Scheduling appointments

The Appointment Scheduler allows you to book appointments for stops on a trip. An appointment is defined as a scheduled pickup or delivery time.

Scheduling features are available in:

  • The Appointment Scheduler window in the Trip Folder

    Allows you access to all scheduling features.

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    Note: The illustration above shows only the basic fields in the Schedule Detail section. QuickDesigner was used to hide all custom fields. Your user interface may look different. For information about using QuickDesigner, see Toggling in and out of QuickDesigner mode.

  • Trip Folder’s Scheduling tab

    Allows you to view appointment data and record contact information when the earliest and latest times are changed to previously scheduled appointments.

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  • Trip Folder’s Stops tab

    Allows you to set the status for appointments.

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  • Order Entry’s All Stops tab

    Allows you to set the status for appointments.

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Setting up the scheduling feature

Before you can schedule an appointment, you must set up your TTS50, label file, and company profiles. You will:

  • Activate scheduling features

  • Set up reasons for rescheduled appointments

  • Record appointment requirements for companies

  • Set up company contacts

Activating scheduling features

When you have [.NetMisc]ScheduleReschedule=Y set in your TTS50, these Appointment Scheduler features are available:

  • The Operations > Schedule Reschedule command in the Trip Folder
    This command launches the Appointment Scheduler window.

  • The Schedule tab in the Trip Folder

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  • The AppointmentStatus column on the Stops tab in the Trip Folder

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  • The AppointmentStatus column on the AllStops tab in Order Maintenance

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Setting up reasons for rescheduled appointments

When you use the image6 Edit Schedule command to reschedule an appointment, the system requires that you select a reason for the change in the Reschedule field.

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You define rescheduling reasons in the Reschedule label. You should never retire either of these system code options:

  • Unknown
    Defaulted value for the Reschedule field before an appointment is scheduled.

  • Initial Appt
    Used for the stop’s original appointment.

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  1. Labels can be edited on the Edit User Definable Fields tab (also known as the Label file). You access the tab by selecting Tools > Tools Maintenance > Edit User Definable Fields.

  2. For detailed information on setting up labels, see Using the label file to customize fields.

Recording appointment requirements in company profiles

You define the scheduling requirements for a company on the Scheduling tab in the company’s profile.

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The illustration above shows only the basic Appointment Scheduler fields. QuickDesigner was used to hide all custom fields. Your user interface may look different. For information about using QuickDesigner, see Toggling in and out of QuickDesigner mode.
Field definitions
Field Definition

Contact Required

Specifies the type of appointment scheduling that requires you to contact the company. The options include:

  • All Scheduling (Default)
    You must contact the company when you first schedule the initial appointment and any time you make subsequent date/time changes.

  • Initial Scheduling Only
    You must contact the company only when you first schedule the initial appointment.

    Note: Subsequent date/time changes do not require you to contact the company.

  • Rescheduling Only
    You must contact the company when making date/time changes to an existing appointment.

    Note: You do not need to contact the company when you initially schedule an appointment.

  • No Contact Required
    You do not need to contact the company to schedule appointments.

Shipper Contact Required

Select the checkbox to allow Bill To companies to override the stop company contact requirement. For example, if the shipper company is set to No Contact Required, but the Shipper Contact Required checkbox in the Bill To profile is selected, the system will require the shipper to be contacted.

Note: For non-Bill To companies, this checkbox is automatically selected and cannot be changed.

Consignee Contact Required

Select the checkbox to allow Bill To companies to override the stop company contact requirement. For example, if the consignee company is set to No Contact Required, but the Consignee Contact Required checkbox in the Bill To profile is selected, the system will require the consignee to be contacted.

Note: For non-Bill To companies, this checkbox is automatically selected and cannot be changed.

Reschedule Penalty

Select the checkbox to access a field that you can use to record a suggested penalty for a Bill To company. Enter the dollar amount in the field to the right of the checkbox.

Note: This field is informational only; the system does not automatically create an invoice detail for a reschedule penalty.

Appointment Required

Specify which stop types require you to schedule an appointment.

Options are:

  • No Appointment Required
    You do not need to schedule appointments with this customer.

    Notes:

    Select this option if the company is a regular customer and always uses the same delivery times.

