Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
CA 02809500 2013-03-14
METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR BROKERING SHIPPING CONTRACTS BETWEEN SOLICITORS AND
SERVICE PROVIDERS
Field of the invention
This present invention relates to method and system for brokering shipping
contracts, and more
particularly, for requesting, receiving, presenting and storing shipping
service quotes, registering
awarded shipping contracts, and sending and receiving post-awarding
communication to facilitate
shipping procedures.
Background of the invention
With logistics playing a critical role in any sort of local or international
trade, product value-chains,
private or government organizations globally, the processes and systems
employed for engaging
shipping services are usually labor intensive and time consuming to operate.
The parties that require shipping service (solicitors) have to contract a
shipping company, which is
usually a third party (service provider) and determine the cost of the
shipping service. Solicitors are
contracting service providers for term contracts with ongoing periodic
deliveries, or one-off usually
urgent (time critical) shipments. The general rule is that solicitors dictate
the method of how the
shipment should be delivered ¨ by air, sea, or ground ¨ and engage several
service providers to
determine the best option regarding price and time for delivery.
The shipping process usually involves tasks like compiling a request for
quote, obtaining and
reviewing quotes, contract awarding and documenting of the contract, and post-
awarding shipment
updates communications performed with new or already established service
providers. While some
steps of the process have been partially automated with using modern
technologies or some stand-
alone solutions, there are no unified process standards for efficiently
managing all common shipping
tasks. As result, the shipping contracts awarded are not always the most cost-
efficient option for
given situation, and the process itself is driving logistics personnel costs
up and consuming
significant amount of time with manual steps on both solicitor and service
provider sides.
CA 02809500 2013-03-14
Additionally, the problems faced by solicitors contracting shipping services
are related to heavily 2
relying on assessments and decisions made by logistics managers versus
decisions made with help of
an automated system allowing transparent comparison of received offers and
transparent selection
of service providers. The human factor involved in the current process (i.e.
face to face or telephonic
verbal communication, or written correspondence, between provider personnel
and solicitors)
decreases capability of making fully unbiased decisions, timely progress and
documentation updates
and increases chances for various errors.
On the other side, the problem faced by service providers who wish to offer
their shipping services is
that they are unable to dictate a level of automation to their customer and,
as a stand-alone
provider, they have no incentive in creating an automated solution for
solicitors because that same
solution could be also used by other providers working with the same
solicitors, thus creating
additional competition for the provider.
Therefore, a need exists for a method and system that would allow brokering of
a deal for a shipping
service contract between a solicitor and a service provider in a time-
efficient manner using
streamlined standardized formatting to assess and make an unbiased decision,
and provide support
for post-awarding communications and updates between the parties.
Summary of the invention
Accordingly, the present invention provides a method and system for brokering
shipping contracts
between solicitors and service providers. A preferred embodiment of the
present invention
includes: a central processing computer distributing communications between
solicitors and service
providers; an interface enabled to accept parameters inputted by solicitors
and service providers
relating to requesting of and providing quotes for a shipping service,
awarding of a shipping
contract, post-awarding communications, and displaying reports generated by
the central
processing computer; and a data storage and backup facility for storing
parameters previously
inputted by solicitors and service providers.
Accordingly to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the initial
step is for solicitors to
create a shipping service request for a shipping quote that they submit via
communications network
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to centralized processing computer using a user interface. Additionally, at
that point of time the
solicitors also use the interface to input information about service providers
that they want to
receive quotation from. If the solicitor has already used the system
previously and inputted
information about service providers, the information about the service
providers will be already
stored in the data storage facility and will be available for the solicitor to
include in a distribution list
for the service request without re-inputting information about each particular
service provider
again.
