Trulot

Trulot is solving the problem of long haul truck drivers shortage. 

In India, there is shortage of 2.2Mn drivers as per data by Minister Nitin Gadkari (Nov 2021). Similarly, US, UK, Canada and many other developed nations have shortage of 100s of thousands of truck drivers. 

The occupational hazard of long driving hours, being away from home and family for days and months make it an un-inspiring profession for eligible workers to take this up. This cascades into a society wide impact in terms of higher logistics cost, higher rate of accidents by over-worked drivers and sub-optimal efficiency of logistics sector. 

Our solution is to hire local gig-drivers from communities around the freight -route/ highways so that they can be matched with trucks on the route. This will allow the primary driver to catch up with rest inside the vehicle while the truck is driven by Trulot Pilot (gig-driver / express-driver). In the process the journey time will come down by at least 25%. This will effectively allow more KMs/Miles to be done by the same truck per day. Which also increases the fuel efficiency of the vehicle. 

This creates ESG gains for the concerned stakeholders. Environmentally, the carbon intensity per tonne, per km will reduce due to the increased run per day. Socially, it will help create employment for town/village youngsters who will get gig-working opportunity with potential of much higher income compared to their local income rate without the challenge of migrating to city/ living away from family/ society for months altogether. The Internet of Things (IoT) technology used to track the vehicle and vehicle operational parameters will create data for enhanced governance (vehicle location, better performance and reduced down time due to predictive maintenance etc.)

This will help create gig-employment opportunity for youngsters capable of truck driving living in towns/ villages around the freight corridors/ highways. Currently, they are under-employed, pseudo-employed within the scope of opportunity available locally (e.g agriculture, animal rearing, local vehicle driving etc.). In India, these youngsters who can't relocate to cities end of earning about Rs8000 (USD100) a month. Gig-driver opportunity will help them earn upwards of Rs160 per hr (USD 2) and effective earning of Rs24000 (USD 300) per month. 

Organizations like International Road Union (IRU) from EU are already facilitating policies for immigration of drivers from countries like India with demographics of young population. With the support of ILO and logistics sector of the countries facing similar driver shortage, this model can expand globally to migrate capable drivers from India to serve these markets. Once operational, these drivers will have international benchmark of earning of USD12-15 per hour in these markets. Which will yield into higher saving net of immigration and living expenses. 

Founding team has been instrumental in bringing a objective data-driven compensation framework for 10000+ drivers in India through Internet-of-Things (IoT) solutions deployed in trucks. 

Conventionally, truck drivers have been left with basic fixed salary and rest of the salary dependent on the savings made from the trip expenses meant for diesel, government authority payments etc. With the help of IoT (diesel sensors, GPS etc.) we have created objective framework for driver compensation so that drivers are not left guessing their income after cash expenses all along the way. This experience over last 3 years, brings the founding team very close to the problem statement of truck driver shortage and a balanced perspective of the owner vs driver relationship. 

We are working with the community at Godhra (400km away from Mumbai on Mumbai-delhi highway). We have create first hub of drivers to address the batch of 150 trucks plying between Mumbai-Delhi. These youngsters are being enabled with proper driving license (if not available) and provided with opportunity to take up driving onward journey of about 500Km on day 1. They alight at the end of journey in a driver resting center. After rest, they take another vehicle towards their home location. In the process driving about 1000Km in 2 days. This way they can end of earning about USD30 in 2 days and being back in their home every 2nd day. 

The skills of the founder and community youngsters in the driver hub is a successful combination for the delivery of the ESG gain to the transporter/ shipper. 

We serve a fleet of about 150 trucks carrying the containers from Jawaharlal Nehru Port (Nhava Sheva, Mumbai) to Delhi in India with a driver pool of 15 driver, managed by one hub manager from local community . This is a distance of about 1400Km. Trulot pilot joins after 400Km from Mumbai (1 day after departure), helping to keep the truck moving while the primary driver can catch up with rest. Effectively, the journey time will reduce to 3 days instead of 4 days currently i.e., a reduction of 25%. 

This freight corridor between Mumbai and Delhi itself has average vehicle operation of 10,000 trucks per day. So, there is large scope to expand the driver pool creation in current location and take it to all other freight routes in India (about 8000Km of highways called as Golden Quadrilateral). 

Proposed collaboration with MIT Solve:

1- Help create linkage with the logistics body of US, Canada, EU and other countries facing the issue of long haul driver shortage. Explore synergy of expanding this model from India to these locations with suitable modifications to suit these market needs (weather, language, work-visas, driving license requirement etc.)

2- Grants to scale up the model across the golden quadrilateral and the upcoming industrial corridor as part of the National Logistics Policy of Govt of India. 

3- Explore any opportunity to optimize the supply-chain efficiency for US  multinationals with operations across the globe with better driver deployment in the journey so that vehicle utilization is enhanced without undue pressure on drivers for long hours. 