    Even if you select this option, stops for the company will still appear in the Appointment Scheduler’s Stops grid.

  • Pickup(s) Only
    You must schedule pickup stops only.

    Note: Drop stops will still appear in the Appointment Scheduler’s Stops grid.

  • Drop(s) Only
    You must schedule drop stops only.

    Note: Pickup stops will still appear in the Appointment Scheduler’s Stops grid.

  • Pickups and Drops
    You must schedule appointments for both pickup and drop stops.

  • Customer Makes Own Appointment
    Select this option if the company will always communicate the appointment details on their load tender.

    Note: This option is only available for Bill To companies.

Understanding contact requirements

Your setup, along with default requirements, determines if contact information must be recorded before an appointment can be saved.

To save an initial appointment, contact information must be recorded in these situations:

  • Stop company requires contact and either of the following are true.

    • Stop is the first pickup and the Earliest date and/or Latest date has changed.

      Note: Contact is not required if only the time changes.

    • Stop is not the first pickup and the stop company requires contact.

  • Stop is first pickup and Bill To requires shipper contact and the Earliest date and/or Latest date have changed.

    Note: Contact is not required if only the time changes.

  • Stop is last drop and Bill To requires consignee contact.

To save a rescheduled appointment and the Earliest and/or Latest date or time has changed, contact information must be recorded in these situations:

  • Stop company requires contact.

  • Stop is first pickup and Bill To requires shipper contact.

  • Stop is last drop and Bill To requires consignee contact.

Scheduling appointments during order entry

If your company receives new orders by telephone, your customer service representative (CSR) probably sets the stop appointments for some or all of the stops during the phone call. After setting the appointment(s), the CSR should update the appointment’s status so that other scheduling personnel will know which appointments have been scheduled.

To simplify this process, the CSR can set the appointment status in the AppointmentStatus column in either of these locations:

  • The AllStops tab in Order Maintenance#

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  • The Stops tab in the Trip Folder#

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If the AppointmentStatus column is not displayed, use the Field Chooser to add it. For more information, see Adding or hiding a column using the Field Chooser.

The AppointmentStatus column is editable when all the following criteria are met:

  • The stop is billable

  • The AppointmentStatus is not set to a value of C or N

  • The stop is not actualized

The options in the AppointmentStatus column are:

Option Description Can be changed to

blank

Needs to be scheduled

S or SCH

S

Needs to be scheduled

SCH

SCH

Scheduled

R

R

Needs to be rescheduled

SCH

C

Customer makes own appointments

Note: This option is set in the company’s profile.

Cannot be changed in the AppointmentStatus column.

N

No appointment needed

Note: This option is set in the company’s profile.

Cannot be changed in the AppointmentStatus column.

Note: If you change the AppointmentStatus to an invalid code, the change will not be saved.

The default value in the AppointmentStatus column is determined by:

  • The type of stop

  • The option recorded in the Appointment Required field in the company profile.

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For more information, see Recording appointment requirements in company profiles.

Working with appointments in the Trip Folder

The Appointment Scheduler window contains all the scheduling functionality. However, you can access several important Appointment Scheduler features within the Trip Folder without opening the Appointment Scheduler window. These features in the Trip Folder allow you to:

For more information about using the Appointment Scheduler window, see Managing appointments for multiple trips.

Viewing appointment data on the Schedule tab

You can view appointment data on the Schedule tab in the Trip Folder. When you select the Schedule tab, each stop on the trip for which you have scheduled an appointment is displayed on a sub tab. Each sub tab displays the appointment data appropriate for that stop. If no appointment has been scheduled for any stop on a trip, no sub tabs appear and the fields on the Schedule tab are blank.

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For field descriptions, see Schedule Detail tab field definitions.

Rescheduling appointments for a specific trip in the Trip Folder

If you change the earliest or latest date/time for a scheduled stop that requires contact, you must record the contact data before saving the trip. The system alerts you by applying red highlighting to the Schedule tab.

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When you click the Schedule tab, the system applies red highlighting to each stop tab that requires entries and displays an image12 icon next to the fields that require entries.

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As you make the required entries, the system removes the alert icons and red highlighting. After all required entries are made, you can save the order. For field descriptions, see Schedule Detail tab field definitions.

