Transpas integration: custom dashboards, apps and integrations
Appfront builds custom integrations on top of Transpas, the TMS from Art Systems used by more than 250 Dutch and Belgian hauliers. Planning dashboards, driver apps, customer portals, BI dashboards and integrations with accounting or on-board computers, all via the open Transpas API and EDI integrations.
What is Transpas?
Transpas is a Transport Management System (TMS) from Tilburg-based Art Systems. The package has been around for more than 25 years and is today used by over 250 transport companies, mainly in the Benelux. Its strength is breadth: order processing, route planning, on-board computer integrations, invoicing and an integrated warehouse management system all sit in one package.
For customers with non-standard processes, the standard package sometimes falls short. That's where Appfront comes in: we build on the open Transpas API and EDI integrations to add whatever the standard product lacks, from planning dashboards and driver apps to integrations with systems Art Systems doesn't connect to itself.
Full TMS
Orders, planning, trip logs, on-board computer integration, invoicing and WMS in one system, built for hauliers rather than generic ERP.
Open via API and EDI
Art Systems opened up Transpas from the start: REST/SOAP API, EDI messages and standard integrations with on-board computers, Exact, AFAS and Loket.nl, among others.
Mature platform
25+ years in production use, with more than 250 hauliers as customers. Sector-specific expertise is built in, including cabotage rules, ADR and the EU driving time regulation.
What we build on top of Transpas
The Transpas API is open, but you need someone to translate the TMS data into an interface that your planners, drivers or customers will actually use. That is what we do.
Planning and management dashboards
Real-time dashboards that bring Transpas data together in one view: trip status, KPIs per planner, margins per client, capacity utilisation. Often built with Power BI or a custom web dashboard, with a live API connection to Transpas.
Driver and warehouse apps
Native iOS and Android apps that let drivers receive their trips, carry out scan actions, capture proof of delivery and report exceptions. Syncs two ways with Transpas and works offline on poor connections.
Customer portals
A web portal where clients create their own shipments, track status and view historical data. It reduces phone traffic to the planning team and improves the service experience. Read/write integration with Transpas via the API.
Telematics and on-board computer integrations
Alongside the standard Transpas–Trimble integration, we also integrate with Webfleet, Squarell, Optidrive and other telematics providers that Transpas doesn't connect to out of the box. Live positions, tachograph data and trip events.
Accounting and CRM integrations
Transpas comes with standard integrations for Exact, AFAS and Twinfield. For other packages (Visma, Twinfield Online, e-Boekhouden, Microsoft Dynamics, custom CRMs), we build the two-way sync ourselves using the Transpas API.
BI and data warehousing
Automatically load Transpas data daily into a Power BI model, BigQuery or a Snowflake warehouse. It is possible to make years of historical data available for benchmarking, capacity planning or margin analysis.
How we approach a Transpas integration
Four phases, typically 4-6 weeks to a first working integration. We work closely with your IT contact and with Art Systems for the API credentials.
Intake and data mapping
We sit down with planners and IT: which Transpas fields are relevant, which processes the integration must support, and which acceptance criteria apply. The result is a functional design and a data mapping document.
API access and staging
We arrange API credentials for the Transpas environment together with Art Systems, starting with staging. We set up a secure connection, usually via OAuth or API keys with an IP allowlist.
Building in sprints
We build the integration, dashboard or app in two-week sprints. At the end of each sprint we demo, so you see what's ready and can steer the work. No three-month black-hole projects.
Acceptance & go-live
User acceptance testing with a small group of planners or drivers, followed by a phased rollout to production. After go-live we remain your point of contact for further development and for any API changes on the Transpas side.
When a custom integration pays off
Transpas covers 80-90% of what an average transport company needs. For the remaining 10-20%, which is what truly sets you apart from your competitors, we build custom solutions.
Real-time customer portal for shippers
Large shippers expect 24/7 status visibility. Your own portal relieves the planning team (fewer phone calls) and strengthens your commercial position. A read integration with Transpas provides shipment status, and a write integration lets clients create new orders.
Custom driver app with Transpas sync
Instead of the standard on-board computer app, a branded experience in your house style, with the exact workflow your drivers use. Push notifications for new trips, photo upload for proof of delivery, signature capture and an offline buffer for poor connections.
Integration with systems Art Systems doesn't support as standard
Do you work with a specific WMS, a niche accounting package, a customs platform or a shipper's EDI that Transpas doesn't support as standard? We build the bridge. We often use a microservices architecture so that updates on either side carry little risk.
BI on Transpas data and historical analysis
Operational reporting within Transpas itself gives you snapshots. For multi-year trend analysis, margin per route, customer profitability or capacity forecasting, we build a data warehouse that is loaded daily from Transpas, ready for Power BI or Tableau.
Technology we typically use
The choice of stack depends on the use case, your IT environment and what API capabilities Art Systems offers. We work pragmatically, never choosing technology just because it's fashionable.
Why choose Appfront for Transpas integration?
We are not an Art Systems partner, nor a TMS implementer. We are a Dutch custom software agency that has already delivered several Transpas projects for hauliers and logistics service providers.
Our role begins where the standard package stops: once you need a custom app, your own dashboard or an integration with a non-standard system, we build it under our own responsibility, with fixed pricing, a fixed delivery and continued development after go-live.
- Experience with the Transpas API and EDI integrations, liaising directly with Art Systems on credentials and API questions.
- A custom development agency, not a white-label TMS implementer, so we don't need to defend an Art Systems licence.
- Fixed price after the intake; no open-ended hourly billing arrangements.
- In-house development, design and QA, with nothing outsourced to third parties.
- Short lines of communication: you work directly with the developers, with no account managers standing between you and the work.
- Ongoing development after go-live: we handle API changes on the Transpas side under a maintenance contract.
Frequently asked questions about Transpas integration
Transpas is a Transport Management System (TMS) from Art Systems in Tilburg. The system has been developed for over 25 years and is used by more than 250 transport companies, mainly in the Netherlands and Belgium. Transpas Enterprise covers order processing, planning, on-board computer integration, invoicing and warehouse management in one package.
Yes. Art Systems has focused on openness from the very beginning: Transpas offers both API integrations and EDI for exchanging data with external applications. For scenarios beyond the standard integrations, you can build custom integrations via the Transpas API, for example a bespoke client portal, a BI dashboard or a driver app.
Art Systems provides standard integrations for on-board computers (including Trimble), accounting software (Exact, AFAS, Twinfield), EDI message exchange and payroll administration via Loket.nl. Custom development comes into play for everything beyond that: bespoke customer portals, custom BI dashboards, app flows for drivers or warehouse staff, and integrations with non-standard applications.
A simple API integration, for example exporting orders to a single system, starts from around €12,000. A fully custom dashboard or mobile driver app with live Transpas data typically falls between €25,000 and €75,000, depending on scope, the number of data streams and UX requirements. After an intake, we provide a fixed-price quote.
A first working integration is typically ready in 4-6 weeks: weeks 1-2 to arrange API access with Art Systems and map the data, weeks 3-4 for the build, and weeks 5-6 for acceptance testing and rollout to production. Larger dashboards or apps take 8-16 weeks in iterative sprints.
Both. We build API integrations between Transpas and other systems (accounting, CRM, customer portal, BI), but also complete custom front ends on top of Transpas: web dashboards for planning or management, native mobile apps for drivers and warehouse staff, and customer portals through which clients can track their shipments live.
Book a Transpas integration intake
30 minutes, free of charge, with an Appfront developer. We map out your use case, give you an initial indication of scope and timeline, and tell you honestly if we think the standard package or an Art Systems partner is a better fit.