ccargo

CCargo

Data analysis, visualization, and insight communication

Project

User Research
Concept to Code
Tool Redesign

Team

Project Manager
Product Designer
Brand Designer
Engineer Team

Role

UX Researcher
UX Designer

Timeline

January - June 2022

Description

CCargo, originally Stargo, was a hardware startup looking to use the marine cargo industry as its staging ground for an interplanetary cargo insurance play.

My Task

My tasks were to identify the needs of stakeholders at each link of the global supply chain, and design a flexible platform capable of ingesting and displaying CCargo hardware data

Problem Statement

After the pandemic, shipping and logistics companies are looking to enhance their visibility into their shipments and the supply chain.

With no unified source of truth, shipment owners and their logistics partners are unable to hold each other accountable for delayed or damaged goods.

A visualization of the lifecycle of a cargo container

A flow chart of supply chain stakeholders and how they interact

A market competitor analysis graph with ease of integration on the x-axis and whether it exchanges data or produces data on the y-axis

These documents were produced by the market analysis team to verify the market gap shown by the entrepreneur’s personal research, and give product research a jumpstart.

Research & Discovery

Activities

Lo-Fi Concept Wireframes
17 Customer Discovery Interviews

Terms

Beneficial Cargo Owner (BCO): Shipment owners
Third Party Logistics (3PL): Full-service outsourced logistics
Freight Forwarder (FF): Route-specific bulk logistics

Finding #01

Each stakeholder relies on wildly different technology stacks from pen and paper to custom in-house software to any of the hundreds of logistics tools available today.

Finding #02

Small and mid-sized BCOs have zero visibility into a shipment while in transit, in a warehouse, or in port. Meanwhile, external 3PLs and FFs have no warning for incoming shipments from their BCOs or other 3PLs.

Finding #03

The standard security measure for freight, regardless of value, is only a piece of tape. This lets the BCO know if their cargo was tampered with but not when, where, and by whom.

Synthesis & Ideation

Activities

High-Fidelity Prototype Designs
16 Product Validation Interviews

Insight #01

Users will only adopt solutions that can be easily integrated into their existing logistics systems.

Insight #02

CCargo needs a secondary data source to track shipments at warehouses and ports where the CCargo hardware cannot be contacted.

Insight #03

Both 3PLs and BCOs expressed significant interest in paying for the ability to precisely track when and where shipments are accessed, for liability purposes.

An early mockup of CCargo, then known as Stargo, showing a world map with shipment location, shipment routes, and shipment destinations marked

An early mockup of the News and Weather alerts widget for CCargo

An early mockup of the Cargo alerts widget for CCargo, showing a list of alerts, with attached photos from the CCargo IoT device when the alert was triggered

Features

Activities

Component and Icon Library
UI Guidelines
Developer Specifications

Feature #01

A modular dashboard with functionally independent widgets and a plug-and-play API allow users to fully integrate CCargo data into their existing digital infrastructure and communications.

The product spec version of the CCargo dashboard, with finalized container alert, shipment list, shipment map, and communications widgets

Feature #02

The mobile app gives on-site workers relevant information on the cargo, while updating the shipment’s location with their phone’s data.

1 of 3 CCargo mobile app screens. This one shows a part of the process for assigning a CCargo device to a container

2 of 3 CCargo mobile app screens. This one shows a the final step in assigning a CCargo device to a cargo container

3 of 3 CCargo mobile app screens. This one shows a prompt for a dock worker to allow CCargo access to his location so that it can update the location of the container

Feature #03

The access logs show when a container has been opened and for how long, increasing security for the owners and accountability across the board.

A screen layout for CCargo showing a shipment's access logs

Conclusion

Results

With the product specifications complete, API testing underway, and potential development partners waiting impatiently for word of progress, CCargo was approved to start hardware development and launch a website. Regrettably, the entrepreneur of CCargo faced unforeseen challenges soon after unrelated to the project, which required pausing development.

Lessons

The CCargo design process revealed the complexities of building a flexible system able to meet the diverse needs of each supply chain stakeholder. From logistics providers and cargo owners to warehouse workers and port officials, the challenge was maintaining a consistent product experience across a wide range of use cases.

It was vital to ensure each piece of the platform could function independently. By centering the design system around modular widgets, each with layers of information, I helped ensure that the platform met the broad range of user requirements without overwhelming the development process.