How to Configure Cross-Docks and Pools

This help topic describes how to set up the locations, service providers, contacts, rates, and itineraries that determine how cross-docks and pools operate at your organization. Use cross-docks and pools to model distribution activity your organization may use to achieve lower shipping cost.

Cross-docks function as distribution centers. Orders arrive at the cross-dock, are removed from their current shipment, and re-planned with other orders for further distribution on new shipments. Pools act as de-consolidation centers for orders with destination locations in the region associated with the pool. Shipments are created accordingly.

During planning, Oracle Transportation Management determines whether a shipment uses a cross-dock or pool based on the itinerary assigned to the shipment. Oracle Transportation Management compares information on the orders on a shipment to rules established on the itinerary that state when shipments go to distribution centers.

At a cross-dock or pool location, orders are moved from the shipment in which they arrived to another shipment from which they exit the location by handling shipments. Handling shipments are created by Oracle Transportation Management during shipment planning to determine the cost associated with moving freight through a cross-dock or pool. The handling shipment relates to the service provider you assign to the pool (there is no tender process for handling shipments), and Oracle Transportation Management uses the handling rate offering and rate record for that service provider to determine the cost of the handling shipment. (Handling shipments are optional).

Note: You can only have one cross-dock per itinerary.

Set Up Cross-Docks and Distribution Pools

You must define values in several business objects when creating a cross-dock or a pool. The following sections define data entry for each business object required to complete this setup. For complete help instructions about a business object, read the online help specific to that business object.

Note: You can also import the necessary data through integration. See the Integration Guide on the Oracle Help Center.

Cross-dock and pool setup includes the following steps:

1. Set up the cross-dock or pool location. This represents the geographic place where the cross-dock or pool resides.
2. Create a service provider for the cross-dock or pool. The service provider represents the organization who receives payment for activity at the cross-dock or pool.
3. Create a contact for the service provider. The contact is the individual who is notified about cross-dock activity.
4. Create a rate offering and a rate record for the service provider to establish the cost for cross-dock and pool activity.
5. Create an itinerary that describes the geographic and routing requirements for orders using the cross-dock or pool.
6. For a pool you must define the region serviced by the pool. Define regions in Power Data. Shipments with delivery locations in the region you define are candidates for using the pool.
7. In Shipment Management > Shipment Management > Power Data > General > Parameter Sets, define appropriate parameters that impact which orders are sent to cross-docks and pools during the planning process.
8. In Shipment Management > Shipment Management > Power Data > General > Location Configuration, define appropriate logic configuration parameters that impact which orders are sent to cross-docks and pools during the planning process.

Location Manager

Define the geographic location of the cross-dock or pool.

The following table describes the pages and fields in the Location Manager where you must enter particular values to create a cross-dock or pool location. For a complete description of location setup, refer to the Location Manager help topic.

Tab	Field	Entry Instructions
Identification tab	Region ID	Only for pool locations, enter the region where you want the pool to deliver freight. Orders with destinations in the region are candidates for the pool. Regions are user-defined geographic areas you set up in Power Data.
Roles tab	Location Role	Enter XDOCK for a cross-dock. See XDock for more information about using this location role. Enter CONSOLIDATION_POOL or DECONSOLIDATION_POOL for a pool. See Consolidation and Deconsolidation Pools for more information about using this location role.

Service Provider

Define the service provider responsible for activity at the location you defined. The service provider receives payment for invoices created as the result of handling shipments at the cross-dock or pool.

Contact

A contact is the individual who receives and sends messages regarding activity at the cross-dock or pool. In addition, the contact may appear on bills and invoices.

When defining a contact, it is often useful to associate a calendar with the contact to establish office hours during which the contact person is available.

Rate Offering

A rate offering is a general contract with a service provider. You need to define a rate offering for the handling shipments to determine the cost for using the cross-dock or pool. In addition, you may define a rate offering from a pool location to the destination locations to differentiate those rates from other rates you use such as LTL.

The following table describes the pages and fields under rate offering in the Rate Manager where you must enter particular values to create a cross-dock or pool rate offering.

