Dock door appointments for inbound carriers
Carriers stop calling a warehouse line that nobody on the floor can answer. They book a door by phone, drivers in the yard get checked in, and the receiving lead finds out without leaving the dock.
A carrier calls to book a door, or a driver calls from the yard or the gate.
Books the door against the dock schedule, checks drivers in, texts receiving.
A full dock schedule and a text to the floor for every driver waiting.
How it works
- Takes the booking
Carrier, PO or ASN number, trailer type, floor-loaded or palletized, and how many skids. Floor-loaded containers get the longer slot your receiving lead set.
- Finds a door
It sees which doors are open on the dock schedule and offers times that keep the floor's day balanced.
- Matches it to the order
It checks the PO is expected in the warehouse system before it books, so a trailer doesn't arrive for an order nobody's waiting on.
- Checks in the driver
A driver calling from the yard gives the carrier, trailer and appointment number. The agent marks them arrived and tells them which door or to wait in the lot.
- Texts the floor
The receiving lead gets a text: carrier, trailer, PO and door. If the driver's late or early, that's in the text too.
- Handles the misses
A carrier that missed its slot gets the next open door, and the warehouse sees the change on the schedule.
Example call
- CustomerYeah, I'm in your yard with a container for Brightwell Home. Nobody at receiving is picking up.
- AI agentThanks for calling. What's the container number and your appointment or PO number?
- CustomerContainer MSKU 4410278, PO BH-30981. My appointment was 11.
- AI agentI have you, and you're right on time. It's floor-loaded, so you're on door 14. Back in whenever it's clear.
- CustomerDoor 14. How long's the unload?
- AI agentFloor-loaded containers are booked for about two and a half hours. I've texted the receiving lead that you're at door 14 now.
After the call: The appointment shows arrived at 10:58 on door 14, the receiving lead has a text with the container and PO, and the unload clock starts on the dock schedule.
What your team gets
- Dock appointments on the schedule with PO, trailer and load type
- Drivers checked in by phone, with arrival times recorded
- A text to receiving for every truck in the yard
- Missed slots rebooked onto the next open door
- Early and late arrivals by carrier, week over week
Questions
Can it handle walk-up trucks with no appointment?
It checks for an open door. If one is free it books the driver in; if not, it gives the next open time and tells receiving.
Does it track detention?
It records the time each driver checked in and the door time, so your team has the timestamps when a carrier bills detention.
Can carriers book by phone at night?
Yes. Overnight calls book doors for the next shift, and the morning schedule is full before the floor opens.
Hear it on your phone
Request a demo call and the agent phones you, set up for logistics like yours.