Carrier Network Analysis
Your carrier network has fragmentation risk you haven't measured yet.
Most freight brokers, 3PLs, and shippers have too many carriers per lane — and don't know it. FreightForge's carrier risk analysis quantifies the problem, maps it to your specific lanes, and shows you exactly where consolidation will reduce cost, volatility, and fraud exposure.
The Problem
More carriers per lane means weaker relationships and more risk.
When volume is spread across too many carriers on a single lane, none of them have enough stake to prioritize your freight. Rates fluctuate, service becomes inconsistent and your team spends more time managing exceptions than building relationships. Fragmentation also creates a fraud risk - more carriers means more onboarding events and each one is an opportunity for a bad actor to slip through.
- Too many carriers competing for small volume slices
- Inconsistent service and on-time performance
- Rate volatility – no leverage from volume commitments
- Moderate carrier diversity, some stability
- Relationships exist, but aren’t maximized
- Volume consolidation available with targeted action
- Consolidated carriers with strong relationships
- Predictable service and rate leverage
- The target state for every lane in your network
What You Receive
A carrier risk analysis isn't a report. It's an action plan.
FreightForge analyzes your shipment history, calculates a risk score for every lane in your network, and maps your carriers against our 20,000+ vetted carrier database to show you exactly which relationships to build, which carriers to consolidate around, and which lanes need immediate attention.
Lane-by-lane risk map
Every lane in your network scored and color-coded by fragmentation risk tier. Geographic visualization shows your high-risk corridors at a glance, not buried in a spreadsheet, visible in a single view.
Carrier consolidation targets
For each high-risk lane, FreightForge identifies which carriers in the vetted network serve that corridor and are available to take committed volume, so consolidation is an actionable next step, not a research project.
Cost and volatility impact
The analysis quantifies the rate volatility and operational overhead associated with your high-risk lanes - giving you a business case for consolidation that you can present internally, not just a risk flag with no dollar figure attached.
How It Works
Five steps from data to action. FreightForge does the work.
1
Share your lane data
A CSV or TMS export of your shipment history - lane, carrier, shipment count. No sensitive pricing data required.
2
We calculate risk scores
FreightForge applies the fragmentation risk formula to every lane, clustering results by risk tier and geography.
3
We map your carriers
Every carrier in your data is checked against the FreightForge database - authority, insurance, fraud score, and lane coverage.
4
We build the report
Lane-by-lane risk map, consolidation targets from our vetted network and a prioritized action list sorted by impact.
5
We walk you through it
A 45-minute call with your team to present findings, answer questions and agree on consolidation priorities for the next 90 days.
If you move freight, fragmentation risk is costing you money.
Fragmented carrier networks mean unpredictable coverage and rate shopping on every load. Consolidation gives you carriers who answer the phone because your volume matters to them.
Managing hundreds of carrier relationships across dozens of lanes is operationally expensive. A risk analysis shows you where to consolidate without sacrificing coverage on high-volume corridors.
Carrier fragmentation risk is a metric your TMS users don't have today. Embedding FreightForge's risk scoring gives your platform a differentiated feature and your customers a reason to stay.
High fragmentation on your lanes is a symptom of over-reliance on spot freight. The analysis shows which lanes have enough volume to support committed carrier relationships — and what that's worth.
Fragmentation risk isn't static. It gets worse every quarter you don't address it.
Every new carrier onboarded to a lane that already has too many is another relationship that won't scale into a preferred partnership. The longer your network stays fragmented, the harder consolidation becomes — and the more rate volatility you absorb in the meantime.
High-risk lanes generate 3–4x more carrier onboarding events per year than low-risk lanes - each one a fraud exposure point
Carriers with less than 5% of your lane volume have no incentive to priortize your freight during tight capacity
Double brokering events are 6x more likely on lanes with more than 20 active carriers in a 12-month window
Rate savings from lane consolidation typically range from 4% to 11% on committed volume - measurable within one quarter
Common Questions
What people ask before requesting the analysis.
What data do you need from us?
A shipment history export from your TMS or a CSV with three columns: lane (origin/destination), carrier name or USDOT number, and shipment count. No pricing data, no customer names, no confidential commercial terms. A rolling 12-month window gives the most useful results, but 6 months is workable.
How long does the analysis take?
Typically 5–7 business days from data receipt to report delivery. Larger networks (500+ lane-carrier combinations) may take up to 10 business days. We'll confirm a timeline when we receive your data.
What happens with our data?
Your shipment data is used exclusively to generate your analysis and is not shared with third parties, used to populate the FreightForge carrier directory, or retained after your report is delivered. We can provide a data handling agreement on request for procurement or legal review.
We already have a preferred carrier program. Is this still relevant?
Preferred carrier programs are the goal - the analysis tells you how well yours is actually working at the lane level. Most networks with a preferred carrier program still show 30–40% of lanes operating outside it. The analysis surfaces where the program has gaps so you can close them.
What do we do with the results?
The report includes a prioritized action list, which lanes to address first, which carriers to consolidate around and which lanes in FreightForge's vetted network are a match for your corridors. Most organizations implement lane-level changes within 30–60 days of the walkthrough call.
What data do you need from us?
A shipment history export from your TMS or a CSV with three columns: lane (origin/destination), carrier name or USDOT number, and shipment count. No pricing data, no customer names, no confidential commercial terms. A rolling 12-month window gives the most useful results, but 6 months is workable.
Find out what fragmentation risk is costing your network. At no cost.
Share your shipment data and FreightForge will return a lane-by-lane risk map, carrier consolidation targets, and a prioritized action plan — all at no cost, with no obligation to become a customer.
What the Analysis Includes