Using ferries in dispatch

A ferry in Opter is not a resource. You choose whether a ferry consists of two terminals and the route between them, where the terminals are the ports the ferry goes between, or whether a ferry consists only of the orders placed on the route the ferry goes. A ferry in Opter only has one direction. More information about ferries is available in Ferry lines.

Conditions

In order to be able to use ferries in dispatch, you first need to create the ferries and enter the departure time, arrival time and timetable. For instructions, see Ferry lines.

Using ferries in dispatch

All parts of the Ferries window in dispatch are described in Ferries, the panel in dispatch. To use ferries in dispatch, proceed as follows:

Assign the shipment to a resource, i.e. a driver, a vehicle, or a trailer. For instructions, see Assigning shipments to resources in dispatch.
If you cannot see the Ferries window in dispatch yet, click on View at the top of dispatch, and then click on Ferries.
Add the shipment to the ferry booking (ferry box) by selecting the shipment in dispatch and dragging and dropping it onto the ferry box in the Ferries window.
The image shows five ferry bookings (ferry boxes).
(If you want, you can add the resource to the ferry booking (ferry box) instead by selecting the resource box and dragging and dropping it onto the ferry box in the Ferries window.)
A window then appears in which you can see which shipments match the ferry times. The shipments (rows) in which the checkbox is selected match the ferry times. The resources to which these shipments are assigned are also included in the ferry booking, which is shown in the lower list by the resource checkboxes being selected.
If Opter has not selected the checkbox for a shipment, this means that the shipment does not match the ferry times, but the checkbox for a shipment can be selected manually if desired. In this case, the resources assigned to the shipment will also be linked to the ferry booking.
Click on Ok when finished.
If this was the first shipment added to the ferry booking, the ferry box changed colour from grey to green, and the status became Planned. For more information about the status and colours of ferry bookings, see Ferries, the panel in dispatch.
The arrow in the image points to the numbers showing how many resources and shipments are booked on the ferry, in this case there are three shipments and one resource booked on the ferry.
To see which shipments are on the ferry booking, select the ferry and click on Show shipments at the bottom of the Ferries window in dispatch.
Clicking on Show shipments displays the list of shipments included in the ferry booking.
The red box in the image shows the list of shipments included in the ferry booking.
Note:
The resources (i.e. Vehicle, Employee and Trailer) shown in the list in the Shipments box are the resources to which the shipments are assigned, but this does not automatically mean that those resources are included in the ferry booking.
The resources shown as resource boxes in the Resources box are included in the ferry booking, but this does not automatically mean that they have been jointly assigned all the shipments booked on the ferry.
The red box in the image shows the list of shipments included in the ferry booking. The arrow in the image points to the resources included in the ferry booking.
For more information, see Ferries, the panel in dispatch.

Shipment without resource

If a shipment is added to a ferry without a resource, an error message appears.

Consignments on ferries

You can book carpooling on ferries.

Conditions

If you cannot see the Ferries window in dispatch yet, click on View at the top of dispatch, and then click on Ferries. (All elements of the Ferries window in the traffic management are described in Ferries, the panel in dispatch.)
It is easier to work with co-loads on ferries in the traffic management if you see all the co-loading orders. We therefore recommend that you check the following traffic management settings (on the Tabs tab > Lists tab):
- The Expand to show shipments in the consignment checkbox.
- The Show consignment shipments (cannot be grouped) checkbox.
- The Show shipments that are only on consignment orders (cannot be grouped) checkbox.
- The Also show extra shipments for consignments checkbox.
More information on the tick boxes can be found at Dispatch settings (window). For more information on co-loading, see Consignment.

Booking consignments on a ferry

There are different ways to book a co-load on a ferry, depending on whether the co-load order has one or more co-load assignments. You can see how many consolidation orders a consolidation order has at Shipments in the order reception. You can also see which missions are ferry missions. They are marked with a lifebuoy icon .

Proceed as follows:

View which co-loads are booked on a ferry

To see which co-loads are booked on a ferry, do the following:

Select the ferry (1) in the Ferries window of the traffic centre.
In the Resources box, the order numbers (2) of the co-loads booked on the ferry are displayed.
To view the missions, click on Show shipments (3).
The table shows the missions, one mission per row. The column ID (4) shows the order numbers (for regular orders and for groupage orders).
If the order is consolidated, the consolidation order number is displayed in the column Consignment (5).
(If a zero ("0") is displayed in the column Consignment, it means that the assignment is a co-loading assignment or an assignment not linked to any co-loading).

Removing shipments from a ferry booking

To delete a shipment from a ferry, proceed as follows:

In the traffic management window Ferries, tick the ferry booking (ferry box).
Click on Show shipments.
Select the shipment to delete from the list, and press the Delete key.

Removing a resource from a ferry booking

To delete a resource from a ferry booking, proceed as follows:

In the traffic management window Ferries, tick the ferry booking (ferry box).
In the Resources box, tick the resource box and click on on the far right of the window.
If the resource you want to delete has shipments on the ferry booking, you will receive a message indicating that if you delete the resource you will leave one or more shipments without a resource on the ferry. You will be asked whether you want to delete these shipments from the ferry. Answer Yes or No.
If you answered Yes, the shipments are now under Created in dispatch.
If you answered No, the shipments are now on the ferry without a resource.

Ferry routes on the map in traffic management

Ferry lines are indicated on the map by a dashed line and a lifebuoy symbol . For more information, see Setting up the map in the traffic management and Explanation of symbols – map.