One-Stop Platform for Reception, Dispatch, Transportation, and Settlement
Digital Innovation in the 37 Trillion Analog Market
LG Uplus is launching 'Hwamul Itgo,' a platform that provides a one-stop solution for the entire process of freight transportation, and is targeting the logistics market. The company plans to digitally transform (DX) the 37 trillion KRW freight transportation brokerage market and achieve sales of 150 billion KRW within three years.
On the 16th, LG Uplus announced the launch of Hwamul Itgo, a freight transportation brokerage DX platform that matches freight forwarders who receive transportation requests and dispatch vehicles with truck owners who transport the cargo.
(From left) Jeon Young-seo, Manager at LG Uplus, Jang-hyuk Lim, Group Leader, and Jong-oh Kang, Executive Director, are introducing the 'Hwamulitgo' service. [Photo by LG Uplus]
The platform targets the middle-mile logistics market, which is the intermediate stage of transporting goods from sellers or factories to logistics centers and is a business-to-business (B2B) area. According to Statistics Korea, the middle-mile market was estimated to be worth 37 trillion KRW in 2020, with about 40% of the volume outsourced.
The middle-mile market is often called the "last analog frontier" due to its inefficient operations such as phone orders and handwritten waybills. Problems such as receiving a 1-ton cargo but finding it to be 1.5 tons upon arrival, or payment settlements taking up to a month, were common. LG Uplus focused on these demands. Based on its B2B DX capabilities and know-how, the company plans to introduce a service in the analog middle-mile freight market that offers reliability and convenience comparable to parcel delivery services. Kang Jong-oh, Senior Vice President and Head of Smart Mobility Business at LG Uplus, said, "We have often been asked why a telecommunications company is interested in logistics. We are not directly operating logistics but aim to become a platform provider that helps logistics workers operate in a one-stop manner."
Hwamul Itgo provides all necessary services for freight brokerage within the platform, from freight reception to dispatch, transportation, settlement, and client management. Key features include ▲smart dispatch management and real-time transportation monitoring services ▲fast settlement and convenient performance management system ▲optimal freight dispatch system ▲navigation dedicated to freight vehicles. Yeong-seo Jeon, Head of Corporate Service Development Lab at LG Uplus, stated, "Based on vehicle, truck owner information, freight data, and payment data, we link to the U+ Industrial Data Platform and provide services such as freight recommendation, demand forecasting, and optimal fare proposals using artificial intelligence (AI) modeling. For example, if a vehicle transports cargo from Seoul to Busan and returns empty, it results in a significant loss, but demand forecasting helps prevent this."
Before launching the service, LG Uplus visited medium and large freight forwarders and carriers to conduct pilot services and gather field requirements. Choi Seung-rak, Chairman of Gangdong Logistics, who participated in the pilot, said, "Previously, dispatch managers and truck owners communicated by phone every time, and after the trip, results were organized in Excel, but using the platform significantly reduced workload and time."
Recently, IT companies such as Kakao Mobility and T Map Mobility have been entering the middle-mile freight brokerage market one after another. LG Uplus seeks to differentiate itself from existing operators through service know-how and collaboration. Lim Jang-hyuk, Executive Vice President and Head of Corporate New Business Group at LG Uplus, said, "To make the platform widely used, a lot of data must be accumulated. LG Group also has enormous middle-mile logistics, so if necessary, we can create a collaborative structure." Additionally, to quickly secure market share, LG Uplus has formed partnerships with Gangdong Logistics, which has secured about 700 transport vehicles, and the digital logistics startup Diver. For safe and fast settlements, it has teamed up with Shinhan Card to introduce a dedicated payment card for freight transportation fees.
LG Uplus decided not to charge separate fees during the initial launch to attract platform users. Based on this, the company aims to rapidly expand market share and achieve sales exceeding 150 billion KRW within three years.
Lim said, "Through Hwamul Itgo, a freight information portal service and a powerful DX platform, we will quickly create a mutually beneficial freight market ecosystem and lead logistics innovation in the analog market."
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