From the 'Start Up Screen', navigate to the 'Load Plane'
by clicking on the text labeled 'Load Plane' or the icon
displaying a pallet and boxes. Users may also navigate to the
'Load Plane' by clicking on the button labeled 'Loads' on the top
toolbar.
The Load Plane is comprised of three windows. They are
titled 'Jobs Tree', 'Buttons', and 'Load Edit Form'. The Jobs
Tree window displays all the loads / jobs that have been selected
by the user. The Buttons window is located in the center of the
Load Plane and displays a series of buttons used to enter data.
The 'Load Edit Form' is comprised of five tabs and displays all
the relevant information for an individual load.
Begin creating a load by clicking on the button labeled
'Add Load'. This will activate the 'Load Customer' field and
allow the user to enter the name of the customer or contract
number. Users can begin typing to bring up a pull-down list of
all the current customers or contracts in their database. Once
the desired name appears, the user will then click on the name or
press the 'Tab' key to advance to the next field. If the desired
customer name or contract number does not appear, the user will
click on the button labeled 'New' to the right of the 'Load
Customer' field. Clicking on the 'New' button opens the
'Customer Setup' window and allows the user to enter customer
related data (see article titled 'Creating / Adding a Customer).
Once the customer name has been entered, press the 'Tab' key to
continue.
The next field to be entered is titled 'Tariff Level' and
users will use the pull-down menu to select which tariff levels
apply to this load / job. Once the tariff levels have been
selected, press the 'Tab' key to continue.
The next field to be entered is titled 'Load Type' and is
used to assign a descriptive type to this load / job. Examples:
Regular Run, Backhaul, Oilwell Service, Linehaul, etc.
Users can begin typing to display a pull-down menu with various
load types. Once the user locates the desired load type, they
can click on the text or press the 'Tab' key to continue.
The field labeled 'Qualifications' is next, and a
pull-down menu is used to select which qualifications to apply to
this load / job. Examples: 48 ft. trailer,
Hazmat, Fork Lift, etc. The software will use this
qualification information to check against the driver
qualifications to determine if the driver is authorized to
execute delivery. After selecting the qualifications that apply,
the user will press the 'Tab' key to continue.
The next 2 fields are labeled 'Ordered By' and 'Accepted
By'. These fields are used to enter the name or initials of the
individuals processing the load / job. The customer contact that
orders or authorizes the load / job is often entered in the
'Ordered By' field, and the individual confirming receipt of the
load / job is often entered in the 'Accepted By' field. Users
may use these fields for other purposes according to their
business model. After completing these fields, press the 'Tab'
key to proceed.
The last field to be entered prior to adding stops
(delivery locations), is labeled 'Comments'. This field is
designed to provide a space to communicate specifications related
to this particular load / job. The comments entered in this
field will be seen by other users of the office software only.
Drivers using the on-board keypads will not
see these comments on their keypads or Driver Instruction Report.
After entering comments, the user will press the 'Tab' key to
proceed. Note: after pressing the 'Tab'
key, the 'Load Edit Form' will change to allow users to enter the
necessary stop location information.
The first field to be entered is titled 'Stop Location'.
Users will begin typing the name of the desired location to
enable a pull-down menu to appear. The pull-down menu will list
all the locations currently in the database. The user will
select the appropriate location from the pull-down menu and press
the 'Tab' key to continue. If the desired location does not
appear in the pull down menu, the user will click on the button
labeled 'New' to the right of the field to enter in the location
information (see Creating / Adding a Location).
The next field to be entered is titled 'Stop Type' and is
used to indicate the nature of the stop. Examples:
Pickup, Delivery, Scheduled Break, Trailer Drop, etc.
Users can begin typing the name of the stop type to enable a
pull-down menu listing all the stop types currently in the
database. Select one of the stop types and press the 'Tab' key
to proceed. Note: stop types are entered
into the database in the 'Setup' area, see related articles for
more information.
The field labeled 'Stage' is used to divide the stop
locations into sections (stages) to be delivered by a driver.
Loads / jobs that require more than one driver should be divided
into 2 or more stages, with each driver assigned to a single
stage. Example: a load / job with 6 stop
locations can be broken into 2 stages, with driver A completing
stops 1 thru 3 and driver B completing stops 4 thru 6. Users
will assign a particular stage number to each stop location of a
load / job. Once the stage has been assigned, press the 'Tab'
key to continue.
The next four fields refer to the arrival and departure
dates and times. Users will enter in the appropriate day and
times for the stop location. A specific date is required for
arrival and departure, but the time fields may be left blank if a
specific time is not necessary. If a particular time is entered,
the software will treat this time as a 'hard' time and use this
value to create standards and alter estimated arrival times on
other stops in the route. Example: If stop
'A' has a specific departure time of 03:00, and the travel time
between stop 'A' and stop 'B' is 90 minutes, the system can
estimate arrival at stop 'B' to be 04:30. It is important
for the user to remember two items: 1. arrival and departure
times are entered in a 24hr format (military time) and 2. arrival
and departure dates and times are entered separately for each
stop location. Once the arrival and departure dates and times
are entered, press the 'Tab' key to proceed.
The next field is the 'Bill of Lading' field and may
consist of alpha or numeric characters. The contents of this
field will be displayed next to the stop location in the 'Jobs
Tree' window. Users may use this field to enter information
other than the bill of lading and the title of the field can be
changed using the 'Change Text' function. Once the bill of
lading has been entered, press the 'Tab' key to continue.
The final field on the Stop Info tab is labeled
'Comments'. The text entered in this area will be viewable by
drivers utilizing keypads in the vehicle and often consists of
important information related to the particular stop location.
Example: 'Use dock #5' or 'Show ID badge at
gate'. Once the 'Comments'
field is completed, press the 'Tab' key to begin entering
information for the next stop location. Note:
Once the first stop location is entered and the 'Tab' key is
pressed, the load / job will appear in the 'Jobs Tree' window on
the left side of the screen.
The user will continue entering stop locations and the
required information related to each stop. After completing all
the stop locations, entry of the load / job has been finished.
Users can then dispatch the load / job in it's current state, or
add tasks to the newly created load / job. For instructions on
how to dispatch the load, please see the article titled Assigning
a Load / Job to a Driver. To add tasks to a load / job,
please see the article titled Adding Tasks
to a Load / Job.