In one embodiment, once the request for the shipping quote is inputted, a
communications
facilitating system within the centralized processing computer will distribute
the request via a
communications network to the service providers pre-defined by solicitor, for
example sending the
request by email using an email address of the provider that was specified by
the solicitor. In one
embodiment, providers may also be able to set up an account and register with
the system on their
own, although the benefits of the system wouldn't be realized until a
solicitor specifies them as one
of the providers from which they wish to receive quotes. The request contains
details about the
required shipping service and provides an option for the service provider to
access the central
processing computer via the user interface and input their quote and related
shipping details, such
as expected delivery time, port of entry (if applicable), and any applicable
taxes for the service
request. The interface will also show any applicable contracting fees that may
be payable by the
service provider to the administration entity operating the system. The
contracting fees are
displayed separately from the quote entered by service provider, at which time
service providers
can still adjust the quote before submitting it, for example to increase the
quote to the solicitor by
an amount covering or offsetting the contracting fee payable by the service
provider. Once finalized,
the received quote from the service provider will be processed by the
communication facilitation
system and stored in data storage facility. The system will send communication
to the solicitor on
each new quote submitted by participating service providers.
In one embodiment, upon receiving notification about submitted quotes, the
solicitor can access the
system via the user interface and review a report displaying all received
quotes and respective
shipping service details. The interface provides the solicitor with an option
to directly and
transparently compare received quotes and make an educated decision about the
best option in
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terms of cost, delivery time and other parameters important for the solicitor
at the time of decision
making.
In one embodiment, the solicitor can select any quote from the report and
using same interface to
submit a shipping contract award to the service provider of a selected quote.
The shipping
contracting system records the awarding and stores the update in the data
storage facility. The
communication facilitation system will distribute notification of the awarded
shipping contract to
the service provider whose quote was selected, a notification of rejection to
each service provider
whose quote was not selected and notification of the closing of bidding to the
providers who were
asked to provide quotation but still had not done so by the time when the
contract was awarded.
In one embodiment, after the contract has been awarded to service provider,
the service provider
will use the user interface to submit shipment processing related information
and updates and to
upload digital copies of shipment related documentation such as papers for
customs clearance,
courier passport, proof of delivery, service invoice and other related
paperwork that can be later
accessed and downloaded by solicitor. The solicitor will also use this
interface to provide additional
details related to shipment (if any, for example as requested by the service
provider). In a case when
the solicitor or the awarded service provider submits information to the
central processing
computer via communications network using other channels other than user
interface (for instance
by email or SMS text messages), the communication facilitating system may be
configured with
suitable means to accept communications of this type, and parse or scan their
content in order to
determine whether the communication includes reference to an unique
identification number
previously assigned to the awarded contract. Successful identification of this
number and matching
of same to one of one of the awarded contracts in the system allows the
communication to be
attached to the respective shipping contract record. If unique identifiers are
not matched, the
communication will be sent back to the originator using same communication
channel that it was
received with. All information is processed via communication facilitating
system and permanently
stored in the data storage facility.
When compared to the existing processes generally used for brokering service
contract between the
solicitors and service providers, the present invention in the exemplary
embodiments handles the
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process, documentation and all related communications within one non-
segregated system,
shortens the number of steps taken by solicitors and service providers to
broker shipping contract,
decreases risk of the solicitor not selecting a lower cost, reduced time or
otherwise efficient option,
speeds up the contract awarding timeline and saves processing time.
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a system for
facilitating requesting and
receiving of a shipping service quote, by distributing a request from a
solicitor to service providers
specified by said solicitor via communication network, the system comprising
(a) a user interface
which enables each of a plurality of solicitors to input parameters for a
required shipping service and
input information about a plurality of service providers specified by said
solicitor, and enables a
service provider to input parameters of a quote for the required shipping
service; (b) a data storage
database for storing the input parameters inputted by the solicitors and a
table for the quotes
inputted by the service providers; (c) a central processing computer system
operating the user
interface, connected with the data storage database and configured to (i)
receive a solicitor
communication from each of the solicitors containing details of the required
shipping service; (ii) for
each of the solicitors, distribute outgoing communication to the service
providers specified thereby,
the outgoing communication containing the details of the required shipping
service in a quote
request; (iii) for each of the solicitors, receive service provider
communications from the service
providers containing quote details in a quote for the required shipping
service; and (iv) for each of
the solicitors, generate a report in which the quotes received through the
service provider
communications are grouped based on the details of the required shipping
service previously
inputted by the solicitor and distributed by the computer system.
