Loading Requests

This guide walks you through loading a delivery vehicle for a Trip using a Loading Request — from creating it out of an approved Trip, to dispatching stock, to marking the vehicle ready to go.

What is a Loading Request?

A Loading Request is the step where stock is physically moved out of a warehouse and onto the vehicle assigned to a delivery Trip. It's what turns "these shipments are planned" into "the truck actually has the goods on board."

Important

You cannot create a Loading Request from scratch. It always belongs to, and is created from, a specific Trip — there is no "New" form like there is for Transfer Requests or Issue Requests.

Under the hood, a Loading Request is the same kind of document as a Transfer Request (its own guide) — it uses the exact same product-line editor, the same fulfillment buttons, and the same progress badges. What's different is how it gets created and a few extra buttons tied to the vehicle and the Trip, which this guide focuses on.

note

A Loading Request has no "returnable item" concept (like collecting empty bottles on an Issue Request) — it only ever moves forward stock from a warehouse onto a vehicle.

Starting a request (from a Trip)

1. The Trip must already be APPROVED.
2. Open the Trip's detail page and go to the Loading Request tab.
3. Click Create Loading Request.

Trip detail page, "Loading Request" tab, before a loading request exists — "No Loading Request For Trip" with the Create Loading Request button (only available while the trip is Approved).

This automatically creates a DRAFT Loading Request with one line per product already on the trip's shipments — quantities are pre-filled for you. There is nothing to type in to create it.

note

You can also find any Loading Request afterwards from the ordinary Inventory → Loading Requests or Logistics → Loading Requests list — both show the same requests, grouped by Trip, with filters for Vehicle, Route, and departure date.

The Loading Requests list, grouped by Trip, with Vehicle/Route/Departure filters.

Filling in the loading sheet

The Loading Sheet is an editable table — you work directly in the rows, no side panel needed.

1. For each row, set the Warehouse it should come from, and adjust Requested Qty if needed.
2. To set the same warehouse across several lines at once, tick their checkboxes and click Apply to Selected Rows.
3. Each row saves as you go. A row needs both a warehouse and a quantity greater than zero before it can be submitted.

The draft loading sheet table — Requested Qty and Warehouse columns, with the "Apply to Selected Rows" toolbar.

Submitting

1. Click Submit Request.
2. If any row is missing a warehouse or a valid quantity, you'll be told which ones before you can continue.
3. Confirm on the dialog: "Submit loading request? Once submitted, this request will be approved and visible to dispatch staff." — click Yes, submit.

The "Submit loading request?" confirmation dialog.

tip

This one click both saves every row and approves the request in one go — unlike a Transfer Request or Issue Request, there's no separate Submit-then-Approve handoff between two different people here. The button only appears if you have approval permission in the first place.

The Loading Request detail page once Approved — Vehicle info block, and the Start Loading / Change Vehicle / Cancel buttons.

Start Loading

Once APPROVED, click Start Loading to unlock dispatching stock onto the vehicle.

Before letting loading begin, the system checks that the vehicle isn't already busy elsewhere — for example, already loading or departed for a different trip, or blocked by an open stock count. If one of these applies, you'll see a banner explaining what's blocking it and what to do (usually: wait, or speak to whoever is handling the conflicting trip).

1. Click Start Loading.
2. On the confirmation screen, review the Vehicle panel (confirms the vehicle assigned to this trip) and optionally use the Assign crew panel — crew changes save immediately and don't depend on you clicking Start Loading.
3. Click Start Loading to confirm.

The "Start Loading" screen, with the Vehicle panel and optional Assign crew panel.

If loading is blocked

Common banners you might see: the destination (vehicle) warehouse is locked for a stock count, the vehicle has already departed on another trip, or the vehicle is currently being loaded for a different trip. In every case, loading cannot begin until that situation clears.

Example of a blocking-condition banner shown on the detail page.

Dispatching stock (fulfilling lines)

Once IN_PROGRESS, dispatch works exactly like a Transfer Request — one line at a time.

note

Before you click Start Loading, this same area shows: "Fulfillment is locked. Use the Start Loading button to begin dispatching stock." — this is expected, not a fault.

The Items tab while still Approved — fulfillment is locked until Start Loading is clicked.

Click a product line on the left, and up to two buttons appear for it on the right:

The fulfillment action buttons and quantity summary shown for a selected line, once loading has started.

Important

Only one of these actions can be in progress per line at a time — if one is already running, the other greys out until it finishes.

Fulfil via Transfer

The everyday way to dispatch stock that's already available.

1. Click Fulfill via Transfer.
2. Fill in:
   • Source Warehouse unit — where the stock is being taken from.
   • Quantity — how much to load now.
3. Click Submit.

