Crane Worldwide Logistics Bets on AI to Slash Quote Times and Cut Data Costs

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Crane Worldwide Logistics and cargo.one have announced a global technology partnership that replaces fragmented rate management systems with a single artificial intelligence powered platform, a move the Houston based freight forwarder says will sharpen quoting accuracy and reduce overhead at scale.

The collaboration rolls out cargo.one across all of Crane’s operations in 33 countries. At the core of the integration is cargo.one’s Rate Engine, which centralizes the management of buy rates, internal product rates, and sell rates from one interface, eliminating the need for multiple competing data feeds that had previously driven up complexity and cost.

Before the partnership, Crane’s gateway teams had to navigate separate sources to compile a complete rate picture. Under the new setup, teams can access every relevant live, static, contract, and promotional airline rate in one place, enabling faster responses to shipper requests for information and quotes.

The full suite of cargo.one tools deployed includes Live Rates, Static Rates, Live Estimates, the Rate Engine, a Quotes API, and AI powered quoting agents. All solutions are fully integrated with Crane’s existing WiseTech powered transport management system, reducing the need for custom middleware or manual data transfers.

Beyond the commercial rate tools, cargo.one is also positioning itself as the data backbone for Crane’s longer term artificial intelligence strategy. The vendor’s platform is designed as what both companies describe as an AI native digital backend, intended to support Crane’s own proprietary AI tools as they are developed.

Brannon Kuykendall, Chief Information Officer at Crane Worldwide Logistics, said the partnership unlocks quoting advantages by providing access to a broad range of airline rates in a single platform. He added that solution providers able to offer modern integration methods and real time data streaming allow Crane’s teams to focus on client facing innovation rather than data management tasks.

Moritz Claussen, Founder and Co-Chief Executive Officer of cargo.one, said the collaboration reflects a broader industry pattern in which forwarders are seeking comprehensive data, intelligent automation, and partners who understand the nuances of their specific business needs.

The deployment signals a continued consolidation of point solutions among large forwarders. Rather than assembling rate visibility from a patchwork of portals, contracts, and carrier feeds, operators of Crane’s scale are increasingly turning to unified rate infrastructure that can serve as the foundation for both commercial and operational decision making.

For shippers, the practical effect is faster and more consistent quote turnaround times. For Crane’s internal teams, the Rate Engine removes the dependency on expanding quoting staff to maintain accuracy as volume grows, as the platform is designed to deliver consistent sell rates without a proportional increase in headcount.

The partnership also illustrates the growing role of application programming interface led architecture in freight forwarding. By connecting cargo.one’s Quotes API directly into its transport management system, Crane can automate quoting workflows end to end, from initial rate retrieval through to booking confirmation, with minimal manual intervention.

cargo.one currently serves a range of global freight forwarders with rate management and quoting technology. The company did not disclose financial terms of the agreement with Crane.