When support doesn't understand freight
Most trucking offices live with a support gap. The software vendor answers questions about its product, usually through a ticket queue. The local IT shop keeps the network and the printers running, but doesn't know a rate table from a settlement batch. In between sits the work that actually matters: why the fuel surcharge calculated wrong on Friday's invoices, why the ELD interface stopped posting, why the new dispatcher can't see her board, why payroll won't close.
Those problems land on whoever in the office is "good with computers." That person has a real job too. Meanwhile drivers wait on dispatch, invoices sit unbilled, and small issues become habits and workarounds that nobody fixes.
You need support from people who have worked in the database, sat with dispatch, and run go-live weeks, and who will show up on a date you can count on.
Since you came aboard our staff now experiences an almost instant response to any Truckmate issues that may arise. The increase in our productivity has been dramatic.
Fixed-price on-site support agreements
Several of our clients rely on an ongoing on-site support agreement, and it remains the heart of this practice. The model is simple. For a fixed price, you get our staff on site for a set number of days per month.
That gives you two things that are hard to get any other way:
- Peace of mind. You know we will be there to help you, on a regular schedule, without having to chase anyone.
- A cost you can budget. The fixed price is something you can plan for and include in your budget forecasting, instead of absorbing surprise invoices after every emergency.
Committed dates, blocked out in advance
We take every call for our services seriously. But we block out dates for our on-site agreement clients in advance, so they get committed dates and the comfort of knowing we will be there. Clients without an ongoing agreement are scheduled after that, so during busy periods for us and our clients, you might not get the dates you want. If you want the confidence that we will be there on a regular basis, an agreement is the way to get it.
What we do on site
While on site, our staff can do anything you need. Typical visits include:
- Troubleshooting. Working through the issues your team has been saving up, with the people who hit them, at their desks.
- Configuration. New customers, rate and tariff changes, fuel surcharge tables, accessorial codes, user roles, and dispatch board setups.
- Installation and upgrades. New workstations, new modules, version upgrades, and testing before and after.
- Training. Short sessions for new hires or a refresher for a department (see Training & Enablement).
- Reports and documents. Fixing or building the invoices, settlement statements, and management reports your team depends on (see Reporting & Business Documents).
- Checkups. Backup checks, account reviews, and system health so small problems don't become outages (see Data Protection & Business Continuity).
If you need something specific for a visit, let us know in advance. We arrive better prepared and get more done in the day.
Remote support between visits
Not every issue can wait for the next on-site day, and many don't need to. A secure remote session is often the fastest way to look at an error, walk a user through a screen, fix a configuration, or check a stalled interface. Remote support keeps your team moving between visits and lets us handle short items without travel cost.
Remote help works well for:
- Individual user questions and one-on-one coaching
- Error messages, failed jobs, and stalled imports or exports
- EDI, ELD, fuel card, and accounting interface checks (see ELD, EDI & Back-Office Integration)
- Report changes and quick configuration updates
- Follow-up on items from the last on-site visit
Existing clients can start a remote session from our support page.
I have found your service to be the most beneficial service, dollar for dollar, than any other IT service around.
Support that follows the freight
A trucking company's systems touch every department, and each one breaks in its own way. We support the people, not just the servers:
- Order entry and customer service. Customer setups, bill-to and shipper records, quotes, and EDI 204 load tenders that don't land where they should.
- Dispatch and planning. Board views, driver and equipment assignments, trip legs, mileage, and status updates from the field.
- Billing and AR. Rating, fuel surcharge, accessorials, detention, invoice formats, EDI 210 invoices, and AR aging.
- Payroll and settlements. Pay codes, deductions, advances, and settlement statements that have to be right every pay period.
- Safety and maintenance. Driver files, DVIR records, repair and maintenance setups, and IFTA data.
- Management. The reports leadership uses to see revenue per mile, deadhead, and margin by customer and lane.
Because we know how these pieces depend on each other, a fix in one department doesn't quietly break another.
We have also contracted with Strong Tower to be our IT support. Scott and his team are very knowledgeable, dependable, and reasonably priced.
Independent by design
Strong Tower never requires you to buy our software. We support the systems you already run, whoever built them. Our sister company, Exspeedite, makes a TMS, which is why we know these systems from the inside. As our original site put it: we are not selling you more products, we help you get more out of your existing investment. If we don't think the answer is more licenses or features, we will tell you.
