Working with despatch dates when routing and creating Consignments

Working with despatch dates when routing and creating Consignments

This guide outlines how to use Despatch date/times effectively when generating routes and creating consignments. Despatch DateTimes are optional and if none are provided, NOW will be used.

MachShip allows you to specify the despatch date and time of when the consignment is ready to be picked up. The Despatch DateTime should be set to when the goods are picked and ready to be picked up by the carrier. MachShip will return valid routes ON or AFTER the Despatch DateTime that has been provided. If you provide a Despatch DateTime that is in the past, MachShip will default the Despatch DateTime to NOW. 

If no Despatch DateTime is provided, MachShip will default to NOW. Despatch date can be specified in 2 ways and only one of them should be provided:

Despatch Date UTC
This is the Despatch DateTime in UTC time. 

"despatchDateTimeUtc": "yyyy-MM-ddThh:mm:ss.000Z"

Despatch Date Local
This is the despatch date and time localised to the pickup suburb's timezone. 

"despatchDateTimeLocal": "yyyy-MM-ddThh:mm:ss.000Z"

If you provide both UTC and local time, UTC time will be used.

Creating Consignments from Routes

If you are creating a consignment based on a route that was returned from MachShip, you should use the Despatch DateTime from the selected despatch option of the returned route. MachShip's routing engine has inbuilt time windows, cutoff times, etc. which then affect the despatch date of the consignment. For example, if you specify that your consignment is ready after 5 PM, MachShip may push the despatch date to 9 AM the next day for certain routes. 

Despatch Dates vs. Delivery Windows

It is important to understand the distinction between Despatch DateTime and Delivery Windows, as these are two separate concepts in MachShip:

Despatch DateTime specifies when the freight is READY FOR PICKUP by the carrier. This is set on a per-consignment basis and indicates when the goods have been picked and are available for collection.

Delivery Windows specify when the carrier will DELIVER the freight to the recipient. Delivery windows are configured at the carrier service level via Time Configurations and are derived from Time Configuration rules, not from individual consignment despatch dates.

In summary:
• Despatch dates are set per-consignment and indicate when goods are ready for pickup
• Delivery windows are configured at the carrier service level and indicate when delivery will occur

Understanding Consignment Dates in the UI

When viewing a consignment in MachShip, you may notice two different dates that can sometimes differ from each other. It is important to understand what each represents:

Consignment Creation Date — This is the date and time when the consignment record was created in MachShip (shown as 'dateCreated' in system data). This represents when the consignment was first entered into the system.

Despatch Date — This is the scheduled date and time when the carrier is instructed to pick up the freight. This may be different from the creation date if the consignment is scheduled for a future pickup date.

Example: A consignment created on March 19 may have a despatch date of March 24 if that's when the carrier was booked to collect the freight. These are two separate dates and both are correct. The creation date records when you entered the consignment into the system, while the despatch date records when the carrier will actually pick up the goods.

For more information on delivery windows and how to configure them, see Understanding Delivery Windows.