Preferably, the solicitor communication and the service provider communication
each contain data
fields including (a) a quote request identification number; (b) a type of the
requested shipping
service; (c) an origin location of the requested shipping service; (d) a
destination location of the
requested shipping service; (e) a shipment specification; (f) a bidding ending
time by which the
quotes must be submitted; (g) a pickup date and time; and (h) a delivery date
and time; wherein the
central processing computer system generates reports with the quote requests
and the quotes
matched up and grouped in these reports based on at least one of said data
fields.
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Preferably the solicitor communication contains a unique identification number
for that
communication and the service provider communication comprises a data field to
reference the
unique identification number of the solicitor communication and a central
processing computer
matches the service provider communication and solicitor communication on the
basis of unique
identification number.
Preferably the details of the required shipping service include fields for (i)
shipping service
specification and (ii) shipment handling instructions.
Preferably the quote details include fields for (i) estimated delivery time,
(ii) total price and (iii)
quoting date and time and the report lists said fields for each quote.
Preferably the centralized processing computer system is connected with the
data storage database,
into which the centralized processing computer system stores the
communications from the
solicitors and the service providers.
According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a system for
facilitating shipping
contract awarding by communicating a contract awarding confirmation from a
solicitor to a provider
and facilitating post-awarding communications between the solicitor and the
provider, the system
comprising (a) a data storage database containing contact details previously
inputted by the solicitor
and contact details previously inputted by service providers; (b) a central
processing computer
system connected with the data storage database and configured to (i) record a
solicitor-awarded
contract based on a solicitor-selected quote from among multiple quotes
received through
communication from different ones of the service providers in response to a
quote request from
said solicitor; (ii) send notification of the solicitor-awarded contract to a
one of the service providers
who provided the solicitor-selected quote; (iii) send a notification of
rejection to one or more of the
service providers who provided a non-selected one of the quotes; (iv) send
notification of bid closing
to any of the service providers that were included in a list for distribution
of the quote request, but
did not submit a quote; and (v) receive service provider communication from
the one of the service
providers who has been awarded the contract, the communication containing
updates about the
shipping service progress.
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Preferably the solicitor communication and the service provider communication
each contain the
data fields of (a) a communication unique identification number; (b) a quote
request identification
sequence number; (c) an offered quote identification sequence number; and (d)
a contract awarding
status; wherein the central processing computer generates reports indicating
awarded contracts
based on at least those fields.
Preferably the service provider communication contains fields for (i) date and
time of delivery, (ii)
full name of person who received the shipment and (iii) information about a
final invoice for
provided shipping service, and the centralized processing computer system
distributes the service
provider communication to the solicitor.
According to yet another aspect of the invention there is provided a system
for executing shipping
contracting communications between a solicitor and a service provider
comprising (a) client
computer hardware and software means to enable the solicitor and the service
provider to send and
receive communications; (b) means to store data sets of required shipping
service parameters and
quotes previously and respectively inputted by the solicitor and the service
provider; and (c) central
computer hardware and software means to (i) receive a solicitor communication
from the solicitor
containing information about a required shipping service; (ii) distribute
communication to service
providers containing details of a quote request for the required shipping
service; (iii) receive service
provider communications from service providers containing quotes for the
required shipping
service; (iv) match the service provider communications and solicitor
communication on the basis of
a unique identification number; (v) generate a report in which the quotes
received in the service
provider communications are grouped based on the details of the quote request
previously inputted
by the solicitors and distributed by the central computer hardware and
software means; (vi) record
a solicitor-awarded contract based on selection by the solicitor of one of the
quotes received
through the service provider communications from the service providers; (vii)
send a notification of
the solicitor-awarded contract to a one of the service providers whose quote
was selected by the
solicitor; (viii) send a notification of rejection to one or more of the
service providers whose quote
was not selected by the solicitor; (ix) send a notification of bid closing to
any of the service providers
that was included in a list for distribution of the details of the quote
request, but did not submit a
quote; and (x) receive a post-awarding communication from the one of the
service provider who has
CA 02809500 2013-03-14
been awarded the contract, the post-aware communication containing updates
about progress of 8
the required shipping service.
