TMS 7.12 Document Options Settings

Overview

Document Options

Document Options represent a group of logos, email templates, instructional text, terms and conditions, and footer text specific to a division, mode, or user. The following major process documents are tailored based on the selected Document Options record:

1. “Email Loop” Process with Customers and Carriers

2. Online Carrier Application

3. Customer Quote Confirmation Email and .PDF Document

4. Carrier RFQ Email and .PDF Document

5. Carrier Rate and Load Confirmation Email and .PDF Document

6. Bill of Lading Email and .PDF Document

7. Driver Load Confirmation Email and PDF Document

8. Customer Invoice Email and .PDF Document

9. Customer Invoice Batch Email and .PDF Document

10. Shipping Label format

Document Options Selection Criteria records designate when to use which Document Options record. These criteria are based on:

• Mode

• (Any) User Field

Common TMS customer scenarios include:

• One global Document Options record that serves for the entire company.

• Division/Office-specific logos and legal text requiring distinct Document Options records.

• Mode-specific logos and legal text for different groups (LTL versus Truckload) within a brokerage.

Creating Document Options Records

Access Document Options from the TMS Admin → Document Options link.

The list of Document Options and Document Options Selection Criterion records are presented:

In this screenshot there are two Document Options records and one criterion for selecting the non-global default record. 

This criterion indicates that the “Truckload Options” record should be used IF:

The Mode is “Truckload” AND the User Division is “Tractor.”

If this criterion evaluates to “false,” the global Document Options record is used to tailor documents and emails.

Warning:

Have exactly one Document Options record with Global Defaults set to "true" (checked).

Enter relevant values for all the fields on (at least) the global Document Options record.

Selecting a Document Options record from the list allows the user to edit the record details.

Document Options “Cascade”

Document Options work in a “cascade” fashion. If a field for a particular Document Option is missing, the global record’s value is used. This allows the creation of “sparse” document options records without having to re-key all the global default values that are still relevant.

For example, if the only difference between the global record and a mode-specific record is the BOL Legal Text, the only requirement is to enter that one different field on the mode-specific record.  

Email Templates

1. Name: Uniquely identifies the record.

2. Global Defaults: Make sure exactly one record has this checked.

3. Mask Shipper/Consignee on Carrier RFQ: Check if you want to hide shipper/consignee identity from Carriers on the Quotation Request and quote entry form.

4. Mask Shipper/Consignee on Carrier Tender: Check if you want to hide shipper/consignee identity from Carriers on the Carrier Rate and Load Confirmation document until after a load tender Is accepted.

   The Bill of Lading is not sent until a tender is accepted if this field is checked.

5. No Documents Until Tender Accepted: Check if you do not want the Carrier to receive RFQ or tender documents via email until the tender is accepted.

6. Enabled Assign Carrier On Tender Option: Check if you want to be able to assign a Carrier on (email) tender and not require an Accept link to be clicked by the Carrier.

7. Request Tender Decline Reason: Check if you want to require the Carrier to specify a reason for declining a tender.

8. Itemize Carrier Quote Accessorials: Check if you want Carriers to enter itemized accessorial charges on email RFQ links.

9. Document Account: Populates certain documents with name and address when TMS user company referenced.

10. Default Carrier Bill To: Populates the Load’s Carrier Bill To field automatically upon tendering.

11. Suppress HazMat Column: Suppress HazMat column on all documents if not a HazMat load.

12. Suppress NMFC Columns: Suppress NMFC columns on all documents is not populated.

13. Quote Reply To Email: The reply to email for quote emails to customers/Carriers based on the Quote Reply To Email Option. Only one email address is supported.

14. Quote Reply To Email Option: Determines the reply to email for system quote emails to customers/Carriers (Quote Reply To Email or user’s email)

15. Tender Reply To Email: The reply to email for tender emails to Carriers based on the Tender Reply To Email Option. Only one email address is supported.

16. Tender Reply To Email Option: Determines the reply to email for system tender emails to Carriers (Tender Reply To Email or user’s email).

17. Document Logo: Select a logo that appears on all documents.

18. Email templates: Select 11 email templates for all email communications with customers and Carriers. The simplest approach is to use the default settings and modify the templates to taste.

Document Settings

Partially or completely override the appearance of documents produced by the TMS. The documents that are customizable are:

1. Bill of Lading

2. Carrier Application

3. Carrier Quotation Request

4. Carrier Rate and Load Confirmation

5. Customer Invoice

6. Customer Invoice Batch

7. Customer Rate and Load Confirmation

8. Driver Load Confirmation

9. Ocean Bill of Lading (Ocean FCL mode loads)

10. Shipping Label

11. Vendor Rate Confirmation

12. Warehouse Loading Form

Select the document to configure:

The following documents display a note in the Stop header when a location is both a Pickup and Delivery. “Note: this is a Round Trip Load.”

