Case Study: Caterpillar achieves greater shipment visibility with GT Nexus

Visibility Through CAT's Eyes

Caterpillar, the heavy equipment manufacturer, struggled to keep track of oversized and parts shipments moving through a highly complex global supply chain. Its logistics teams lacked end-to-end visibility, often relied on emails and manual follow-up, and sometimes had cargo sitting in ports for weeks, making it difficult to keep dealers and customers informed. To solve this, Caterpillar worked with GT Nexus, using its cloud-based supply chain visibility and EDI connectivity platform to track shipments more proactively.

GT Nexus helped Caterpillar build control towers, connect carriers and forwarders, and standardize shipment data across the network. The result was better real-time visibility, faster bookings, and fewer delays: Caterpillar cut booking time with container carriers from about 6.5 hours to 16 minutes or less and reduced in-transit inventory by 15 percent over two and a half years. GT Nexus also supported stronger disruption management and broader carrier collaboration across Caterpillar’s global logistics network.

Caterpillar

Tom France

Director of transportation and supply chain solutions