According to a further aspect of the invention a method for operating a
computer to execute
communications necessary for requesting and receiving shipping service quotes
and distributing
request for shipping service quote from solicitors to service providers, the
method comprising the
steps of (a) receiving a solicitor communication from a solicitor containing
information about a
required shipping service; (b) receiving service provider communications from
the service providers,
each containing details of a quote for the required shipping service; (c)
generating a report
notification about the received quotes upon completion of a quoting period;
(d) sending a
confirmation of an awarded contract as a communication to a one of the service
providers whose
quote was selected by the solicitor; (e) sending a notification of rejection
to one or more of the
service providers whose quote was not selected by the solicitor; (f) sending a
notification of bid
closing to at least one service provider that was included in a list for
distribution of the quote
request, but did not submit a quote; and (g) making available a notification
of shipment status and
details as a post-awarding communication between the solicitor and the one of
the service
providers that was awarded the contract.
Preferably there are provided the additional steps of storing the solicitor
and service provider
communications, and subsequently retrieving said solicitor and service
provider communications
before attempting to generate the report notification.
According to yet a further aspect of the invention there is provided a method
for operating a
computer system to execute communications necessary for allocating the cost of
contracting fees
for shipping contracts awarded by solicitors to the service providers, the
method comprising the
steps of (a) from an operating entity, receiving configuration parameters of a
service plan applied to
solicitors who have been assigned different classes, the service plan
determining a contracting fee
amount to be charged to service provider(s) for a successful quote based at
least partly on a
respective class of a solicitor who requested the quote; (b) making
information about the
contracting fee amount available to the service provider for each request for
quote, where such
information is (i) made available to the service provider upon said service
provider reviewing a
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request for quote received from the solicitor; and (ii) made available prior
to the service provider 9
submitting a quote to said solicitor in response to said request for quote.
There may be provided the additional step of allowing the service provider to
adjust the quote after
reviewing the contracting fee amount and before submitting the quote to the
solicitor.
The present invention and its features and advantages will become more
apparent from the
following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Brief description of drawings
Figurel ¨ is a block diagram showing a system for brokering shipping contracts
between solicitors
and service providers according to an exemplary embodiment of the present
invention.
Figure 2 ¨ is a flowchart showing an exemplary process flow for requesting and
receiving shipping
service quotes and registering an awarded contract in the system for brokering
shipping contracts
between solicitors and service providers.
Figure 3 ¨ is a flowchart showing an exemplary process flow for submitting a
shipping service quote
and allocating a fee in the system for brokering shipping contracts between
solicitors and service
providers.
Figure 4¨is a flowchart showing an exemplary process flow for sending and
receiving post-awarding
communications related to the shipping contract in the system for brokering
shipping contracts
between solicitors and service providers.
Figure 5 ¨ depicts a database storage structure for Shipping Quoting and
Contracting (SQC)
information which is employed in the system for brokering shipping contracts
between solicitors
and service providers.
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Detailed description of the invention
Figure 1 shows an overview of an exemplary system for brokering shipping
contracts between
solicitors and service providers. A Centralized Processing Computer 10
comprises a User Interface
and Communications Facilitating System 20 and a Shipping Contracting System
30, having a set of
programmed elements that enables each of the parties, solicitor(s) 80 and
service provider(s) 90 to
exchange electronic communications by means of the Communications Network 70
and engage in
brokering shipping contract. The User Interface and Communications
Facilitating System 20 accepts
input parameters related to a shipping service request from solicitor(s) 80
and related to a shipping
service quotation from service provider(s) 90 and handles communications
distribution via use of
the Communications Network to solicitor(s) and service provider(s) and by
submitting these
parameters to the Shipping Contracting System 30 that facilitates processing
steps (in the processes
described below) related to proposed quotations, contract awarding to a
solicitor-selected one of
the proposed quotations, rejection of any non-accepted proposed quote(s) and
post-awarding
communications for the shipping service based on these parameters, and
generates notifications
and stores all the above mentioned input from solicitor(s) and service
provider(s) as parameters in
the Database 50 under Data Storage and Backup Facility 40. During brokering of
a shipping contract,
the system derives the data from the various database tables to generate
reports and notifications.
