For businesses focused on logistics, deliveries, or asset deployment, understanding the full lifecycle of a trip is crucial. Our Shipments feature is designed to give you a comprehensive overview of your assets' journeys from a defined Point A to Point B. It allows you to name a trip, assign a carrier, set expected timelines, and even predict arrival statuses. Let's walk through how to set up and manage your shipments to gain end-to-end visibility.
Understanding How Shipments Work
The Shipments feature is perfect for tracking a specific asset's entire trip from a designated start point to a final destination. While it provides powerful predictive capabilities and shareable tracking links, it's important to understand its ideal use cases:
Feature Activation Required: Please note that the Shipments feature is not automatically turned on for every account. To enable it, you'll need to contact your Customer Success Manager (CSM). During your onboarding or any follow-up session, describe your specific use case for tracking trips, and your CSM will activate the feature and can walk you through its functionalities.
Best for Real-Time Trackers: The Shipments feature works most effectively with real-time GPS trackers that provide frequent updates (e.g., every 30 seconds to 15 minutes). This ensures precise start/end triggers, accurate predictions, and smooth, continuous mapping of the journey.
Considerations for Other Tracker Models:
Daily Report Trackers: If you're using trackers that report less frequently (e.g., once per day), the map will show large gaps in the tracking history within the Shipments view. Predictions (like "running late") will also be less accurate due to the infrequent data.
Shipment Trackers and Start Location Accuracy: The Shipment feature's "start" trigger relies on your tracker's first reported location being precisely within the defined Start Location (whether it's a geofence or a specific address). If your Shipment Tracker (which typically uses cellular towers or Wi-Fi for location) has its first report from a cell tower or Wi-Fi point that falls just outside your defined start boundary (even if the asset is physically within it), the shipment might not trigger as "started" as intended.
💡Tip: If your tracker model isn't ideal for the Shipments feature, you can still view its full historical tracking by navigating to the individual Tracker Details Page, selecting your desired date range, and downloading the reports there (though the predictive features and public share link won't be available from this method).
Creating a New Shipment
Ready to set up a new journey? Here's how to create a shipment:
Access the Shipments Feature:
Log in to your account. On the landing page, you'll find "Shipments" as the third option in the menu (after "Trackers" and "Geofences"), provided it's enabled for your account.
Click on the "Shipments" tab.
Start a New Shipment:
Click the "Create New Shipment" button.
Complete the Shipment Form:
You'll be presented with a form to define your shipment. Fill in the following details:
Shipment Name: Give your shipment a clear, identifiable name (e.g., "Delivery to Client X," "Vehicle Transfer Y-Z").
Carrier: Input the name of the carrier responsible for this shipment.
Start Date & Time: Select the exact date and time the shipment is expected to begin. Pro Tip: For optimal tracking, ensure your "Start Time" covers the tracker's first report when it leaves the area (e.g., if activated at 6:00 PM, set start time to 5:00 PM).
Expected End Date & Time: Set the anticipated date and time for the shipment's arrival. The system automatically uses these for predictive statuses.
Assign a Tracker: Select the specific tracker you want to assign to this shipment from the dropdown.
Start Location: Choose an existing Geofence or enter a custom address (exact building address or city is best).
End Location (Destination): Similarly, select an existing Geofence or enter a custom address.
Configure Notifications:
Receive Notification Before Shipment End: Enable this and select when you want to be reminded (1, 2, 5, or 8 hours before the expected end time).
Add More Notification Channels: Assign specific individuals to receive alerts. You can only select emails and phone numbers of users who are already added to your account.
Save Your Shipment:
Once all details are entered and notifications are configured, click the "Save" button to create your shipment.
Monitoring Your Active Shipments
Once a shipment is created and its assigned tracker begins reporting within the defined start location, you'll be able to:
View Progress on the Map: See the entire path of your shipment from start to finish.
Predictive Status: The platform will analyze the tracker's progress against the expected end time and provide real-time status updates, automatically calculated by the system, such as:
Not Started
In Progress
Completed
Arriving Late
Share Public Link: A unique and powerful feature! You can generate a shareable public link for any active shipment. This allows your customers or other external stakeholders to view the live progress of their specific shipment on a map, without needing to log in to your account. This enhances transparency and reduces inbound queries.
CSM Tip Box:
💡Unsure if the Shipments feature is the right fit for your tracker model or specific workflow? Your dedicated Customer Success Manager can provide a personalized demo, discuss your operational goals, and help you determine the best way to leverage the platform's features for seamless asset tracking, whether through Shipments or alternative reporting methods.