Managing appointments for multiple trips

The Appointment Scheduler window is available in the Trip Folder. This window provides a quick and efficient method of recording and editing appointment data for multiple trips. The window allows you to:

  • Set up initial appointments

  • Reschedule existing appointments

  • Manage contact information

Accessing the Appointment Scheduler window

The Appointment Scheduler window is available in the Trip Folder. To access the Appointment Scheduler, select Operations > Schedule/Reschedule. The window displays without data. When you click the Retrieve button the system will filter the data retrieved based on the view selected in the Schedule Board field.

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Layout of the Appointment Scheduler window

The Appointment Scheduler window has two sections:

  • Stops grid
    Lists all active stops that meet the restrictions set by the view in use. For field descriptions, see Stops grid field descriptions.

    Note: Completed stops never display in this grid.

  • Schedule Detail tab
    Displays appointment information for the selected stop. For field descriptions, see Schedule Detail tab field definitions.

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Stops grid field descriptions:

Field Definition

OrderNumber

Order’s system-assigned numeric ID

TripNumber

System-assigned numeric ID for the trip segment to which the stop belongs

MoveNumber

System-assigned ID for the movement to which the stop belongs

Status

Dispatch status of the trip segment to which the stop belongs. Options include:

  • AVL
    Available

  • PLN
    Planned

  • DSP
    Dispatched

  • STD
    Started

StopAppointmentStatus

Appointment status of a stop. Options are:

  • S
    Needs to be scheduled

  • SCH
    Scheduled

  • R
    Needs to be rescheduled

  • N
    No appointment required

  • C
    Customer makes own appointment

TripStartDate

Date and time recorded in the Earliest field for the first stop on an order

TripEndDate

Date and time recorded in the Latest field for the last stop on an order

BillTo

ID of the company to be billed for shipment

CompanyID

ID of the company where the stop will take place

Filtering trips in the Stops grid

You can use a board view to filter the data retrieved in the Appointment Scheduler’s Stops grid. With the Appointment Scheduler window displayed, do one of the following:

The system retrieves stops based on the view you selected.

Scheduling an appointment

After retrieving data, the Stops grid displays multiple rows for each order. Each row represents one unactualized stop.

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After you select a stop from the Stops grid, the appointment details for that stop are displayed in the Schedule Detail tab. Follow these steps to schedule or reschedule an appointment:

  1. Do one of the following:

    • Click image15 Create Schedule.
      Create an appointment for a stop that has not yet been scheduled.

    • Click image16 Edit Schedule.
      Edit an appointment for a stop that has been scheduled.

      The fields in the Schedule Detail tab are enabled.

    Notes:

    1. For a stop that has not yet been scheduled, only default values are shown.

    2. The system displays an exclamation point icon next to required fields. You cannot save the appointment until you have made entries in these fields.

  2. Make entries on the Schedule Detail tab.

    Field definitions
    Field Definition

    Earliest/Latest Schedule Times

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    These times correlate to the earliest and latest times recorded for the stop on the order. Any changes you make on the Schedule Detail tab will be reflected on the order.

    Schedule Notes

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    • Reschedule
      Do one of the following:

    • Late
      Select an option when rescheduling an existing appointment

      This field is activated when the rescheduled time on the trip falls outside of the grace period you define in the Appointment Change Window field on a company’s profile. You set user-defined options in the ReasonLate label.

    • Comments
      Free-form text field to record notes for the appointment

    • Tractor
      Read-only field

    Contact Information

    Bill To

    and

    Stop Location

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    If the companies are set up to require contact for this stop, you must select a contact for the Bill To company and the stop for which you are creating the appointment. For more information on selecting a contact, see Setting up company contacts.

    Bill To Contact Made

    Indicates whether you made contact with the Bill To company

    Bill To Contact Made Date

    Date when you contacted the Bill To company

    Bill To Contact Name

    Name of the person you contacted from the Bill To company

    Stop Contact Made

    Indicates whether you made contact with the stop company

    Stop Contact Made Date

    Date when you contacted the stop company

    Stop Contact Name

    Name of the person you contacted from the stop company

  3. Click image21 Save Changes.

How the system updates stop times

When you adjust the earliest or latest time for a stop, you can use the image22 Calculate Appointments command to cascade the change to all subsequent stops. For example, this illustration shows our trip’s earliest and latest times.