• Carrier Rate and Load Confirmation

• Carrier Quotation Request

• Customer Rate and Load Confirmation

• Driver Load Confirmation

Click the Show Preview button to obtain immediate visual feedback on the changes that are made. Click on the text to enter edit mode.

Click the Add Field button to add Customer Quote, Carrier Quote, Load, Stop, and Line Item fields to the documents that support field additions.

Choose a Document Logo Override for a document-specific logo image different from the default logo. Click the Suppress Logo checkbox to suppress the logo image on a given document. Click Suppress Expected Delivery Date to suppress this field on the BOL document for LTL loads only.

Warning:

Make sure to click the Save button after making changes to any document before continuing to the next document.

The language a .PDF document is rendered in is based on the Language field setting on the customer/Carrier Transportation Profile record. Translate all labels found in the documents using the Translation Workbench to generate non-English versions of the documents.

Overrides/Additions

Add any Load, Stop, and Line Item fields to many of the documents. Add any Customer Quote fields to the Customer Quote document only, and Carrier Quote fields to the BOL document only.

The HazMat and NMFC sections of documents may be suppressed (if these fields are not relevant to your loads).  

The logo image may be changed or suppressed on a per-document basis.

Adding “flex fields” to documents that appear on the Customer Portal or Email Loop site (such as Customer Invoice and BOL) requires making those fields accessible to the related external security profile.

Document Options Load Field

The Document Options Load field is auto-populated during the email or fax tender process. This can be manually overridden later to, for example, send out a customer invoice with a different logo. 

Before tendering, the Document Options record is dynamically selected based on the Document Options Selection Criteria, if any.

Load-Specific Bill of Lading .PDF Filename and Field Overrides

On a load-by-load basis, it is possible to override values for the Filename and certain fields on the Bill of Lading .PDF. These overrides produce Blind or Double-Blind BoL documents from the TMS. It is also possible to hide extra accessorial information from uninterested parties on the BoL for the Load. Lastly, the ‘Third Party Freight Charges Bill To’ section of the BoL can ­be overridden to make it appear to the Carrier as if they are working exclusively with the customer for which they have specific pricing. The fields that can be overridden are:

• Ship From Name

• Ship From Address

• Ship From City/State/Zip

• Ship To Name

• Ship To Address

• Ship To City/State/Zip

• Third Party Bill To Name

• Third Party Bill To Address

• Third Party Bill To City/State/Zip

• Special Instructions

• Carrier Name

Generate Load documents and add field overrides from the Document Generation LWC.

The SID#, CID#, and FOB fields on the Bill of Lading document are static fields and not derived from the TMS.

Custom Document Formats

Replace the (already highly-configurable) TMS document formats with custom Visualforce pages as desired at the Document Options/Document Type level: 

The extension controller must be present and different than the extension controller used by the out-of-the-box Visualforce page.

Troubleshooting Document Options Errors

Generating a Bill of Lading (BOL) document does not populate the fields correctly. Bill of Lading documents are cut off and Carrier names aren’t included.

When using a string of numbers in any field used on the Bill of Lading (BOL) document, a space must be added between the comma and the following number for the document to be generated with proper formatting.

Issue

Generating a Bill of Lading (BOL) document does not populate the fields correctly. Bill of Lading documents are cut off and Carrier names aren’t included.

Resolution

When using a string of numbers in any field used on the Bill of Lading (BOL) document, a space must be added between the comma and the following number. 

Incorrect formatting of Bill of Lading document:

Document generated properly (added spaces between comma and following number)

When generating a Customer Rate Quote document the Account field is not populated and instead users see Please Configure Document Account.

This information comes from the Account in the Document Account lookup field in the Document Options. There is no value in this field, which displays the Please Configure Document Account verbiage.

Issue

Generating a Customer Rate Quote document displays the phrase Please Configure Document Account in the Account field.

Resolution

This information comes from the Account in the Document Account lookup field in the Document Options. There is no value in this field, which displays the Please Configure Document Account verbiage. Add a value to the Document Account field.

Previewing a Customer Quote Rate Confirmation and a user encounters the “Count not resolve field “ from <apex:outputField> value binding” error.

Error: Carrier Quote

Could not resolve field “from <apex:outputField> value binding in page rtms:carrierandloadconfirmation.

• This error occurs when a user profile does not have access to TMS Document Fields.

  • Navigate to Setup, Profiles. Select the appropriate profile.

  • Find TMS Document Fields. Grant Create, Read, and Edit access for the profile.

• A permission set may be created and assigned to the User to grant TMS Document Fields access, as well.

Error when attempting to preview the Bill of Lading document: ‘This content is blocked. Contact the site owner to fix the issue.’

The following changes must be made to the web browser:

Google Chrome:

Access the browser settings.

Settings → Privacy and Security → Site Settings → Additional Settings → PDF Documents

Change the settings to open .PDFs in Chrome, not to download .PDFs.

Microsoft Edge:

Access the browser settings.

Settings → Cookies and Site Permissions → .PDF Documents

Change the settings to turn off Always download .PDF files. Turn on .PDF view settings.