Rulemaster
  • 14 May 2025
  • 4 Minutes to read

Rulemaster


Article summary

Rulemaster

Overview

The Rulemaster feature is a powerful automation tool within Canary7. It enables you to define custom business rules that automatically execute specific processes based on shipment or receipt events. By leveraging Rulemaster, you can streamline operations, ensure consistency in processing and reduce manual intervention in your daily workflows

How Rulemaster Works

When an event occurs in the system (An event is current with a Shipment or Receipt being created), Rulemaster evaluates the event against a set of predefined rules.

Name

A descriptive label for the rule, making it easy to identify and manage.

Event

The trigger event that activates the rule. Choose between:

  • Shipment Created

  • Receipt Created

Selection

A criteria or condition that must be met for the rule to be applied. Selections can be applied to Shipment Headers, Shipment Details, Receipt Headers and Receipt Details. For example:

  • CompanyID = 17

  • AND ShipToCountry = 29

  • AND ShipmentType = Pallet

This allows rules to target specific shipments or receipts based on attributes such as company, destination county, or any other relevant property. In this example we are targeting Shipment Headers that are for Company 17, shipping to Country 29, and are of the Shipment Type ‘Pallet’. This Selection can then have a combination of the below Processes applied to it upon Shipment creation.

Process

The action to be executed if the event and selection criteria are satisfied. Processes range from simple additions, to complex assignment flows. The processes currently available include:

  • Delete Shipment

  • Delete Shipment Detail

  • Add Shipment Detail

  • Explode Item Assembly

  • Assign Shipment Outbound Status Flow

  • Assign Shipment Terms of Sale

  • Assign Shipment Detail Group Value

  • Split Shipment by Detail Grouping

  • Shipment Webhook

  • Run Assigned Carrier and Carrier Service

  • Run Automatic Carrier Assignment

  • Assign Shipment Type

  • Add To and Run Wave

  • Assign Receipt Preference

Detailed Process Descriptions and Use Cases

1. Delete Shipment

  • What It Does: Removes the entire shipment record from the system.

  • Use Case: Automatically cancel shipments created in error or shipments that fail to meet business criteria (e.g., an unsupported destination).

2. Delete Shipment Detail

  • What It Does: Deletes a specific line item within a shipment.

  • Use Case: Remove individual items that are cancelled or no longer valid without affecting the entire shipment.

3. Add Shipment Detail

  • What It Does: Adds new line items to an existing shipment.

  • Use Case: Incorporate additional items into a shipment when orders are updated or corrected after shipment creation.

4. Explode Item Assembly

  • What It Does: Breaks down a bundled or kit item into its individual components.

  • Use Case: Track each component separately for inventory control, kit assembly and order fulfilment.

5. Assign Shipment Outbound Status Flow

  • What It Does: Initialises or sets the outbound status workflow for a shipment.

  • Use Case: Automatically progress shipments through varying Outbound Flows such as “Pick/Consolidate/Pack/Stage” or “Pick/Consign”.

6. Assign Shipment Terms of Sale

  • What It Does: Attaches predefined terms of sale (e.g., Incoterms) to the shipment.

  • Use Case: Ensure that each shipment carries the correct contractual terms affecting cost, liability, and delivery responsibilities.

7. Assign Shipment Detail Group Value

  • What It Does: Assigns a shipment detail group value to shipments on import by reviewing the shipment details.

  • Use Case: Used in commination with Split shipment detail grouping. Sets shipment detail group values against a shipment which can then be used to split a shipment on import using Split shipment by detail grouping.

8. Split Shipment By Detail Grouping

  • What It Does: Splits a single shipment into multiple shipments based on the shipment detail group values assigned to the shipment.

  • Use Case: Separate items with different handling protocols to ensure operational efficiency.

9. Shipment Webhook

  • What It Does: Sends notifications or API calls to external systems upon a shipment event.

  • Use Case: Integrate with third-party carriers, e-commerce platforms, or customer tracking systems for real-time updates and automated downstream actions.

10. Run Assigned Carrier and Carrier Service

  • What It Does: Executes shipment consigning process with a carrier and service that have been manually assigned??

  • Use Case: When specific service levels (i.e.overnight shipping) are required, this process ensures that the chosen Carrier and Carrier Service is assigned on Import.

11. Run Automatic Carrier Assignment

  • What It Does: Assigns Carrier and Carrier Service to a Shipment on Import using the criteria defined in Automatic Carrier Assignment.

  • Use Case: Typically placed as the last rule process to revaluate the carrier assigned to a shipment after it has been modified using other rule processes. It is a final check to ensure any modifications to the shipment still allow the shipment to fit the initially assigned Carrier Criteria.

12. Assign Shipment Type

  • What It Does: Assigns a Shipment Type on Shipment Import.

  • Use Case: Differentiate shipments by Shipment Type which can then be used as criteria to define how Shipment Picking Jobs are created within the system.

13. Add To and Run Wave

  • What It Does: Incorporates the shipment into a wave and initiates the wave run.

  • Use Case: Improve warehouse efficiency by automating the waving of shipments as soon as they are important, greatly reducing manual input.

14. Assign Receipt Preference

  • What It Does: Sets handling preferences for incoming receipts. Currently allows one option: “Allow receipt close with open containers”.

  • Use Case: Allows us to define receipts in which users should have the ability to split partially checked-in receipts if required.

Benefits of Rulemaster

  • Automation:
    Reduce manual intervention by automating repetitive tasks and ensuring rules are applied consistently.

  • Operational Efficiency:
    Streamline complex processes such as shipment splitting, item assembly breakdown, and carrier assignment.

  • Integration:
    Seamlessly integrate with external systems (using webhooks) to maintain real-time communication and updates across platforms.


Was this article helpful?