Tab	Field	Entry Instructions
Rate Header	Offering Type	Enter HANDLING for both cross-docks and pools.
Rate Header	Service Provider ID	Enter the ID for the service provider you defined above.
Rate Header	Rate Service ID	Select a Rate Service. Although the application requires you make a selection, the rate service times are determined by the values you entered for handling times on the location role.
Rate Header	Transport Mode	Enter HANDLING for both cross-docks and pools.

Rate Record

Rate Records are created based on a rate offering. While the rate offering provides general contract details from a service provider, a rate record provides specific costing or rating data from one place to another. The record inherits much of its data from the offering but the options selected in the offering can be overridden at the record level.

When creating a rate record, first select the rate offering on which the record is to be based.

The following table describes the Oracle Transportation Management pages and fields under rate record in the Rate Manager where you must enter particular values to create a cross-dock or pool rate record.

Tab	Field	Entry Instructions
Lane Info	Location ID	Enter the location ID for the cross-dock or pool.

Typically, the rate cost for handling shipments are based on 100 weight calculation.

Itinerary

Itineraries determine the routing for shipments. You must define itineraries that determine which shipments go to the cross-dock or pool. Also, you must define itineraries to carry the shipments that travel directly to their destination location when they do not meet the requirements for using a cross-dock or pool. For example, orders below a certain size may be carried by a parcel carrier, while those above a particular size such as truckloads may travel direct.

The following table describes the pages and fields in the Itinerary Manager where you must enter particular values to create a cross-dock or pool itinerary.

Tab	Field	Entry Instructions
Parameters	Pool-Crossdock Itinerary	This check box must be marked.
Parameters	De-Consolidation Pool	Mark the check box to indicate that you want to plan shipments through a deconsolidation pool when appropriate.
Parameters	Destination Bundle Preferred	This parameter indicates that bundling by destination location is preferred. If a shipment qualifies for both a de-consolidation pool and a cross-dock, the shipment is sent to the pool unless you select this check box which gives priority to the cross-dock.
Parameters	Maximum Stops Allowed	Enter a number in this field to limit the stops a shipment can have when using the current itinerary.
Parameters	Minimum Stop Off Weight	Identifies the lowest weight order that you want to use the cross-dock or pool. Orders below the weight entered are not placed on shipments that use the cross-dock or pool.
Parameters	Maximum Pool Weight	Identifies the highest weight for shipments that use the pool or cross-dock.
Parameters	Minimum TL Weight	Identifies the highest weight shipment that you want to use the cross-dock or pool. Orders that are bundled into shipments above this weight are not sent to the cross-dock or pool.
Parameters	Maximum Distance between Stops	In some cases, it is more expensive to ship to a cross dock than to ship direct because of the distance from the source to the cross-dock. To limit the distance you want shipments to travel to a cross-dock, enter a numeric value in this field.
Leg Details	Cross Dock Location ID	Enter a value in this field for cross-docks only. One the specific leg of the itinerary which you want to associate with a cross dock, enter the cross-dock's location ID.
Leg Details	Mode Profile ID	Enter a transport mode profile ID. Make sure you select one that covers all the transport modes you want to use in conjunction with the cross-dock or pool. Modes profiles are related transport modes you define in power data.

Parameters

Parameters are used to affect how Oracle Transportation Management plans shipments. Define the parameters to model your business processes so that Oracle Transportation Management builds shipments to your specifications. You can set parameters to tell Oracle Transportation Management how to make decisions about cross-dock and pool planning. Parameters are accessed via Shipment Management > Power Data > General > Parameter Sets.

Parameter	Value
PREFER XDOCK SHIPMENTS THAN DIRECT SHIPMENTS	Select "true" box to indicate that you want to build shipments that go through the cross-dock whenever possible. Oracle Transportation Management uses more planning solutions that include the cross-dock. If you do not select "true", the system builds shipments that travel direct whenever possible.
PLANNING GROUP THAT RUN XDOCK POST LTL SPLIT	This parameter allows you to define which orders allow splitting/consolidation beyond one truckload during cross-dock planning.

Build Shipments

Oracle Transportation Management determines which shipments go to a cross-dock or pool location based on planning decisions it makes during shipment processing. When you perform bulk planning in the Process Manager, the system selects shipments for cross dock and pool distribution.