Check before release
Before a trailer leaves, reconcile the logistics-unit ID, quantity, destination, and assigned door with the shipment record. If a scan is missing or disputed, review the dock interval and have an authorized operator resolve the exception before release.
01 · Name the error
Different errors need different controls
| Error | Primary control | Evidence to keep |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong pallet or item | Stable pallet or logistics-unit identifier matched to the shipment. | Shipment record, identifier scan, dock and trailer assignment, and the visible handoff. |
| Short shipment | Required quantity reconciled before release. | Expected and scanned quantities, unresolved exceptions, and loading sequence. |
| Wrong dock or trailer | Door, route, vehicle, and destination validation. | Assignment record, arrival window, scan location, and camera interval. |
| Duplicate or missing event | Transaction discipline and exception ownership. | Event history, reversals, timestamp alignment, and authorized resolution. |
02 · Control the release
Make release a deliberate handoff
- Build the expected load. Record the shipment, logistics-unit identifiers, quantities, destination, dock, trailer, and authorized loading window.
- Validate each physical handoff. Scan the identifier at the agreed control point and keep unresolved or unreadable units out of the release sequence.
- Reconcile the completed load. Compare required, scanned, missing, duplicate, and exception states before departure.
- Assign the decision. An authorized operator resolves or escalates the exception. An AI result should not release or block a shipment by itself.
03 · Review the physical handoff
Use the dock view to resolve a disputed handoff
Use an approved fixed camera to review a bounded dock or loading interval when a shipment record, scan, or claim is disputed. Connect the clip to the shipment through a readable identifier or another validated event link. Keep the expected record, observed movement, clip, uncertainty reason, reviewer, and resolution in the same case.
A camera cannot establish the contents of a sealed pallet, recover an unreadable identifier, or prove what happened outside its view. Similar-looking pallets should remain unverified until another trusted record resolves the identity.
04 · Measure the control
Review errors alongside completed loads
- Confirmed errors per 1,000 reviewed shipments
- Wrong-pallet, short-shipment, wrong-dock, and unresolved cases reported separately
- Active investigation minutes and elapsed resolution time
- Share of eligible handoffs with sufficient record and camera coverage
- Exceptions caught before departure versus reported after departure
Publish the reviewed shipment count, load mix, operating period, and unresolved share with any result. Compare like-for-like shifts and shipment classes after changing one release rule.
Review your outbound controlReferences
Sources
- Bay Area warehouse customer case studyHow inventory-record accuracy and warehouse productivity meet at a bounded shipment handoff.
- GS1 Logistic Label GuidelineHow an SSCC uniquely identifies a logistics unit and connects it to electronic records.
- GS1 Global Traceability StandardTraceability roles, events, and data across shipping and receiving.