A shipment status should represent completed operational evidence—not simply a button someone clicked.
1. Commercial intake and service definition
Capture the customer, shipper, consignee, origin, destination, mode, movement type, cargo profile, expected dates and requested services. Keep assumptions visible; an incomplete scope creates unreliable quotations and later cost leakage.
- Customer and responsible branch
- Parties and contact roles
- Origin, destination and planned legs
- Cargo, packages, weight and special handling
- Requested services and commercial terms
2. Quotation, procurement and booking
Separate the price offered to the customer from the rates received from carriers and suppliers. Record validity, inclusions, exclusions, currency and the operational assumptions behind each amount.
When the customer accepts, convert the approved scope instead of rebuilding it. The booking should retain the awarded carrier offer and confirmation evidence.
3. Shipment readiness and compliance gates
Before execution, verify the mode-specific data and documents needed for the next hand-off. Required fields should depend on the service and stage—not make the entire form mandatory from day one.
- Booking or transport reference
- Container, package or equipment details
- Bill of lading or AWB data
- Commercial invoice and packing information
- Customs classification and declaration references
- Required permits, approvals or screening evidence
4. Execution through planned and actual events
Store planned, estimated and actual dates separately. A revised estimate should not overwrite the original plan, and an actual event should identify its source, time, location and evidence where relevant.
- Pickup and gate events
- Departure and arrival events
- Transshipment or intermediate legs
- Customs submission and release
- Yard or warehouse entry and exit
- Final delivery and proof of delivery
5. Financial closure and learning
Accrue expected supplier costs before every bill arrives, then match actual bills to the shipment service. Customer invoices should be derived from approved charges with traceability to the quotation or approved variation.
Close the job only when operational delivery, required documents, supplier exposure, customer billing and unresolved claims have been reviewed. Profitability is useful when the underlying operational scope and financial records refer to the same services.
Sources and further reading
This guide provides general operational information. Contracts, tariffs and regulatory requirements vary by carrier, route and jurisdiction.
Common questions
Should all shipment fields be mandatory at creation?
No. Require the minimum needed to create a controlled draft, then make additional fields mandatory at the stage where the information becomes operationally necessary.
What is the difference between planned, estimated and actual dates?
Planned dates represent the agreed baseline, estimates represent the latest expectation, and actual dates record what happened. Keeping all three preserves performance and exception analysis.
When should a shipment be closed?
After delivery evidence and required documents are complete, expected supplier costs are accounted for, customer billing is addressed and open exceptions or claims are reviewed.