Setting Up The Shipping
iQuote is ready to process any shipping information related to the products that you estimate, allowing you to keep track of everything related to the product in only one place. You can, for example, add freight costs and keep data about every item, where, and when it will be delivered to your clients.
The system is also capable of sending this information to other MIS programs so that the logistics of the delivery can be sorted out. However, for the integration to work, you must:
Already have an active integration between iQuote and the MIS that you want to integrate the shipping information with before starting.
Link three iQuote record types to the records from the MIS program: Sales Type, Carrier, and Type of Shipment. This link, or mapping, is what matches a record from iQuote with a record from the other program, so that the program can understand the shipping information that it receives from iQuote.
Note: From this point forward, consider that Monarch is the MIS program that we are integrating with.
Mapping Sales Type With Shipping Class
The Shipping Class classifies, on Monarch, the type of product (e.g., a final product, a sample, or a leftover) that you are selling, and it is mandatory data to send through the integration. As iQuote has a different way to do that classification, you must match the Sales Type record from iQuote with a Shipping Class from Monarch.
To do the mapping, follow the steps below.
From iQuote desktop, navigate to Administration > General Configuration > Sales Type. The Sales Type list opens.
Select a record and click the Edit button or create a new one. The record page opens.
On the record page, make sure that the Active check box is selected.
On the Shipping area table, select a Shipping Class option in the MIS Shipping Class column for each of the plants that you have in iQuote. You can leave the related field blank for the plants that you do not want to integrate.
Note: The available MIS Shipping Class options are from Monarch.
Click on Save.
Once you select an option, the system will use that Shipping Class for all the products from that Sales Type and that you estimate in the related plant. In the example from the image above, all the products with the Standard Sales Type from the CLT plant will have the Final product (no-bill freight) Shipping Class assigned to them.
Mapping Carrier With Ship Method
This is not a mandatory step, but most of the time you also need to define a carrier responsible for delivering the product to the customer. In iQuote, you define the carrier through the supplier record, while in Monarch, you define it through the shipping method; therefore, you need to link the two in order to specify which carrier is the equivalent shipping method on Monarch's side.
To define a carrier and do the mapping, follow the steps below.
From iQuote desktop, navigate to Sales > CRM > Supplier. The Supplier list opens.
Select a record and click the Edit button or create a new one. The record page opens.
On the Supplier record, select the Carrier check box. Once you do that, the Shipping tab appears.
On the Shipping tab, click the New button to create a new line.
Enter a description for the new shipping record. The system uses this description to identify the shipping in the Sales Order, so make it something that you can easily recognize.
On the table, select a Shipping Method option in the MIS Shipping Method column for each of the plants that you have in iQuote. You can leave the related field blank for the plants that you do not want to integrate.
Note: The available MIS Shipping Method options are from Monarch.
Click on Save.
Repeat steps 2 to 7 for every Supplier record that you want to make available for the same MIS Shipping Method and plant.
Once you select an option, the system will use that Shipping Method to all the products delivered by that Supplier and that you estimate in the related plant. In the example from the image above, every time that you select the Federal Express carrier for products that you estimate in the CLT plant, one of the MIS Shipping Methods available will be FedEx Ground.
Mapping Type Of Shipment With Ship Method
Finally, the last mapping is between iQuote's Type of Shipment and Monarch's Shipping Method. This is a specification that you use in Estimates, to define whether the shipment is performed through an internal process or by a hired external company that you use to transport the product.
This is also not a mandatory mapping, but you might need to use the Type of Shipment in scenarios where you don't know which Carrier to use, just the Shipping Method.
To do the mapping, follow the steps below.
From iQuote desktop, navigate to Administration > General Configuration > Type of Shipment. The Type of Shipment list opens.
Select a record and click the Edit button or create a new one. The record page opens.
Make sure that the Active check box is selected.
On the table, select a Shipping Method option in the MIS Shipping Method column for each of the plants that you have in iQuote. You can leave the related field blank for the plants that you do not want to integrate.
Note: The available MIS Shipping Method options are from Monarch.
Click on Save.
Repeat steps 2 to 5 for each Type of Shipment that you want to map in the same plant.
Once you select an option, the system will use that Shipping Method to all the products the use that Type of Shipment and that you estimate in the related plant. In the example from the image above, when you use the External Provider type of shipment in the CLT plant, you can use the FedEx Ground shipping method.