In global logistics, few things move faster than the demands placed on importers.
Drive Medical, a leading manufacturer of durable medical equipment for more than 25 years, operates in a supply chain environment where speed, precision, and reliability shape their ability to serve customers. Their products, which include wheelchairs, walkers, canes, crutches, and respiratory devices, play an essential role in patient care. Every day of delay means real operational impact that can be felt by the end user of the product who is waiting on the delay.
When Drive Medical partnered with EDRAY, they were searching for more than another visibility tool. They needed a partner that could simplify the final import mile, deliver clarity across all stakeholders, and give their team the ability to act with confidence. What they did not expect was how transformational the combination of technology and operational support would be.
This is the story of how Drive Medical improved visibility, accelerated decision making, and strengthened execution across its import network through one unified platform and one highly engaged team.
The Challenge: Fragmented Information Slowing the Supply Chain
Before EDRAY, Drive Medical relied on five or six different datasets to answer one simple question: Where is our inventory?
Those data sources lived in different places across carriers, terminals, brokers, and drayage providers. Triangulating emails and spreadsheets often took hours. That lost time had a direct effect on cost, service levels, and internal confidence.
As Nick Pombonyo, Senior Director of Global Logistics and Trade Compliance, explains, “Speed was the biggest issue. We could answer the question eventually, but it took time, energy, and a lot of manual analytics.”
In an industry where a one-week delay can dramatically change carrying costs and customer delivery windows, Drive Medical needed a faster and more reliable way to access information and act on it.
The Turning Point: A Single Source of Truth
Drive Medical quickly recognized that EDRAY was more than software. The platform became a by-product of something more valuable: an operational team of experts in the final import mile working on their behalf.
By funneling every shipment into EDRAY’s Destination Management Platform, Drive Medical finally had one location to view, track, and understand its inventory across ocean, terminal, rail, drayage, and distribution layers. Real-time visibility gave the team immediate answers to questions that once required hours of back-and-forth communication.
What impressed Nick was how EDRAY fit seamlessly into their ecosystem. Onboarding did not require heavy IT lifts. The Platform connected directly to Drive Medical’s carriers and terminals, and the EDRAY team handled much of the implementation behind the scenes. What once took months with other providers only took a few weeks.
“We learned that the system is a by-product of what the EDRAY team is doing,” Nick shared. “The work they put into managing the last mile is what makes everything else possible.”
Operational Impact: Faster Decisions and Fewer Surprises
Once Drive Medical began working inside the platform, they saw immediate improvements. The EDRAY team monitored every shipment, identified exceptions early, and resolved issues before they created downstream delays.
One of the first major tests came when the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed in Baltimore. Containers were unexpectedly diverted to unfamiliar ports under force majeure. Drive Medical needed answers within minutes, not hours.
With EDRAY, they immediately saw what cargo had been diverted, where each container was redirected, and what needed to happen next. The EDRAY team handled the escalations with carriers, updated vessel paths, coordinated drayage coverage in new lanes, and helped Drive Medical maintain control throughout the disruption.
Leadership received instant clarity. Internal communication accelerated. Service levels stayed intact.
According to Nick, “Visibility alone is great, but unless you do something with that visibility, you do not move the supply chain forward. EDRAY acts on our behalf every day, and that is what makes it a complete package.”
A True Extension of the Team
Drive Medical’s drayage stakeholders, carriers, and warehouse partners all view the same platform, which means everyone is aligned in real time. Exceptions are handled quickly. Milestones are validated. And Drive Medical’s internal team has the confidence that comes from working with a partner that understands the stakes.
The relationship also influences EDRAY’s broader customer roadmap. Many of the enhancements, such as assessorial charge tracking and drayage invoice auditing, were shaped through conversations with Drive Medical and other customers who shared similar needs. This collaborative loop helps EDRAY build solutions that solve common industry challenges at scale.
Nick summarizes it well: “You stack up four, five, six wins, and independently they do not seem massive. Together they create meaningful change over the next year.”
The Result: Speed, Clarity, and Continuous Improvement
Drive Medical now enjoys a supply chain that is faster, clearer, and more resilient. Their team answers questions immediately and acts with precision. Exceptions that once took hours to locate and resolve now take minutes. Fire drills no longer derail weekly priorities. Leadership has full confidence in the flow of information. And Drive Medical’s logistics team continues to grow stronger with every improvement cycle.
Most of all, they have a partner that not only supports execution but pushes the boundaries of what comes next.
For any importer operating in tight drayage windows with high service expectations, Drive Medical’s experience makes a compelling case. With the right partner, clarity becomes speed. Speed becomes efficiency. And efficiency compounding into a competitive advantage.
To learn how EDRAY’s solutions can transform your final import mile operations, reach out to our team: Contact EDRAY
Your Trusted Partner For The Final Import Mile