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Getting Started

Set up a new UTX Freight account by hand and take your first order from creation to invoice.

Overview

A new account needs a few things in place before the first order can be priced, dispatched and invoiced. This page walks through them in order:

  • Prices: zone prices, delivery cities assigned to zones, terminal default rates and, if you have the fuel surcharge add-on, this month's fuel surcharge. Without them an order prices at $0.00.
  • A customer: the company you haul for.
  • A contact at that customer. Every order is placed on behalf of a person, not just a company.
  • Your yard: at least one chassis and one driver, so the order can be dispatched.
  • Your tax numbers: GST, QST and NIR, printed on invoices and proofs of delivery.
  • The first order: create it, dispatch it, invoice it.

Use the in-app checklist

Admins and Managers see a setup checklist entry at the top of the left menu. On a new account it reads Getting started. Once the account has issued at least one invoice it reads Setup check, and when every required step is done it reads Setup complete with a green check. The checklist checks your data, shows which steps are still missing, and has a button for each step that opens the right screen. See Setup Checklist.

Quick Start

  1. Set your prices. Open your name at the top of the screen, then use Manage Zones, Manage Cities (assign a zone to each city you deliver to), Manage Terminals (default rate) and Charge Types (set one charge type's Use as default for to Terminal Fee). If the fuel surcharge add-on is on, set this month's rate in Fuel Schedule in the left menu.
  2. Go to Customers and click Add a new Customer. Enter the Name and click Save Changes.
  3. On the Customers list, find the company and click Add Person. Enter First Name, Last Name and Email, then click Add this person.
  4. Add one chassis in Equipments and one driver in Mobile Users > Drivers, Brokers & Yard.
  5. Admins only: open your name > Settings > Edit settings and fill in GST Number, QST Number and NIR Number.
  6. Go to Orders, click Create a new order, pick the contact in Place the order on behalf of, choose the Job type, fill in the order and click Create Job.
  7. Dispatch the order to your driver from Dispatch, then create the invoice from Invoices.

Access & Permissions

Step Who can do it
Set zone, city, terminal and charge type prices Admin, Manager
Create a customer and add people Admin, Manager. Dispatch only if your account has dispatcher customer management turned on (off by default; ask UTX support).
Set a person's role (staff logins) Admin only
Add equipment and drivers Admin, Manager, Dispatch
Enter GST, QST and NIR numbers (Settings) Admin only
Create an order Admin, Manager, Dispatch. Accountant if your account allows accountants to manage orders (on by default). Customer only if your account has customer order entry turned on (off by default; ask UTX support).
Choose who the order is for (Place the order on behalf of) Admin, Manager and Dispatch. Anyone else creates the order for themselves.
See the setup checklist Admin and Manager

The Customer Service role has the same access as Dispatch everywhere in this table. Options such as dispatcher customer management and customer order entry are turned on for your account by UTX support. See Add-ons and Options and User Roles.

Step 1: Set Your Prices

UTX Freight prices an order by looking up the delivery city, reading which zone it is in, and taking that zone's price. Do this before the first order: an order whose delivery city has no zone price is priced at $0.00.

The screens below are in the menu under your name at the top of the screen (Manage Zones, Manage Cities, Manage Terminals, Charge Types).

  1. Zone prices: open Manage Zones and enter the price you charge for a delivery into each zone you use. Zones start at $0.00. Disable the zones you do not use.
  2. Cities in zones: open Manage Cities, click the Shipping filter (cities where at least one order has been delivered), and set the zone on each city you deliver to. A city with no zone prices at $0.00.
  3. Terminal fees: open Charge Types, edit the charge you bill for terminals and set Use as default for to Terminal Fee. Then open Manage Terminals and enter a Default Rate on the terminals you pull from. That rate is added as a charge to every order using the terminal. Without both, terminal fees never appear on an invoice.
  4. Fuel surcharge (only if the fuel surcharge add-on is on): open Fuel Schedule in the left menu and enter the percentage for the current month. With no rate for the month, orders are built without a fuel charge. The rate does not carry forward, so set it again each month.

Details: Zones and Cities, Managing Terminals, Charge Types and Taxes, Fuel Surcharge.

Negotiated prices

A price agreed with one customer is set later on that customer's record and overrides the zone price for that customer only. It shows in blue so nobody mistakes it for the standard rate. See Managing Customers.

Step 2: Create Your First Customer

All orders in UTX Freight are placed on behalf of a contact Person from a Customers company, so the first step is to create the customer company.

  1. From the left menu, select Customers.
  2. Click Add a new Customer at the top right.
  3. Enter the Name. It is the only required field.
  4. If your account has the garage add-on, the Service field offers more than one choice. Keep Intermodal for a company you haul for. Only people at companies with the Intermodal service can be picked on a new order.
  5. Click Save Changes.

Finding a customer on the list

The Customers page opens on your own company. Use the search box labelled Filter companies and users: type at least two characters of a company name, or of a person's first name, last name or email, to narrow the list. The filter tabs on the left change which companies are listed:

Tab Shows
Your company name Your own company (where your office staff logins live)
All Active Active customer companies
Disabled Disabled customer companies
Brokers Companies marked as brokers

Step 3: Add a Contact Person

Once the customer exists, add a contact Person for it. Orders are attached to people, and a customer with no contact cannot be ordered for.

  1. From the left menu, select Customers.
  2. In Filter companies and users, type the company name.
  3. On the company row, click Add Person.