As will be explained further below, the computer 10 uses the elements
described above to send
requests for a shipping service quote from solicitor(s) 80 to service
provider(s) 90 that have been
predefined or specified by the solicitor(s), receive a quote for the shipping
service from service
provider(s) 90, record an awarding of shipping contract and record and store
post-awarding
communications and digital copies of documentation. In brief, the process in
the exemplary
embodiment is as follows:
A solicitor 80 that has a need for shipping service enters required service
details such as origin and
destination address, method of delivery, delivery date, description of items,
and other relevant
information along with predefined provider(s) 90 details such as service
provider business name and
contact information, and requests a quote 100 as shown on Figure 2. The quote
request may also
include a shipping service specification (e.g. door to door, door to airport,
need for customs
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clearance, etc.) and shipment handling instructions or details (hazardous
materials, special care or
handling required, etc.)
The computer 10 distributes quote request 110 to each provider pre-defined in
the system by the
solicitor, and also stores a record of the request in the database 50. After
receiving the quote
request delivered via communications network 70 using one or multiple
channels, such as email
and/or SMS text messages (which may be offered as an optional feature as an
addition or
alternative to email notifications), and any updates to the request displayed
via the user interface
when the provider next logs into the system, each provider 90 enters a quote
120 or multiple quotes
130 for several possible routes as an offer for the requested shipping
service, or the provider 90
enters no quote 140 and does not participate in bidding on the shipping
request in question. Upon
the computer 10 having received and stored submitted at least one quote in the
database 50, the
offer placement process 150 takes place by having the computer 10 generate a
report containing all
quotes submitted thus far for the shipping service requested and then transmit
notification via
communications network 70 using one or multiple channels, such as email and
SMS text messages
(when requested), and any updates displayed via user interface about such
received quotes to the
solicitor 80. In one embodiment, a new or updated report is generated and
transmitted in response
to each submission of a new quote, whereby a first report transmission has
only a single quote for
consideration by the solicitor, a second report transmission has two quotes
that can be compared by
the solicitor, etc.
Upon solicitor 80 receiving notifications and reviewing one or more reports
containing the quote(s)
for the requested service, a contract awarding process 160 takes place by
having the solicitor 80
select one quote and award a shipping contract to the service provider 90 who
submitted that
quote, and having the computer 10 register such awarded contract in the
database 50. After the
contract award has been registered, the computer 10 generates and transmits
notifications,
including a notification transmitted to the service provider 90 whose quote
has been awarded a
contract 180, notification transmitted to the service provider(s) 90 whose
quotes were rejected 170
and notification about the closing of bidding 190 to the service provider(s)
90 that received the
request for quote, but did not participate in the bidding. Additionally, the
solicitor 80 and the service
provider 90 transmit to computer 10 additional information subsequently stored
in the database 50
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and documentation in electronic format 60 subsequently stored within data
storage and backup
facility 40 containing progress updates, shipment documentation and other
information related to
the awarded contract that can be later extracted and downloaded by either
party.
With the present invention it is also possible that the solicitor 80 does not
award a contract to any
service provider(s) 90 who submitted the quote. In this case solicitor 80 will
be able to close the
request for shipping service quote without awarding a contract. For all
service provider(s) 90 that
have participated in submitting quotes for such shipping service quote
request, the computer 10 will
generate and distribute a rejection notification to the service provider(s) 90
whose quotes were
effectively rejected 170 by this lack of award, and notification about closing
of the bidding 190 to
the service provider(s) 90 that received request for quote, but did not
participated in the bidding.
In one embodiment, the timeframe for accepting of bids may be terminated only
upon awarding of
a contract by the solicitor. In other embodiments, the solicitor may specify
an expiry date and time
at which bidding is to close. In some embodiments, the solicitor is able to
terminating the bid-
acceptance period early by accepting a quote in any received report, or by
selecting a quote request
cancellation option.
Prior to service provider(s) 90 submitting a quote, the shipping contracting
system 30 executes a
logic that checks the parameters of the shipping quote request 100 as shown on
Figure 3, to identify
if such request is not flagged by solicitor as a test request used to ensure
that service provider(s) 90
can receive and respond to quote requests 210 from the solicitor, if the
solicitor 80 has previously
accepted terms of use 220, and if the service provider has accepted the terms
of use 230.
