Replaced a spreadsheet-based dispatch system with a live tracking platform handling 10,000+ daily shipments across 6 countries.
The client's operations team was managing international cargo dispatch across 6 countries using a combination of Excel spreadsheets and WhatsApp groups. With 10,000+ daily shipments, data was scattered, decisions were reactive, and the error rate was climbing. They needed a real-time platform that their 200+ field agents could use on any device.
We designed a server-sent events architecture for live shipment updates, a role-based web interface for dispatchers and field agents, and a RESTful API consumed by both the web app and a React Native field companion app. PostgreSQL handles persistence; Redis manages the event bus and session state. All infrastructure runs on AWS ECS with auto-scaling.
Within 3 months of launch, dispatch time dropped by 62%, manual errors fell by 91%, and field agents submitted updates 4× faster than the previous WhatsApp-based process. The platform now handles peak loads of 800 concurrent users without degradation.
SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE
Distributed event-driven architecture featuring dual client interfaces, low-latency SSE message fanout via Redis Pub/Sub, and high-concurrency multi-tenant PostgreSQL storage.
Because dispatchers only need one-way real-time push from the server, SSE dramatically reduced connection overhead and proxy reconnect storms compared to bidirectional WebSockets.
Allowed all 6 regional teams to share a single consolidated database cluster while preventing accidental cross-tenant data leaks at the database kernel level.
TECHNICAL DEPTH
Event-driven architecture using SSE for live data push to browsers without polling overhead. Redis Pub/Sub fans out shipment updates to all connected dispatcher clients in under 50ms. PostgreSQL row-level security enforces tenant isolation across 6 country instances on a single database cluster.
JWT-based auth with role scopes: DISPATCHER, AGENT, MANAGER, SUPER_ADMIN. Each role sees a different UI surface. All API routes validated server-side against the JWT scope — the frontend permission system is UI-only and never trusted for data access.
React Native app for iOS and Android used by field agents to scan barcodes, attach photos, and submit status updates. Offline queue syncs when connectivity resumes. Push notifications via APNs/FCM alert agents on high-priority assignments.