  1. Fill in First Name, Last Name and Email. Title, Office #, Office Ext. #, Mobile # and Fax # are optional.
  2. Click Add this person.

An invitation email is sent immediately

Clicking Add this person emails an Invitation instructions message to the address you entered. To set someone up quietly, use a placeholder address such as customername+1@yourdomain.com and change it later.

What the invited person sees

  1. They receive the Invitation instructions email with an Accept invitation link.
  2. The link opens a page where they confirm their first and last name, choose a password, confirm it, and click Create your account.
  3. They are signed in. You can attach orders to them before they accept.

Roles: everyone starts as a Customer

Every person added with Add Person is created with the Customer role, including people you add to your own company. To give office staff a staff role (Dispatch, Accountant, Manager, and so on):

  1. Add them with Add Person under your own company on the Customers list.
  2. An Admin opens their Edit Person page, picks the Role, and clicks Save Changes.

The Role field is only shown to Admins, and only for people in your own company. See People and Invitations and User Roles.

Customer logins and orders

A Customer-role person can log in and see their company's orders. They can only create orders themselves if your account has customer order entry turned on (ask UTX support). See Customer Portal.

Notification emails

When an order is dispatched or completed, the person it was placed for gets an email, but only while Email Notifications is ticked on their Edit Person page. The box is ticked by default for new people. Untick it for anyone who should not receive these emails. See Notifications and Emails.

Step 4: Set Up Your Yard

An order is dispatched onto a piece of equipment and to a driver. Before you dispatch, add at least:

  • One chassis: open Equipments and add one unit with its Name/Number, Type and plate number. See Equipment.
  • One driver: open Mobile Users > Drivers, Brokers & Yard, click Add a new mobile user, set the Role to Driver and click Save. Note the Access Code: that is what the driver enters in the phone app, and only active drivers can use it. See Mobile Users.

Step 5: Add Your Tax Numbers

Your registration numbers are printed on every invoice and proof of delivery, and they start blank. Only an Admin can change them.

  1. Open your name at the top of the screen, then Settings.
  2. Click Edit settings.
  3. Under Invoice Settings, enter your GST Number and QST Number.
  4. Under POD Settings, enter your NIR Number.
  5. Click Save Changes.

These are your own registration numbers, not tax rates. See Application Settings.

Step 6: Create Your First Order

  1. From the left menu, select Orders.
  2. Click Create a new order.

  1. Under Change Customer, pick the contact in Place the order on behalf of. The list shows people, written as PERSON NAME [ Company ], not companies. Only active people at active Intermodal companies are listed. The order is created for whoever is selected here, so check it before you submit. This field is shown to Admin, Manager and Dispatch only; other users create the order for themselves.
  2. Under Order Information, choose the order type in Job type. Start with Container Import. The rest of the form appears only after you choose a type.
  3. For an Import or Export, choose the Terminal Name in the pick-up terminal section. For an Import it is titled Full container pick up terminal; for an Export, Empty container pick up terminal.
  4. Fill in the delivery address (titled Container delivery address for an Import). Choosing the delivery City is what looks up the zone and the price.
  5. Enter the Container number under Information.
  6. Click Create Job at the bottom of the form.

Required fields

Field Required when
Container number (shown as Trailer number for a Dry Van Move) Always
Job type Always
Terminal Name (pick-up terminal) Import and Export orders

Everything else is optional for saving the order, but the delivery city is what prices it. If the price shows $0.00, go back to Step 1 above. Full field reference: Order Form.

Order types

The types offered in Job type depend on your account. By default only Container Import and Container Export are enabled. Other accounts may also have Container Transfer or Dry Van Move. Ask UTX to enable a type you need.

Step 7: Dispatch and Invoice

  1. Dispatch: open Dispatch and assign the order to your driver and the chassis you added. Have the driver open the phone app and confirm they see the load. When the order is dispatched, the contact gets an Order #... is now dispatched email if Email Notifications is ticked. See Dispatch and Driver Workflow.
  2. Invoice: open Invoices and create an invoice for the order. Check the amount against what you expected, and email it to yourself first to see what your customer will receive. See Creating Invoices.

Next Steps

FAQ / Troubleshooting

My new order shows $0.00

Solution

The delivery city has no zone, or the zone has no price. Open Manage Cities (Shipping filter) and set the zone, then open Manage Zones and set its price. If a shipper / receiver was used, make sure it has a city set. See Zones and Cities.

The customer is not in "Place the order on behalf of"

Solution

The list shows people, not companies. Add a contact to the company with Add Person. If the person exists, check that they are active (Active for orders on Edit Person), that the company is active, and that the company's Service includes Intermodal.

No terminal fee on the invoice

Solution

One charge type must have Use as default for set to Terminal Fee in Charge Types, and the terminal needs a Default Rate in Manage Terminals. See Managing Terminals.

My contact gets no emails

Solution

Make sure Email Notifications is ticked on the person's Edit Person page, and that the order was placed on behalf of that person. Dispatched and completed emails go only to the person the order is for.

I added a dispatcher but they log in as a customer

Solution

Everyone added with Add Person starts as a Customer. Make sure they were added under your own company, then have an Admin set their Role on Edit Person.

I cannot open Settings to add my tax numbers

Solution

Only an Admin can change Settings. Ask an Admin to enter the GST Number, QST Number and NIR Number.

Best Practices

  • Work through the in-app setup checklist; it checks your data and tells you exactly what is missing.
  • Use a placeholder email for test contacts so no one receives an invitation by accident.
  • Send your first invoice to yourself before sending one to a customer.