Carrier Managed IT & Third-Party TMS Application SLA Matrix
Generic managed service providers (MSPs) treat a frozen dispatch board like a broken office printer. Strong Tower enforces transportation-specific Service Level Agreements (SLAs) designed around freight velocity and dispatch continuity:
| Severity Tier & Incident Scope | Freight Operational Impact | Guaranteed Response & Resolution SLA | Technical Remediation Protocol | Strong Tower vs Generic MSP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Severity 1: Critical Emergency TMS SQL database down, dispatch floor paralyzed |
Loads cannot be assigned, drivers stranded at docks, EDI check calls failing sitewide. | < 30 Min Response 2-Hour Recovery Target |
Failover to staging database replica or immediate restoration from immutable cloud snapshots. | Direct SQL Server and TMS database architecture expertise; zero vendor finger-pointing. |
| Severity 2: Major Operational Degrade Nightly billing batch fails, EDI translation down |
Invoices cannot be submitted to shippers, unbilled aging spikes, customer visibility delayed. | < 2 Hour Response Same-Day Resolution |
Triage EDI 204/214/210 syntax errors, repair corrupted tariff indices, and restart billing queue. | Specialized freight EDI and order-to-cash knowledge; we fix the underlying translation maps. |
| Severity 3: Back-Office Hurdle Driver settlement discrepancy, fuel FTP import error |
Payroll run blocked on Friday morning; owner-operator deduction balances miscalculated. | < 4 Hour Response Resolved Before Pay Cutoff |
Reconcile fuel card advance ledger, audit driver pay codes, and execute isolated settlement recalculation. | Deep fluency in driver compensation formulas, lease escrows, and transportation payroll rules. |
| Severity 4: Routine Advisory New shipper tariff matrix, custom Crystal Report |
Administrative delay in onboarding new contract lane or adjusting delivery manifest layout. | Scheduled On-Site Day Or 24-Hour Remote Queue |
Rebuild Crystal Reports layout, script multi-tier rate matrix, or conduct one-on-one staff training. | Proactive systems architecture and ongoing continuous improvement on committed dates. |
How support engagements start
- Conversation. We talk through your systems, your team, what support you get today, and where it falls short.
- Baseline visit. We spend time on site learning your setup: TMS version and configuration, interfaces, hardware, backups, and the open issues your staff have been living with. For a deeper look, start with a Technology Assessment.
- Agreement. We size the number of monthly on-site days to your operation and agree on how remote requests are handled. The price is fixed, so you know the cost up front.
- Regular visits. Dates are blocked out in advance. Each visit works from a shared list of priorities, and we keep notes on what was done and what's next.
- Review. We revisit the agreement as your company grows or changes, adding days during busy periods like an upgrade, a new terminal, or an acquisition.
What you get
| Support Agreement Component | Carrier Operational Value |
|---|---|
| Committed On-Site Days | Guaranteed monthly dates blocked out on our engineering calendar, providing dedicated floor support. |
| Predictable Fixed Monthly Cost | Transparent support budgeting that eliminates volatile emergency billing and runaway hourly consulting invoices. |
| Rapid Remote Incident Response | Immediate encrypted remote sessions for operational blockers that arise between scheduled on-site visits. |
| Ranked Engineering Priority Log | A transparent, collaborative backlog ensuring technical time is focused strictly on highest-ROI operational issues. |
| Executive Visit Debriefs | Detailed technical logs documenting configuration changes, database optimizations, and upcoming recommendations. |
| Standardized System Documentation | Living operational runbooks capturing custom tariffs, interfaces, and scripts so institutional knowledge is preserved. |
Who this is for
Carriers, brokers, 3PLs, and private fleets that run their business on a TMS and want reliable, knowledgeable help close at hand, especially if you:
- Don't have a full-time IT department, or your IT staff need backup on the freight software side
- Are waiting in a vendor ticket queue for issues that stall dispatch, billing, or settlements
- Run an older system with custom reports and interfaces that few people understand (see Legacy TMS Advisory & Migration)
- Want a predictable monthly cost instead of paying emergency rates
- Are with another provider and not getting what you need from them
Clients have long described Strong Tower as the first call for problems beyond their in-house capabilities. That's the role we aim to fill.
Scott has always been there when we needed to contact him for issues, questions or repairs.
Frequently asked questions
How does a fixed-price on-site support agreement work?
For a fixed monthly price, our staff are on site for an agreed number of days each month. Those dates are blocked out in advance, so you get committed visits and a cost you can put in your budget forecast.
What can you do during an on-site visit?
Anything you need, such as software training, configuration, installation, upgrades, and troubleshooting. If you need something specific, let us know before the visit so we arrive prepared.
Can we get help without an agreement?
Yes. We take every call seriously. Clients without an ongoing agreement are scheduled after our agreement clients, so during busy periods you may not get the exact dates you want.
Do you provide remote support too?
Yes. Many issues are faster to solve remotely, and we use secure remote sessions for troubleshooting, configuration, and one-on-one help between visits.
We already have a software vendor. Why would we need you?
Your vendor supports its product. We support your operation: the TMS, the reports, the interfaces, the hardware, and the people using them. If you are not getting what you need from your current provider, we are happy to talk about how we can help.
Truckmate is a trademark of its respective owner (Trimble Inc.). Strong Tower Consulting is an independent consulting firm and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Trimble or TMW Systems.