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In the Appointment Scheduler, we changed the earliest time of the first stop from 01:00 to 02:00.

Original time

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Updated time

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Then we clicked the image22 Calculate Appointments command. The system cascaded the change to all subsequent stops.

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Because the times changed on all stops, we had to update the reschedule appointments for all stops before we could save our changes. After saving, our updated earliest and latest times looked like this.

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Be aware that only the earliest and latest date/times are affected, the arrival and departure times are not affected.

The Calculate Appointments function mimics the functionality associated with the [Dispatch]AutoRecalcTimes=Y setting in your TTS50. However, the Calculate Appointments function is independent from the AutoRecalcTimes setting and is not affected by it.

Setting up Appointment Scheduler views

The data displayed in the Appointment Scheduler window is controlled by the view selected in the Schedule Board field. The ScrollAppointments view is the only board view supplied by the system.

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Editing a system view such as the ScrollAppointments view is not recommended. However, in the Board Setup window, you can copy the system view and then modify the copy as needed. This illustration shows the ScrollAppointments system view and two user-defined views based on that system view.

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For more information about setting up board views, see General process for creating and modifying views.

Temporarily modifying the current view

You can temporarily modify the current view restrictions for the Appointment Scheduler window. Your modified view remains in effect until you exit the window or select another view.

  1. Click the Restrict button.
    The Appointment Filters window opens.

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  2. Enter restrictions as needed.

  3. Click OK.
    The window closes.

    Notice that <CUSTOM> displays in the Schedule Board field.

  4. Click image30 Retrieve.
    The system retrieves stops based on the restriction you selected.

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Completed stops do not display in the Appointment Scheduler’s Stops grid.

Viewing appointment history

The Appointment Scheduler provides a way to quickly view the appointment history for a stop.

  1. Select a stop from the Stops grid.

  2. Select the Schedule History tab.

The stop’s appointment history is displayed. Each row represents a change made to the stop’s appointment.

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Field definitions

Note: Some columns may not be in view by default. You can view them by using the Field Chooser, or scrolling to the right.

Field Definition

Stop Sched ID

Unique numerical identifier for the selected stop

Reason Code

Option selected in the Reschedule field when you created or edited the appointment

Bill To Contact Made

Indicates whether you made contact with the Bill To company

Bill To Contact Made Date

Date when you contacted the Bill To company

Bill To Contact Name

Name of the person you contacted from the Bill To company

Stop Contact Made

Indicates whether you made contact with the stop company

Stop Contact Made Date

Date when you contacted the stop company

Stop Contact Name

Name of the person you contacted from the stop company

Comment

Information recorded in the Comments field

Created By

Login ID of the person who created the appointment

Created On

Date when the appointment was created

Updated By

Login ID of the person who updated the appointment

Updated On

Date when the appointment was updated

Reason Late

Reason recorded in the Late field in the Schedule Notes section of the Schedule tab

Setting up company contacts

A contact is the person at a company with whom you will communicate appointment information. In TMW Operations, there are two types of contacts:

  • Managed contact
    A managed contact is a person at the company with whom you talk frequently. You create, edit, and delete managed contacts in the Contacts window, which can be accessed from the Appointment Scheduler and from the company’s profile. The contact’s information is saved in the company’s profile. For more information, see Accessing the Contacts window.

  • Unmanaged contact
    An unmanaged contact is a person with whom you will probably talk to once and not talk to again. You add unmanaged contacts only in the Appointment Scheduler. Unmanaged contacts are saved only on the stop on which you recorded the contact’s information. For more information, see Adding an unmanaged company contact.

Accessing the Contacts window

You edit contact data in the Contacts window. You can access the window from either:

  • The company profile

    1. Select Tools > Profiles > Company Profile.

    2. Look up the company for which you want to add a contact.

    3. Click the Contacts tab.

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  • The Appointment Scheduler window
    With the schedule displayed, click image34 Manage Contacts in the Contact Information pane.
    The Contacts window opens.

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Adding a company contact

In the Contacts window or tab, follow these steps:

  1. Click image36 Add.
    By default, the system displays an expanded view of contact records

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  2. If you prefer to enter information in a single row, or collapsed view, double-click the magnifying glass image38 at the left side of the record. The system will collapse the record.

