Yes, and for many businesses this is the most effective model. Your 3PLs and carriers continue to handle day-to-day execution, while a 4PL layers on top to coordinate them, consolidate data and manage performance. You keep the carrier relationships and capacity that work for you, but gain one accountable partner for visibility, governance and optimisation across your whole network.

A 4PL is worth considering when logistics has become hard to control. This usually happens because you're working with several carriers or 3PLs, you lack clear visibility of shipments and spend, or managing providers is taking up too much internal time. Fast-growing businesses often move to a 4PL to scale without adding headcount. Enterprises often move to one to unify fragmented, multi-region supply chains.

A carrier-agnostic 4PL isn't tied to its own fleet or warehouses, so it can recommend the best provider for each shipment, lane or mode based on cost, service and sustainability. This gives you more choice and resilience, plus the buying power of the 4PL's combined logistics spend. You get one relationship, one invoice and one technology platform rather than managing many separately.

Technology is what allows a 4PL to manage a multi-provider network effectively. A transport management system (TMS) like myCCL brings bookings, tracking, carrier performance, costs and carbon data into one place, often integrated with your ERP. This gives you real-time visibility of your supply chain and the data needed to make better decisions on cost, service and sustainability.