SONAR partners with project44 on new procurement analytics tool

In a turbulent freight market, the need for data-driven procurement strategies has never been greater. To address this growing demand, project44 unveiled its Freight Procurement Analytics solution on Monday in partnership with real-time freight market intelligence platform SONAR. The partnership provides shippers with contract benchmarking, procurement optimization and visibility into carrier rates.

Traditional freight procurement has long been full of inefficiencies, including manual bid processes, limited visibility into carrier performance and outdated rate benchmarking methods.

According to project44, many transportation managers inherit static routing guides and carrier networks, often leading to inflated costs and suboptimal service. The need for a change is clear: Outdated strategies no longer suffice in a volatile market where rates and capacity shift unpredictably.

With the integration of SONAR’s market intelligence into project44’s Freight Procurement Analytics, shippers have access to data that enables more informed and agile procurement decisions.

“As freight capacity shifts and cost pressures rise, outdated, manual RFP processes are no longer sustainable. Many shippers still manage procurement over email—an inefficient method that no longer meets today’s fast-paced market demands. Having experienced these challenges firsthand as a broker, I know how critical it is to have the right technology to solve them and we now can through this partnership,” Jett McCandless, founder and CEO of project44, told FreightWaves in an email.

“By integrating SONAR with project44 Freight Procurement Analytics, we’re leveraging our carrier-agnostic platform to help our customers take their procurement strategies to the next level. This integration allows shippers to benchmark rates against live market conditions, uncover cost-saving opportunities and negotiate better contracts with confidence, generating significant cost reductions and an increase in on-time-in-full percentage by up to 20%.”

Shippers have recently shared with SONAR teams their increasing concern about securing capacity at competitive rates while still ensuring reliability.
Freight market volatility, influenced by factors such as fluctuating consumer demand, global trade shifts and policy changes, complicates procurement strategies.

According to the Q1 2025 FreightWaves Shipper Rate report, tender rejection rates surged past 10% during the holiday season, marking a significant shift in market conditions. This indicates that capacity constraints are returning, reinforcing the importance of dynamic procurement tools that allow shippers to adapt quickly to market changes.