Additionally, prior to submitting a quote 260, the applicable commercial fees
are indicated to service
provider 240. System 30 nullifies the applicable commercial fees 250 for any
test requests 210 or for
any requests created by solicitor who did not accept conditions of use 220 or
for any quote created
by service provider who did not accept conditions of use 230.
In embodiments where the solicitor specified contact details (e.g. email
address) for the providers is
used to send communications to the provider, quote requests may not be
received by the provider,
in which case the system will notify the solicitor of the communication error
(i.e. undeliverable
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status of the quote request), at which time the solicitor will know to
retrieve updated contact
information from the provider. Accordingly, the option to send a 'test'
provides a means for the
solicitor to get feedback on the provider's participation in bidding processes
initiated by the
solicitor. Likewise, the solicitor would be notified of an error if the
provider refused to accept terms
of use of the system, thereby notifying the solicitor that the particular
provider in question will not
be bidding on quote requests processed through the system of the present
invention.
The present invention allows the service provider(s) 90 to adjust the quote
price and include or
partially include applicable contracting fees prior to submitting the quote.
Applicable contracting
fees are applied based on the parameters of the service plan defining such
contracting fees for each
solicitor previously inputted by an operating entity and stored in the
database 50 and extracted into
system 30 before further processing of the quote request 270. In other words,
a contracting fee
that is to be charged to a service provider for an awarded contract on a quote
submitted the service
provider is based at least in part upon the solicitor who requested and
approved the quote.
Accordingly, the solicitors are grouped or classified into different
categories or types for which
different fee rates apply under a service plan administered by an
administrative entity operating the
system. For example, some solicitors may fall into category A, for which a
contracting fee of X
dollars is charged for each contract awarded by any solicitors in category A,
while a greater
contracting fee of Y dollars is charged for each contract awarded by any
solicitor in another category
B. In one exemplary embodiment, there are two classes or categories, namely a
Standard Solicitor
Category and a Premium Solicitor Category. An example of a standard solicitor
would be a company
normally operating from a single region, importing or exporting goods usually
for international trade
purposes, for example a Canadian-based company operating from Canada and
importing goods to
Canada for resale. A premium solicitor may be a large multi-national
enterprise that is operating in
multiple regions, importing and exporting extensively, usually for purpose of
international value
chain (like assembling line factories etc.), for example an automotive
manufacturer exporting and
importing parts to assemble their vehicles in different factories throughout
the world. The Premium
category will usually have higher contracting fees as they will be exposed to
a better service from
the operating entity and deal with larger number of service providers.
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When the contract awarding process 160 is completed, the post-awarding
communications process
takes place as shown on Figure 4 by where each party ¨ solicitor 80 or awarded
service provider 90 ¨
can originate the post-awarding data communication 270. Such communication
contains at least
one unique identifier that can be matched 280 by the computer 10 that accepts
the communication,
and used to look up the corresponding contract record in the database 50. If
the communication is
matched successfully 290, the post-awarding communication data is added to the
contract record
300 and saved in the database 50. In case when such communication also
contains copies of one or
more documents 60 in digital format, the documents are stored in digital
format in storage and
backup facility 40. Whenever new post-awarding communication has been added to
the contract
record by one party, a communication about new update using such channels as
email or text
messages is sent by the communications facilitating system 20 to another
party. In case when post-
awarding update communication has not been matched with the relevant contract
record, such
communication is routed back to the originator by same communications method
that it has been
originally received 320.
The solicitor(s) 80 and service provider(s) 90 enter information into a
database shown on Figure 5
which is used as repository for the data relevant to shipping service quote
requests, submitting
quotes and related service information (e.g. delivery route, shipping ports,
etc.), as well as post-
awarding communications. The data input is transmitted through communications
network 70 to
computer 10 where the systems 20, 30 are connected to the database 50.
Obtaining of data from
database 50 is done through data queries lookup in various database tables. In
the exemplary
embodiment the Database 50 comprising plurality of database tables (could be
also structured as
separate databases instead of database tables). Exemplary database tables
include:
User profile table(s) (1. Fig 5): This table contains a set of user
information including individual
details and encrypted access credentials used to authorize such individuals
representing
solicitor(s) 80 and service provider(s) 90 to access user interface 20 on the
centralized
processing computer 10.