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    To return to the expanded view, double-click the magnifying glass again.

  3. Make entries in the fields displayed for the contact record.

    Field definitions
    Field Definition

    Type

    Identifies the type of contact record you are creating. Select the appropriate type:

    • Standard Contact
      Identifies the contact record as a general contact, i.e., not for use by TMWSuite’s EDI or Imaging add-on modules.

    • EDI/Imaging Email
      Identifies the contact record as available for use by TMWSuite’s EDI or Imaging add-on modules. When this option is selected, you can record an e-mail address for the contact. Phone number fields are not accessible.

    • EDI/Imaging Fax
      Identifies the contact record as available for use by TMWSuite’s EDI or Imaging add-on modules. When this option is selected, you can provide a fax number for the contact. Other phone number fields are not accessible.

    Note: These options are system code entries in the CmpContactType label.

    Retired

    Applicable when a person is no longer a contact for your company

    Note: This field is not available on the Company Contacts window in TMWSuite core applications.

    Title

    Free-form text field used to record the contact’s title. The system saves a maximum of 30 alphanumeric characters.

    Alias

    Contact’s alternate name

    Note: This field is not available on the Company Contacts window in TMWSuite core applications.

    Name

    Free-form text field used to record the contact’s name. The system saves a maximum of 30 alphanumeric characters.

    Branch

    Cost center associated with the company

    Note: For details, see:

    Default

    There can be only one default, i.e., primary, contact for a company. When you add the first contact, the system automatically selects the Default checkbox for it.

    If the first contact is not the primary, select the Default checkbox for the person who is the primary contact.

    When an activity is created for the company on the Activity Details window, the system will automatically default the primary contact’s information in the Contact, Phone, Ext, and E-mail fields.

    Note: If the Default checkbox is not selected for any contact, the system shows a red warning indicator below the checkbox for each contact.

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    After Hrs

    Select if the contact can be contacted after hours

    Hours of Op

    Free-form text field for entering the company’s standard hours of operation

    EDI Active

    Applies if the type is EDI/Imaging Email or EDI/Imaging Fax

    • If the contact information is to be used by one of the EDI add-on modules, select the checkbox.

    • If the contact information is to be used by one of the Imaging add-on modules, clear the checkbox.

    Comment

    Enter free-form text about the contact.

    Note: This field is not available on the Company Contacts window in core TMWSuite applications.

    Phone

    Primary telephone number by which the contact can be reached

    Ext

    Extension number for the contact’s primary phone number

    2nd Phone

    Alternate telephone number by which the contact can be reached

    2nd Ext

    Extension number for the contact’s secondary phone number

    Cell

    Contact’s cell phone number

    Fax

    Contact’s fax number

    Email Address

    Contact’s e-mail address

    Physical Address
    City St, Zip

    Contact’s geographic address, city, state/province, and ZIP/postal code

    Note: This field is not available on the Company Contacts window in core TMWSuite applications.

    Mailing Address
    City, St, Zip

    Address, city, state/province, and ZIP/postal code to which mailed items must be delivered

    Note: This field is not available on the Company Contacts window in core TMWSuite applications.

    Updated By

    TMWSuite ID of the person who last updated the contact’s information

    Update Date

    Date/time when the contact’s information was last updated

  4. Click image41 Save.

    Note: If you did not select the Default checkbox for any contact, a message indicates that you cannot save.

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Removing a company contact

When a contact record is no longer valid, such as when the contact has left the company or changed positions, you can delete the record.

With the contact displayed in the Contacts window or tab, follow these steps:

  1. Click in one of the fields of the contact record.

  2. Click image43 Remove.
    One of the following occurs:

    • The system displays a confirmation message.

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      image44

      Click Yes to complete the deletion.

    • If the contact you are deleting is marked as the default contact, the system displays a message similar to the following:

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      Click Yes to complete the deletion.

  3. Click image41 Save.

Adding an unmanaged company contact

You can add an unmanaged contacts from the Appointment Scheduler window and from the Schedule tab in the Trip Folder.

With the schedule displayed, follow these steps to add an unmanaged contact.

  1. In the Contact Information pane, select the Unmanaged Contact checkbox.
    The contact detail fields are enabled.

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  2. Enter the contact’s name and information as required.

  3. Click image47 Save.