The "Fulfill request line" panel set up for a direct stock transfer onto the vehicle.

Fulfil via Manufacturing Order

Use this on the rare occasion the product still needs to be produced before it can be loaded. See the Manufacturing guides for how Bills of Material and Manufacturing Orders work.

1. Click Fulfill via MO.
2. Fill in Bill of Materials (BOM), Manufacturing Warehouse Unit, Quantity, and Finished Goods Warehouse Unit.
3. Click Submit to raise the order.

As stock is dispatched, each line's badge moves from NOT STARTED to IN PROGRESS to DONE, and the Fulfillment Chain timeline below it records every transfer or manufacturing step taken.

The Fulfillment Chain timeline for a line being dispatched.

Finishing loading vs. loading the Trip

This is the part most worth learning carefully — two buttons appear side by side while IN_PROGRESS, and they do genuinely different things.

Detail page, IN_PROGRESS status, showing both the Complete and Load Trip buttons.

Complete ("Finish Loading") Finishes this Loading Request document once dispatch is done. If nothing was actually loaded yet, you'll be asked to add a note explaining why before you can proceed.

Load Trip A separate action that advances the Trip itself to LOADED, confirming the vehicle is ready to depart. Only shown while the Trip is still Approved.

In everyday use you often won't need to click Load Trip at all — the Trip advances to LOADED automatically the moment its loading request(s) reach COMPLETE. The button exists for cases where ops wants to mark the vehicle as loaded and move the trip along before every last line has been fully dispatched (for example, a long-running trip being topped up mid-route).

1. Click Complete to confirm: "Confirm all stock has been dispatched to the vehicle."

The "Finish Loading" confirmation screen — includes a warning and required note if nothing was actually dispatched.

Or, if used, click Load Trip to see the loading summary and confirm the Trip is ready to move forward.

The Trip's "Load Trip" confirmation screen, showing a loading summary.

Change Vehicle

Available from APPROVED onward (as long as the trip isn't finished), Change Vehicle opens a short wizard for swapping the vehicle assigned to this trip without starting the loading request over: pick the new vehicle, arrange any stock transfer and crew changes needed, then review and finish.

Step 1 of the "Change Vehicle" wizard — picking the replacement vehicle.

Cancelling

Unlike a Transfer Request or Issue Request, a Loading Request does have a visible Cancel button (available at Draft and Approved). You'll need to add a note, and you'll see a warning: "Cancelling this loading request assumes the vehicle or warehouse already holds enough stock to satisfy the delivery requests on this trip. Add a note confirming this before proceeding." — read it carefully before cancelling, since it's telling you the system trusts you've checked stock is still available another way.

Quick reference

Status meanings

Status	What it means
DRAFT	Auto-created from the Trip; adjust quantities/warehouses before submitting.
READY	Momentary — Submit Request moves straight through to Approved.
APPROVED	Signed off. Fulfillment is locked until Start Loading.
IN_PROGRESS	Loading is underway — lines can be fulfilled.
COMPLETE	Loading request finished. The Trip usually advances to LOADED automatically.

Glossary

Loading Sheet

The editable table on a Trip's detail page used to build and submit its Loading Request.

Start Loading

The action that unlocks dispatching stock onto the vehicle, after checking the vehicle is free to load.

Load Trip

A Trip-level action confirming the vehicle is loaded and ready to depart — separate from completing the loading request document.

Vehicle warehouse

Every vehicle has its own mobile warehouse; a Loading Request's destination is always the assigned vehicle's warehouse.

Change Vehicle

A wizard for swapping the vehicle assigned to a trip's loading request without starting over.

Frequently asked questions

What's the actual difference between Complete and Load Trip?

Complete finishes the loading request document itself. Load Trip is a separate action that advances the Trip to LOADED. They're two different records — most of the time completing the loading request automatically moves the trip to LOADED for you, so you'll rarely click Load Trip by hand.

Why are my fulfillment buttons greyed out?

Either the request hasn't had Start Loading clicked yet (fulfillment stays locked until then), or another fulfillment is already in progress on that specific line.

Why can't I create a Loading Request without a Trip?

A Loading Request only exists to load a specific vehicle for a specific delivery — it needs a Trip's shipments to know what to pre-fill. If you need to move stock without a trip involved, use a Transfer Request instead.

A banner says the vehicle is already loading another trip — what do I do?

Wait for that trip's loading to finish, or ask a supervisor to help resolve the conflict. The system won't let two trips load the same vehicle at once.

Can I collect a returnable item on a Loading Request, like on an Issue Request?

No — returnables only apply when a customer is involved. A Loading Request only ever moves forward stock from a warehouse onto a vehicle.