Loads and dispatch

The load is the operating record for a freight movement. The Dispatcher records a reference, subject, promised delivery time, freight amount, operating organization, owner and transport partner. A load can be planned before a driver and vehicle are committed. That gives the team a stable place to collect stops, handoff details and evidence while the assignment is checked.

A useful pilot case is a warehouse pickup for a named partner with an afternoon recipient window. Keep the promised delivery time on the load even if a revised estimate changes later. The team can then compare actual delivery with the original commitment. The Operations Overview brings the active load alongside pending review decisions and failed operations, so the shift lead can find work that needs attention.

• Plan. The Dispatcher creates the load and its ordered stops, then checks that the plan operation has a stable receipt key.
• Release. The Dispatcher checks the driver, vehicle and custody review before recording actual pickup and dispatch.
• Finish. The actual delivery time and completion receipt close the physical movement while the promise stays available for comparison.

The load lifecycle distinguishes draft, planned, dispatched, in transit, delivered, exception and cancelled work. Those states tell the team what to inspect next. A state change also needs the associated physical time or operation result where the workflow calls for one; a label by itself is not evidence of pickup or delivery.

Agree who owns a load for each operating organization and which partner record represents the carrier. Define how dispatchers confirm a driver remains eligible and a vehicle remains ready at release time. Set the handoff between the warehouse and dispatcher: the custody transfer has its own review and completion, while the load has its own movement state.

Choose the source for any revised ETA and how the team communicates it. The original promised time remains on the load. Decide which external carrier acknowledgment, if any, is required in your operation and arrange that connection separately. The freight amount is a load value for operating context; the delivery workflow does not turn it into an invoice settlement.

Take one load from draft through planning. Assign a driver and vehicle for a committed interval, then submit the warehouse custody record for independent review. Before dispatch, check the reviewer decision and the completed handoff receipt. Record the pickup time and dispatch receipt together. Later, record the actual delivery time and completion receipt. Compare that result to the promised time entered when the load was planned.

Repeat the case with a failed receipt. The Operations Manager should see the unresolved operation and inspect linked effects before any correction. A retry with the same operation key must not create another dispatch or delivery effect. If the load becomes an exception, retain the earlier times and evidence for the reviewer.

• Active load lifecycle — Planned, moving and excepted loads with their owners and delivery promises.
• Load dispatch board — Work grouped by lifecycle state for the dispatch handoff.

See load planning and dispatch and delivery completion.