Shipping and Supply Chain Management Resolution can manage movements internal to a facility, but also movements to and from suppliers and distributors in a Supply Chain. Resolution's Shipping model covers planning and execution of receipts, shipments, nominations and itineraries for ship, truck or pipeline. It can handle world scale calculations and tracking of vessels and inventories at multiple terminals and berths. Features Able to track individual transactions or gross quantities Manages planned and actual transactions External material transfers can be balanced against internal facility movements Able to manage data uncertainties e.g. unknown vessel for a shipment Manages ships with multiple cargoes, cargoes with multiple shipments, shipments with split ownership Able to manage multiple versions of transaction quantities and qualities Integrated with real-time instrumentation Handles all supply chain movements including, ship, truck and pipeline		Search this site: SOLUTIONS Shows a solution. Batch Tracking Data Reconciliation Document Indexing Equipment Inspection Equipment Specification Inventory Management KPIs Laboratory Information Movement Management Planning & Scheduling Production Management Recipe Management Shipping Management Solomon Indicators Yield Accounting FAQ

Scheduling The Resolution database manages external movements as "transfer movements". A transfer can be part of a cargo, which is transported using a vessel, such as a ship, truck or pipeline. At the scheduling model level only the Transfer movements are likely to be recognized. The specific movements to/from facility tanks are not likely to be known. The scheduling model will generate planned transfers from facility jetties and loading docks. Specific client ownership can be applied to any transfer. The Resolution database has been structured to allow for the uncertainty in planned data. Material can be planned to be moved by ship without knowing the ship. A ship visit can be scheduled without knowing what material is going to be on it, or what ship is going to be visiting. A cargo can be created not knowing what ship will carry it or where it is going. Operation The operational model includes all internal and external movements. Exact tanks and destinations are generally known but are not required to be known. Planned transfers are now related to actual movements that satisfy the transfer. The Operational model assumes each facility is a self contained business unit managing its' own shipments and receipts. From a facility perspective, once the movement has been sent to the facility battery limit it goes out of scope. However, each facility needs to manage a portion of the global distribution e.g. which pipeline is being used, which ship is being loaded etc. In order to coordinate distribution between facilities it is advisable to use intermediate agents. This means a movement from one facility to another goes through several steps. Step 1: The first step is a movement from the internal unit or tank to the appropriate battery limit on the facility. Battery limits will be created such as shipping jetty, tank loading rack, pipeline distribution. This movement is controlled by the facility and is probably measured by internal instrumentation. Step 2: The second step is a transfer from the facility battery limit, e.g. Jetty, to a shipping agent. In general there will already be a plan for this transfer in the database that came from the scheduling model. Additional data is now added to this transfer, such as the actual times, actual source tanks etc. Since this is a transfer it can be associated with a cargo, and a vessel, although it is not required to be. If the material is going to a particular client, complete or partial ownership can be assigned to the transfer. Again this is not required. This step is the end of visibility of the transaction from the first facility's perspective. It is however a fairly complete picture. It will have documented: Material Cargo Timing of Movement Ownership (Destination Client) Vessel Timing of the Vessel Step 3: The receiving facility can have the same information as in step 2. What is being delivered, how and when. It is potentially a planned delivery to the facility. This transfer is sent from the shipping agent to a facility receiving battery limit. E.g. receiving jetty, truck receiving rack. Note: receiving battery limits are created separate from shipping battery limits. This facilitates balance reporting on the facility. Step 4: This is the transfer from the receiving battery limit to an internal location e.g. tank. One shipment arriving at a facility may require several internal movements to multiple locations. The same is true for material being shipped out of the facility, there may be multiple internal movements to complete one shipment. Using the above mechanism allows for independence of operation of the different components but at the same time enables coordinated balancing. E.g. Balancing a facility can determine how much of any commodity was sent through a particular pipeline. Balancing the pipeline agent can determine total movements through the pipeline to all facilities. Two facilities can operate independently with a minimum of interaction or messages can be sent between facilities to synchronize information. The model supports the situation where a facility puts material in to a generic pipeline and doesn't know where it goes, and at the same time supports detailed modeling of specific pipelines and destinations. The business model for the shipping agents can be very simple or can model a complex distribution network. Further capabilities of the Nominations database allow for comprehensive tracking of shipping. Complete ship itineraries can be retained with details of liftings and discharges at specific berths at many terminals. Materials on board the vessel at any location can be tracked even though they may not take part in any movements. Going yet another step forward, inventory tracking at terminals and distribution points can easily be managed in Resolution.

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