A Northern Kentucky-based logistics firm is growing its reach as the company looks to undergo a tech-driven transformation.
Lighthouse, formerly Lighthouse Transportation Services, announced its acquisition of Hebron-based NTL Trucking for an undisclosed sum.
"We believe NTL will be an important chess piece to our growth strategy so we can offer more value through digital and physical services to our clients," Jeff Dangelo, Lighthouse's managing partner, said in a statement.
Dangelo is spearheading Lighthouse's transition to becoming a tech-driven third-party logistics firm, a rarity in an industry known for its reliance on human capital.
"We want to turn what was old into something completely different and new with technology leveraged at the forefront of everything we do," Dangelo said in an interview with Cincy Inno.
For instance, Lighthouse wants to eliminate the need for employees to routinely call drivers to track shipments as they're being moved so they can then manually input a shipment's location for customers. Dangelo said such calls can be eliminated using technology, creating more efficiencies for both the company and client.
Dangelo is also aiming to help Lighthouse create its own customer model so they no longer have a reliance on cold calling potential clients.
Dangelo brings with him a resume and track record of success.
He was employee No. 30 at logistics powerhouse Total Quality Logistics, which he left in 2010 to help launch MegaCorp Logistics.
Four years later, he co-founded Bay Area software company Turvo, which seeks to bring transparency and collaboration to the global supply chain. Turvo has raised at least $92 million since its launch, according to Crunchbase.
Lighthouse, Dangelo said, is a Turvo client and plans to use the company's suite of offerings to speed up its own transformation. Ultimately, Lighthouse will add its own technology enhancements to Turvo to cater to its clients' need, he said.
Ultimately, he believes utilizing technology to drive its decision-making will allow Lighthouse to add its own value to the supply chain and attract more customers.