Solicitor master data table(s) (2, Fig 5): This table contains a set of data
about solicitor(s) 80
including contact details that they have provided, link(s) to service
provider(s) 90 they have
CA 02809500 2013-03-14
entered into the system and preferences settings used by controls within the
user interface and 15
communications facilitating system 20 and shipping contracting system 30 for
pre-populating
quote requests, awarded contracts and post-awarding record fields.
Service provider master data table(s) (3. Fig 5): This table contains a set of
data about service
provider(s) 90 including contact details (such as those specified by the
solicitor, which may
subsequently be updated or revised by the service provider), information about
provider's
couriers and system preferences settings used by controls within the user
interface and
communications facilitating system 20 and shipping contracting system 30 for
pre-populating
quote offering, awarded contracts and post-awarding record fields.
Request details table(s) (4. Fig 5): This table contains a set of data for
shipping service quote
request including a quote request identification number, a type of the
shipping service, an origin
location of shipment, a destination location of shipment, a shipment
specification such as
weight and size dimensions where applicable, a bidding ending time, a delivery
date and time at
or by which delivery is preferred or required, and a contract awarding status,
link(s) to service
provider(s) 90 in distribution list. These are used by controls within the
user interface and
communications facilitating system 20 and shipping contracting system 30 for
communications
between solicitor(s) 80 and service provider(s) 90.
Offer details table(s) (5, Fig 5): This table contains a set of data for
shipping service quote offer
including an offered quote identification number, quote amount and currency,
delivery route
details and a pickup date and time, used by controls within the user interface
and
communications facilitating system 20 and shipping contracting system 30 for
use in
communications between service provider(s) 90 and solicitor(s) 80.
Post-awarding data table(s) (6. Fig 5): This table contains a set of data for
post-awarding
communications including records of shipping progress status updates,
additional instructions
for shipment delivery or pickup, personal information of courier handling the
goods (when
applicable) and a reference link to the shipping documentation 60 stored at
the data storage
and backup facility. The reference links are retrieved by the user interface
and communication
CA 02809500 2013-03-14
facilitation system 20 when required to direct solicitor(s) 80 or service
provider(s) 90 to the 16
shipping documentation 60.
Accounting table(s) (7, Fig 5): This table contains a set of data for shipping
contracting fees,
including fee amount, currency, applicable service plan, invoice details based
on parameters
previously inputted by solicitor or operating entity, and payment status used
by controls within
the user interface and communications facilitating system 20 and shipping
contracting system
30 for invoice presentment and payment processing.
Application configuration table(s) (8, Fig
This table contains a set of data for general system
settings including definition of selectable time-zones, definition of
selectable services (e.g. air,
sea, ground), definition of packages (e.g. box, pallet, skid), dimension
units, weight units,
languages, translations, form template details for communications generated by
user interface
and communications facilitating system 20 and shipping contracting system 30.
Data storage and backup facility 40 in this present invention is configured to
concurrently create a
copy of the database 50 and copy of digital format files shipping
documentation 60 for backup and
restoration purposes. Such copies can be restored to replace original in case
of failure and can be
created utilizing any standard computer software for creating and maintaining
backup copies.
The hardware for the described embodiment comprises of Central Processing
Computer 10 that may
include one or more computers setup as a server machines (e.g. firewall
server, web server,
application server) connected to the Communications Network 70 that is
accessed using all modern
technology channels (e.g. internet, cellular mobile, etc) and devices (e.g.
computers, laptops, PDAs,
cell phones etc.), and Data Storage Facility 40 deployed using separate
computers (e.g. database
server, backup server) that are connected to Central Processing Computer 10.
In one embodiment,
the user interface is an internet website served by the central processing
computer system for
access to the system by both the solicitors and providers. The central
processing computer system
includes computer readable memory having one or more software application
stored thereon,
including statement and instructions for execution by the processor(s) of one
or more of the
computers to execute the described processes.
CA 02809500 2013-03-14
17
The above described embodiment of the invention is meant to be representative
only, as certain
changes may be made therein without departing from the invention's clear
teachings.
