Spot Bid Tenders Configuration

Spot Bid Tendering is the process of auctioning a shipment to several carriers. A parameter is used to specify the time limit as to when the auction closes. The process for spot bid tendering is similar to broadcast tendering; however, the first carrier to respond is not awarded the freight. When the spot bid time expires, all bids are evaluated and the carrier with the lowest adjusted cost is awarded the freight.

Set Up

The following glog.tender properties need to be defined:

• glog.tender.shipmentEvent.isHidden: Determines if tender events will be displayed in the UI
• glog.tender.shipmentEvent.raiseShipmentStatusTopic: Determines if shipment status topic will be published
• glog.tender.shipmentEvent.turnOff: Turns off the functionality. Set this to True to turn it on.

The Tender Events are in:

• Event Groups
• Status Codes
• Reason Codes

Although tender events are defined in OTM the same as other event groups, status codes, and reason codes, tender events cannot be added as a shipment event.

Spot Bid Tender Process

Spot Bid Tendering is the process of auctioning a shipment to several carriers. A parameter is used to specify the time limit as to when the auction closes. The process for spot bid tendering is similar to broadcast tendering; however, the first carrier to respond is not awarded the freight. When the spot bid time expires, all bids are evaluated and the carrier with the lowest adjusted cost is awarded the freight.

If you have an automation agent defined to send a Spot Bid Tender, OTM sends a tender to all service providers that match the mode and have the Accepts Spot Bids check box selected. The agent action is SPOT BID TENDER.

If you select Spot Bid Tender from the Shipment Manager Actions menu, a new page opens and you can enter a Response Time and select the carriers you wish to send the Spot Bid Tender.

It is optional to define an Expected Response Time. If you do not define a Response Time, OTM will calculate it based on the duration defined on the SPOT BID TENDER RESPONSE TIME BEFORE SHIPMENT START parameter. The Response Time is calculated by subtracting the duration from the shipment start time.

After initiated, the Spot Bid Tenders are sent to the specified carriers via the appropriate Communication Method.

If no carrier responds at the time of expiration, the OTM event NO RESPONSE RECEIVED is published and the status of the shipment is set to SECURE RESOURCES_NO RESOURCES.

Displaying the Lowest Bid

You can display the current lowest bid to the service providers, or you can hide this information. This is controlled through the property: glog.tender.showLowestBidToServprov. If false (the default), the lowest builds are not displayed. The field will be displayed to the carrier when,

• The property is set to TRUE
• A service provider has submitted a bid
• The service provider is not the first to submit a bid.

When the Response Time expires, OTM awards the freight to the carrier with the least adjusted cost. If two bids are the same, OTM selects the carrier that responded first.

You can use WITHDRAW SPOT BID TENDER to withdraw a Spot Bid Tender manually through the Buy Shipment Actions menu, or automatically with the Buy Shipment agent action.

Evaluate Spot Bid Tender

The agent action EVALUATE SPOT BID TENDER BID is used to evaluate the open tenders. This will evaluate all bids for the Spot Bid Tender. An agent can listen for SHIPMENT TENDER – TENDER BID RECEIVED and the agent action will evaluate the bids before the end of the response time. If you enter a Factor of Cost Adjustment, it overrides the Spot Rate Adjustment Factor defined on the service provider.

Tender Events

Tender events are included as shipment events that can be recorded, monitored, tracked, and viewed.

The following tender events are viewable from the Shipment Event page:

• TENDERED
• BOOKED
• PICKUP
• WITHDRAWN
• ACCEPTED
• DECLINED
• TENDER MODIFIED

These are accessed via Shipment Actions. Select Shipment Management > Events > View Shipment Tracking Events.