Truck driver is a long standing issue which has not been solved effectively given the challenges of service model and lack of technology adoption in this sector. We are taking an innovative approach of technology + people targeting an overall ESG gain so that there is compelling value proposition for each stakeholder to join in and win in the process.

By Mar 2024, we want to have a base of 500 drivers in India. 

By Mar 2026 we should take this count to 20000 drivers. 

By Dec 2027 we should be in a position to cater to upwards of 50000 drivers in India and initiate one international location with base of about 50-100 drivers. 

Our goal is to create decent work opportunity (gig-working opportunity) for town/ village dwellers without the compulsion to migrate to cities. The count of gig-drivers on our platform is metric of this achievement. 

These gig-drivers who end up earning upwards of Rs 8000 (USD 100) per month would have reduced in-equality with their peers in city. 

The number of trucks associated with Trulot to engage gig-drivers will end up increasing their run per day. In the process it will increase their fuel efficiency (KMPL) and also contribute to better utilization of the truck before the end of life. 

Trulot will ensure that each stakeholder has a win in the solution. 

Shipper will get the freight turned around faster, safer (well rested drivers) and with lowered carbon intensity. 

Transporter will increase their truck utilization and enhance their earning potential. 

Primary driver employed by the transporter/ truck owner will continue to operate in their current job, retain their variable pay linked to the trips and be well-rested during the journey reducing chances of fatigue led accidents. 

Gig-employment will be created for under-employed , pseudo-employed youngsters and earn at the level of the peer drivers who migrate to cities.

Technology used will be as follows:

1-GPS: The geo position of the vehicle will be tracked with GPS device fitted in vehicle to estimate the time of arrival at the driver hub. 

2- 4G-5G telecom network: The mobile device of the driver will be tracked with 4G-5G telecom network to keep them posted on their truck arrival time so that can be present at appropriate time to take over the vehicle driving. 

3- Internet of Things (IoT) sensors: Sensors like diesel monitring, tyre pressure monitoring, engine health parameters, driver behaviour monitoring AI camera solution will be optionally available to gain more confidence in the process of operation mitigating the associated risks.

Out of the 2 directors of the company, 1 of them is a women who is the Chief Human Resource (CHRO). Also, the first hub manager is an ex-army person. The gig-drivers are from the villages and towns who didn't have the privilege of higher education (beyond 10th grade) and have limited opportunity in local vicinity.

Our key value proposition to end customer (Shipper, Transporter) is ESG gain. 

1-Environment: 

-Higher fuel efficiency

- Less truck to carry same load

- Higher utilization of truck before end of life. 

2-Social

- Rural youth employment without adding to urbanization. 

- Above average salary + social security like insurance etc. 

3-Governance: 

- Reliable data on the fleet operations and driver utilization

Key Activity: Match the demand and supply of gig-drivers (pilots/ express drivers) on the highway while the primary drivers continues to rest inside the vehicle. 

Key Resources: Technology platform to match pilots and freight trucks; Hub with pilot drivers with facility for their rest, toilet etc. 

Key Partners: Truck operator's association, driver training institute and ESG certification agency. 

Cost Structure: 

1-Fixed cost- Hub set up, Technology platform and driver onboarding & training

2-Variable cost- Hub Manager, Driver minimum wages, social security charges

Social Impact

1- Gig-employment for rural youth without migration to city. 

2- Primary drivers gets to rest well with support of Trulot Pilot. 

Customer Segments:

1- Shippers

2-Transporter/ Carrier

Channels:

1- Through association of transporters/ carriers

2- Direct sales by B2B sales professional

Customer Relations: Through shared/ dedicated relationship manager. 

Revenue Stream:

1- Driver hiring charges - Per KM driver + Per minute spent in vehicle

2- Cross-Sell - IoT for efficiency gain (e.g., Tyre Pressure monitoring solution), Spares needed (brake, clutch, EV chargers etc.)

3- Data Monetization: Investment products for drivers, working capital financing for carriers etc. 

Direct Revenue

Trulot will earn commission on the payment for the gig-driver (say 20%). This will cover the operating expenses (e.g. hub manager, training etc) and help generate profits enabling further expansion in India and globally. 

In-direct Revenue:

- Cross sell of IoT and spares at the hubs

- Data monetization to help drivers with investments and carriers with their working capital requirements. 

In the pilot phase we are working with 20% mark-up to attain financial sustainability. 

Each hub with minimum 10-15 drivers being facilitated to earn Rs 20,000 (USD 250) each will help break-even at the hub level (commission earning of Rs 60000 per hub per month) covering the  cost of the hub-manager (Rs 30000 per month i.e. USD 375) and training expenses. 

The higher the number of drivers at each hub, the higher the profitability of the hub. As the number of hub grows across the country, the profitability at company level will be sustainable.