Truebooks ERP

Shipping & Freight Forwarding Workflow

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Freight Forwarding Operations

Sea Freight

Air Freight

Land Transport

Multi-Currency

Phase 1: Client Enquiry

Goal: Capture freight forwarding enquiries from clients through multiple channels.

Enquiry Channels

Online Portal: Client logs in using assigned credentials

Email: Direct communication to sales team

Phone/Walk-in: Staff enters enquiry on behalf of client

Document Upload

Commercial Invoice & Packing List

Bill of Lading / Air Waybill (if available)

Certificate of Origin & Insurance

Special handling instructions

System Actions:

Generates unique Enquiry Reference Number

Notifies sales team for follow-up

Output: Enquiry created with Status: New → Under Review

Phase 2: Estimation

Goal: Create detailed cost and revenue estimation with multi-currency support and manager approval.

Cost Line Items

Ocean/Air/Land Freight

THC (Terminal Handling)

Customs Clearance

Documentation

Local Transport

Insurance

Multi-Currency Handling

Each line item can have different currency

System converts to base currency using exchange rates

Real-time margin visibility per line item

Vendor Selection & Markup

Select vendors for each cost component

Apply markup percentage or fixed amount

View expected margin per line item

Approval Required: Submit estimation for manager approval before converting to quotation.

Output: Estimation Status: Draft → Submitted → Approved/Rejected

Phase 3: Quotation

Goal: Generate professional quotations from approved estimations and send to clients.

Quotation Generation

Convert approved estimation to quotation

Customize line items (include/exclude)

Apply discounts if applicable

Set quotation validity period

Delivery Options

Client views in online portal

Email directly to client

Generate PDF for download

Client Response:

Accepted → Convert to Job

Rejected

Revision Requested

Phase 4: Job Creation

Goal: Create freight forwarding jobs from various sources with full flexibility.

Job Creation Options

From Quotation: Convert approved client quotation (recommended)

From Estimation: Direct conversion without quotation

From Enquiry: Quick job creation

Direct Creation: For repeat business

Transportation Modes

Sea (FCL/LCL)

Air Freight

Land (FTL/LTL)

Job Types (User-Defined)

Import

Export

FCL Import/Export

LCL Import/Export

Air Import/Export

Clearance Only

Cross-Trade

Output: Job created with Status: Draft → Confirmed → In Transit

Phase 5: Client Invoicing

Goal: Generate client invoices based on estimated sales amounts with multi-currency support.

Invoice Creation

Review estimated sales from job costing

Select charges to invoice

Multi-currency invoice supported

Apply adjustments or discounts

Multi-Currency Support

Invoice in any configured currency

Client's preferred currency maintained

Exchange rate captured at invoice date

Output: Invoice Status: Draft → Approved → Sent → Partially Paid → Fully Paid

Phase 6: Client Payments

Goal: Process client payments and allocate to outstanding invoices.

Payment Processing

Receive client payment with auto-generated receipt number

Record currency and exchange rate

Specify bank account/mode of receipt

Payment Allocation

Select outstanding invoices

Allocate amounts (partial or full)

Handle overpayments as credit notes

Additional Transactions

Credit Notes - Returns/Adjustments

Debit Notes - Additional Charges

Customer Journal - Write-offs

Phase 7: Supplier Invoices

Goal: Record and validate vendor invoices against job cost estimates.

Invoice Recording

Receive supplier invoice in their currency

Link to job and cost lines

Multiple invoices per job supported

CRITICAL VALIDATION: System validates that supplier invoice does NOT exceed estimated cost for that job. Manager approval required for cost overruns.

Approval Workflow

Submit for verification

Manager approval for cost variance

Approved for payment

Output: Invoice Status: Draft → Verified → Approved → Payment Scheduled → Paid

Phase 8: Supplier Payments

Goal: Process payments to vendors and allocate to supplier invoices.

Payment Processing

Select supplier

Choose outstanding invoices

Specify payment method

Bank account selection

Allocation Options

Full or partial payment allocation

Handle advance payments

Deduct withholding taxes if applicable

Output: Payment Status: Draft → Approved → Processed → Cleared

Phase 9: Job Closing & Revenue Recognition

Goal: Month-end job closing with proper revenue/expense recognition.

Monthly Job Close Process

List all jobs for the period

Verify all invoices are raised

Confirm all costs are captured

Submit for manager approval

Accounting Treatment

Job Status	Revenue	Expenses
Closed	Posted to Income (P&L)	Posted to Cost (P&L)
Open	Accrued Revenue (BS)	Accrued Expenses (BS)

Note: Only closed job revenue and expenses are updated in the Trial Balance. Open jobs are accrued until closed.

Phase 10: Warehouse Management

UNDER DEVELOPMENT - This phase is currently being implemented.

Planned Features

Store Receipt Voucher: Record goods received at warehouse

Goods Release: Process client release requests

Storage Billing: Calculate charges by days stored and area occupied

Warehouse Dashboard: Space availability and occupancy view

Inventory Tracking: Real-time stock visibility with aging analysis

Coming Soon

Job Lifecycle Overview

Enquiry

Estimation

Quotation

Job

Invoicing

Payments

Job Close

State Transition Summary

From State	To State	Trigger
Enquiry	Estimation	Create estimation
Estimation Draft	Submitted	Submit for approval
Submitted	Approved	Manager approval
Approved Estimate	Quotation	Convert to quotation
Quotation	Accepted	Client approval
Accepted Quote	Job Created	Convert to job
Job Confirmed	In Transit	Cargo departure
In Transit	Delivered	Cargo released
Job Completed	Closed	Manager approval

Cross-Cutting Features

Multi-Currency

All transactions support multiple currencies with automatic exchange rate handling

Document Approvals

Estimation, invoice, payment, and job close workflows with approvals

Document Management

Upload, store, and manage shipping documents with version control

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