Order Input Methods
What is Order Input?
Order input in TMS.ai is how freight moves from your inbox, rate confirmations, or customer systems directly into your TMS without manual data entry. Every transportation company receives orders differently. Some come as emails with PDFs attached, others arrive through EDI feeds, and many still require manual entry from phone calls or spreadsheets. TMS.ai meets you where your business operates, offering multiple ways to capture order details quickly and accurately.
The platform eliminates the bottleneck of manual order entry that costs your team hours each week. Instead of typing the same pickup address, commodity details, and delivery information repeatedly, TMS.ai gives you flexible input options that adapt to how your customers send you freight. This means your team spends less time on data entry and more time managing operations, securing capacity, and serving customers.
How Order Input Works in TMS.ai
TMS.ai provides seven distinct methods for getting orders into the system, each designed for specific use cases:
1. Manual Entry
Create orders directly in the platform when taking orders by phone or from sources that don't support automation.
Navigate to the Orders module and click "New Order" in the top right corner. Select your customer from the list (or create a new one), then fill in order details including pickup and delivery locations, ready times, requested delivery dates, and commodity information. The system auto-fills billing party information based on your customer selection, and you can modify any fields as needed. When finished, click "Submit Order" to save.
Key capabilities: Support for single-stop, multi-stop, and split-leg orders. The platform auto-associates locations with Google Maps when you select from dropdown lists, enabling features like auto-rating and lane matching. You can add tasks, assign carriers or drivers, and attach quotes directly within the order workflow.
2. TED (AI Email Processing)
TED is your AI email assistant that monitors your inbox and automatically converts order emails into complete orders in TMS.ai.
TED processes incoming emails from customers and partners, extracting order details, attachments, and context to create orders without manual intervention. The AI understands freight context and tribal knowledge, recognizing patterns in how your customers communicate order information. TED continuously monitors your connected email accounts and processes new order emails as they arrive.
Intelligent processing: TED handles unstructured email formats, extracting pickup and delivery information, commodity details, reference numbers, and special instructions from email body text and attached documents. The system learns from your business patterns over time, improving accuracy as it processes more orders. All email correspondence attaches to the created order, maintaining a complete communication record.
3. DataBot (Automated Document Scanning)
Email or upload rate confirmation PDFs and DataBot uses text and image scanning to extract data directly into orders in under 30 seconds.
Forward rate confirmations to your unique DataBot email address (must be in the "To:" field), or upload PDFs directly through the "Automated" tab when creating a new order. DataBot processes up to 10MB of documents per email and automatically creates orders marked with a "DataBot" tag. The original rate confirmation attaches to the order in the "Other Documents" section for reference.
Supported formats: DataBot recognizes rate confirmations from major brokerages including D4 Logistics, Falcon Transportation, and World Wide ASG Logistics. The list of supported templates expands regularly. Orders created via DataBot include all pickup/delivery details, commodity information, and reference numbers extracted from the PDF. DataBot reduces data entry time by 75% through automated document scanning, processing PDFs, emails, and images to generate orders in seconds.
4. CSV Bulk Upload
Import multiple orders simultaneously using CSV files, ideal for recurring loads or migrating historical data.
From the Orders module, click the three horizontal dots in the top right corner and select "Upload Orders." Choose your CSV file and the system automatically matches columns to the correct fields. You can manually map any unmatched fields or correct format issues before finalizing the import. The platform accepts .csv, .tsv, and .txt files with one order per row.
Import flexibility: TMS.ai provides templates but accepts any CSV structure as long as data follows one record per row. The system validates data during upload, highlighting format issues in red and providing guidance for resolution. You can review and clean up corrupted data before completing the import, ensuring data integrity.
5. Load Board Integration (Truckstop)
Pull loads directly from Truckstop into TMS.ai with a single click, eliminating re-entry of posted loads.
Connect your Truckstop account through the platform's integration settings. When you find a load you want to book, click "Import from Load Board" from your dashboard or the More menu. Enter the Load ID and click "Create Order" to pull load data directly into TMS.ai. The integration creates a complete order with all pickup, delivery, and freight details from the Truckstop posting.
Current limitations: The feature supports one load at a time and is available to carriers on specific plans. Verify imported loads in the Orders section to ensure all details transferred correctly before proceeding with dispatch.
6. EDI (Electronic Data Interchange)
Receive orders automatically from customers who use EDI systems, enabling seamless system-to-system communication.
TMS.ai supports standard EDI transaction sets for order receipt and status updates. When your customer sends an EDI 204 (load tender), the platform automatically creates a new order with all shipment details. As the order progresses, TMS.ai sends EDI 214 status updates back to keep customers informed without manual intervention.
Integration setup: EDI connections require coordination between your team, the customer's EDI system, and TMS.ai support. Once configured, orders flow automatically based on your customer's submission patterns. The system maps EDI fields to TMS.ai order attributes, ensuring accurate data transfer.
7. API Integration
Build custom integrations that push orders from your proprietary systems, customer portals, or other software directly into TMS.ai.
TMS.ai provides REST APIs and webhook support for developers to create automated order flows. Your development team can use API documentation to build integrations that match your specific business processes. Orders can be created programmatically with full control over field mapping, validation rules, and error handling.
Technical capabilities: The API supports creating orders, updating order status, attaching documents, and querying order data. Webhook support enables real-time notifications when order status changes, allowing your connected systems to stay synchronized with TMS.ai.
What It Means for You
Flexible order input transforms how your team manages freight. Instead of dedicating hours to manual data entry, your operations staff focuses on exception handling, carrier communication, and customer service. Companies using automated order input methods report 75% reduction in manual data entry time, freeing up resources for higher-value activities.
The multi-method approach means you're never stuck with one way of working. Handle email orders through TED while your largest customer sends EDI feeds and smaller accounts place orders via your customer portal connected through the API. DataBot processes rate confirmations from brokers while your recurring customer orders arrive via CSV upload. This flexibility adapts to your customers' preferences rather than forcing them to change how they work with you.
TED and DataBot alone cut order entry from minutes to seconds per shipment. For a company processing 50 orders daily, that's hours saved every week. CSV bulk upload handles seasonal volume spikes or one-time imports without straining your team. Load board integration eliminates double entry when booking spot market freight.
The accuracy improvements matter just as much as the time savings. Automated data extraction reduces human error in addresses, commodity details, and reference numbers. Clean, consistent order data flows through your entire operation, from dispatch to invoicing, reducing downstream problems and improving customer satisfaction.