Rate Setup

You can apply a charge at the shipment, piece, or detail level. For example, if a charge is based on the weight of the whole shipment, the system calculates the charge and applies it at the shipment level. If a charge is applied at the piece level, the system calculates the charge for each shipment piece, using the weight of the piece. Then, the system adds all of the charges for the pieces to determine a total charge for the shipment.

A rate schedule contains a list of all rate calculations that must be performed to calculate the correct freight charge. For example, you can set up a rate schedule that includes the basic transportation charge, which is based on weight and accessorial charges. The system calculates rate charges in the sequence that is specified in the rate schedule.

When you enter a purchase order or credit sales order (customer return), you can route and rate the resulting shipment. Based on the business process, you can set up rates and rate schedules that the system uses for inbound shipments; however, you do not have to set up specific routes for inbound shipments. You can use outbound routes that are defined in the routing table for inbound shipments. The system rates an inbound shipment only when the freight terms are payable.

You set up rate definitions according to how carriers charge you for freight, how you incur costs for a private fleet, and how you bill customers for freight. The system enables you to set up a variety of different rates to suit transportation needs. After rates have been defined, you assign them to a rate schedule. The rate schedule applies rates to a specific route.

To set up rates, you first determine whether the rate is billable, payable, or both. For example, you determine whether a rate is billable to the customer, payable to a carrier as part of the freight costs, or a combination of both.

You can define each rate with a rate type of a fixed amount, a unit amount, an amount stored within a specific route, a prorated amount, or an external business function.

You can apply rates based on the shipment, the load, or the weight of each piece that makes up the shipment or load.

You must often calculate the rate based on an attribute of a shipment, such as weight. For example, the per pound rate might vary according to the total weight of the shipment. The system retrieves a rate amount based on a user-defined variable, such as weight. You define parameters, such as weight breaks, in lookup types. Then you must set rate amounts for each break in the rate tables.

The system rates inbound shipments the same way that it rates outbound shipments. However, for inbound shipments, the system calculates only collect freight charges. Rating setup enables you to specify whether a rate is inbound, outbound, or both. When a shipment is routed, the system uses outbound or both rate details to calculate freight charges. For inbound shipments with a defined inbound rate schedule, the routing process then exchanges the origin and destination information, and selects any routing entries that meet the exchanged origin and destination information. When the route is rated, the system uses only the rate details in the rate schedule that are defined as inbound or both.