Scenario: Shipping notification time for e-Commerce delivery via carrier service

Sterling Intelligent Promising includes the shipping notification time in the delivery date when configured.

Following are two typical examples in how inventory availability continuity affects delivery date.

Inventory availability continuity defines if a particular items has an availability window for the scope of delivery. In the case when the availability window is fragmented, the shipping solution results in multiple delivery that also impacts the delivery date estimates.
Example 1: Shipping notification calculation for continuous inventory availability
Note: This example assumes the inventory availability window is continuous throughout the fulfillment cycle of the customer order.
The diagram displays continuous inventory availabilty throughout 2 days.
Assume the following setup:
  • Inventory availability window from January 1 to January 31 with 100 qty
  • Capacity shifts are from:
    • 9am to 12pm
    • 1pm to 5pm
    Each capacity shift can fulfill 4 qty
  • Lead time: 1 hour
  • Shipping notification time: 2 hour (Item or Node-Shipping group)
  • Pickup Schedule: 10am/12pm/2pm/4pm
  • Transit time: 24 hours
  • Ordered quantity: 8 qty
  • Current time: January 15 - 8am
When the eCommerce receives a EDD or checkoutAssignment API request, the system automatically accounts for the lead time. Since its 8am, the earliest capacity slot that can be considered is 9am. The system will consider capacity for the 9am to 12pm slot that is for 4 qty and also 1pm to 5pm slot that is for 4qty for the full ordered quantity of 8.

Since the inventory availability is continuous, the system optimizes into a single shipment. The shipping notification time is applied at the beginning of the last capacity slot which starts at 1pm and soonest the carrier service can acknowledge the shipment is at 3pm. The system then locates the earliest pickup schedule at 4pm on January 15 making this time the shipment pickup time.

Adding the final transit time, the item will be at customer door at 4pm next day that is on January 16.

Since the shipments are optimized, this yields one shipment. Therefore, one shipment is created at 4pm that gets delivered the next day at 4pm.

Example 2: Shipping notification calculation for non-continuous inventory availability
The diagram displays non-continuous inventory availabilty throughout 2 days.
Using the same setup as example 1 except the following new inventory availability windows:
  • January 15 - 4qty with ShipByDate 1700
  • January 16 - 4qty with ShipByDate 1700
This means there is insufficient quantity to fulfill the order on the same day which results in a split shipment.

The eCommerce application request a EDD/ShipmentAssignment, the system automatically accounts for lead time 1 hr which then locate the earliest capacity slot at 9am.

The system has detected the inventory is non-continuous which results a shipment to be made on January 15. The shipping notification time is 2 hours with a capacity slot that can process 4 qty in the first slot. The earliest shipment can be made at 9am + 2 hour = 11am. Using the next available pickup time, the package is ready for carrier service pickup at 12pm.

There are 4 remaining quantity unfulfilled which will span into next day January 16. On January 16, the first 9am capacity slot is considered, with shipping notification of 2 hours, the earliest time for carrier pickup is 11am. Again searching for the closest carrier pickup schedule, which is pickup at 12pm.

The shopper will receive the following two shipments:
  • January 16 - 12pm (From January 15 - 12pm + 24 hours)
  • January 17 - 12pm (From January 16 - 12pm + 24 hours)