Watch Tower · Applied Intelligence for your Business · Cold-chain and reefer carriers

Goals and KPIs for cold-chain and reefer carriers, with the assumptions written down

The goal: Deliver every temperature-controlled load at the agreed temperature, with the records to show it, and keep reefer units out of the shop.

We agree three to five goals with you, each with one KPI. Every KPI is written out: what it measures, the record it comes from, the period, where it stands today and the assumptions behind the number, plus the guardrails that mustn't get worse while you work on the goal.

Open the free demo A fictional company in your industry, opened in the Console. No card needed.

What you see

Home in the Watch Tower Console

An illustration of the Watch Tower Console's Home with sample data: the goal, three KPI cards with their trend and this week's review. — Your goal, the KPIs that show it and this week's review, on the first screen you open. An illustration with sample data. The demo opens a sample in your industry.

For owners and operations managers at refrigerated carriers

What it looks like for cold-chain and reefer carriers

The KPIs, cards and questions below are examples of what we set up with you. The names and units are made up.

KPIs, with the assumption behind each

Loads delivered in rangeLoads whose recorded temperature stayed within the shipper's range for the whole trip.Assumption: Read from unit downloads; a reading outside the range for under 15 minutes during a door opening is noted, not counted.

Pre-cool done before loadingLoads where the trailer reached the set point before loading began.Assumption: Taken from the pre-cool log time against the appointment time.

Reefer service on timeUnits serviced by their engine-hour interval.Assumption: Interval taken from the unit maker's schedule.

Cards on the work tracker

Pull the temperature download for the rejected load and send it to the shipperOperations lead · due Today · Reefer 31
Service the unit that alarmed twice this weekShop lead · due Thu · Reefer 18
Write down the pre-cool step for the new produce accountDispatcher · due Fri · Shipper: Valley Greens

Records you already keep

Reefer unit temperature downloads
Shipper temperature requirements and agreements
Pre-cool and wash-out logs
Reefer service records

Assets in the register

Reefer trailers and their units
Tractors
Wash-out and pre-cool locations
Shipper accounts

Questions your team can ask Bifrost

Which loads went out of range last month, and on which trailers?
Which reefer units are past their service interval?
How often did pre-cool finish after the loading appointment?

Bifrost answers from the records in your own workspace and shows how each number was worked out.

How it runs

Goals and KPIs, step by step

Start from one goal or decision that matters this quarter.
Pick one KPI for it, from records you already keep.
Write down the definition, the period and every assumption behind the number, so anyone can check it.
Set the guardrails, then review the numbers with us every week.

The barriers this crosses

Intent: Why do I need AI at all? We start from the person's own goal, decision or task and show what changes for that goal, in their words.
Use: What exactly would I use it for? We name the specific uses by role and by industry: the decision, the calculation, the plan, the brief.

Rules and facts for cold-chain and reefer carriers

What the records have to show

When a written contract makes the carrier responsible for sanitary conditions, the carrier must pre-cool each mechanically refrigerated cold storage compartment as specified by the shipper and, if the shipper or receiver asks, show that it kept the operating temperature the shipper specified during the trip.Source: 21 CFR 1.908(e), Sanitary Transportation of Human and Animal Food
A property-carrying driver may drive at most 11 hours, within a 14-hour window, after 10 consecutive hours off duty.Source: FMCSA, Summary of Hours of Service Regulations

A summary for planning work, not legal advice. Check the source for the full rule and any state requirements.

Start

See it on a sample company first

Founding 10

$2,000 for setup and the first 3 months of Watch Tower, then $250/month. Ten places. We set up your team, goals and KPIs, asset register, map and work tracker with you, then review it with you every week.

Hardware implementation is quoted separately. Start with the demo; you can order from inside it.Open the free demo

Questions

Common questions

Does Watch Tower read our reefer units directly?

Not today. It works from the temperature downloads and logs you already pull, and puts them next to your loads, units and goals.

Why write the assumptions next to each number?

Because a KPI people can't check is a KPI people stop trusting. Each number in your Console shows the record it came from and the assumptions behind it, so a manager and a dispatcher or foreman read it the same way.

We don't have clean data. Can we still set KPIs?

Yes. We start from the records you have and write down what's missing as an assumption. As the records get better, the KPI gets better, and the review tracks that too.

What does Watch Tower cost for cold-chain and reefer carriers?

Founding 10 covers setup and the first 3 months in one payment, then a monthly price; the numbers are on this page and on the pricing page inside the demo. Hardware implementation is quoted separately.

Goals and KPIs in other industries