually went.

  • Alnik Logistics
  • Logistics
  • Planning and case files
  • Outlook and their own transport system
An office overlooking a container terminal
Illustrative image, not a photo of the Alnik Logistics office.

What we did, step by step.

  1. 1

    AI discovery

    Two weeks of looking over their shoulder: which requests come in, who does what, and how often. The result was an opportunity map with the processes ranked by what they cost, and advice on which to tackle first.

  2. 2

    Email first

    Most time went into answering the same kind of email. The first agent reads an incoming email, gathers what is needed and writes a draft reply. Alnik reads it and sends it.

  3. 3

    Requesting quotes

    A transport job needs quotes from carriers. The second agent prepares those requests with the right details, so asking for quotes is no longer manual work per trip.

  4. 4

    Checking purchase invoices

    The third agent compares incoming purchase invoices with what was agreed and delivered, and flags what does not match. What does match, nobody needs to look at anymore.

  5. 5

    The cheapest option

    The fourth agent compares the transport options for a job and says which works out best, with the reason. The choice stays with Alnik; the agent does the groundwork.

What the customer keeps.

The agent prepares, the customer checks.

  • Every reply to a customer is read by a person before it goes out.
  • The agent sends no quote request without approval.
  • An invoice that deviates goes to a person, not to automatic handling.
  • Alnik decides which carrier gets the job.
It started with finding out where our time went. That was more confronting than I expected, but afterwards we at least knew where to begin. Now the groundwork is ready and we still make the decisions ourselves.
Alnik Logistics
DaarnaHow we workHow we go from a first conversation to a running agent.
Erwin Berkouwer

Erwin Berkouwer

AI consultant and architect, your single point of contact

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