What common problems do warehouses face when shipping with ExFreight?
Operations that use ExFreight often manage a blend of parcel alternatives, palletised consignments, and international movements. The pressure point is rarely printing a label, it is choosing the correct ExFreight service or routing for each order quickly and consistently. The right decision can change with the total order weight, the total order value, the delivery postcode, and the destination country. During peaks, manual decisions multiply. Even experienced staff can misread a postcode segment, total the wrong weight across multiple lines, or overlook a value threshold while the queue builds.
Many teams bridge the gap with spreadsheets and bench guides. Packers and supervisors rely on memory for which orders should move via a specific ExFreight option, which require additional cover due to value, and which destinations fall into different routing. This introduces delay and error. A single wrong selection can cause rework, relabelling, late handoff, or customer service follow up. Throughput becomes sensitive to who is on shift, and training takes longer because the important knowledge lives in people not systems.
Clarus WMS removes this friction by automating carrier and service selection for ExFreight. Instead of asking staff to decide for each order, you define clear rules and Clarus applies them automatically. The system calculates order totals, checks address details, evaluates your conditions, and assigns the correct ExFreight service before the packer reaches for the printer. Labels, tracking, and shipment records follow in the same workflow. Any time saving mentioned here is an estimate, because the exact impact depends on your order mix, staffing, and layout.
How can a WMS automate carrier selection for ExFreight shipments?
In Clarus, carrier assignment is native. You express your shipping policy as rules, then Clarus evaluates each order the moment it is ready to ship. The rules engine works with four core inputs that exist on every sales order, the total order weight, the total order value, the delivery postcode, and the destination country. Based on those inputs, Clarus can assign ExFreight and select the correct service or routing automatically. There is no middleware required for the capabilities described here, and configuration does not require developers.
The workflow is straightforward. First, Clarus receives your sales orders from commerce or ERP. Second, Clarus calculates totals across all order lines, so weight and value are accurate without manual arithmetic. Third, Clarus evaluates the delivery address, including postcode and country. Fourth, Clarus compares those inputs with your rule list and assigns the matching ExFreight option. Finally, Clarus generates the shipping label and tracking where applicable and records the shipment while keeping inventory movements in sync. Packers see the service already chosen and can focus on confirming the pick and printing the label.
This approach reduces decision time and error rates. If your policy changes, for example you introduce a new threshold or add a postcode exception, you update the rule once and all subsequent orders follow the new path. If volumes spike, the rules continue to apply instantly, so throughput stays steadier even when you rotate staff. Supervisors can review which rules applied to which orders, so outcomes are explainable and improvements are easier to validate.
Can Clarus assign ExFreight services based on weight, value, or delivery location?
Yes. Clarus can assign ExFreight options using rules that evaluate total order weight, total order value, delivery postcode, and destination country. These conditions address common real world scenarios and can be combined or prioritised to match your policy. Here are practical examples to illustrate the pattern. Treat them as examples not templates, your thresholds and service labels will reflect your operation.
• Route lighter domestic consignments to a standard ExFreight option when total order weight is below your threshold and the postcode is within normal coverage.
• Apply a signed or insured service when total order value exceeds a defined limit, while keeping the same speed to protect customer experience.
• Use a time specific or premium routing for selected postcode ranges, for example where morning windows are expected or where depot schedules make a particular option more reliable.
• Direct all non United Kingdom destinations to an international ExFreight pathway by using the destination country condition, while leaving domestic rules unchanged.
• Enable a Saturday specific rule that only applies when the requested delivery date falls on Saturday and the postcode is eligible, while other days follow your standard logic.
Because Clarus calculates totals from the order lines, packers do not need to add up weights or values at the bench. This avoids edge case errors such as missing a heavy accessory on a multi line order or misreading a decimal point. If you treat high value orders differently, the value based condition provides a consistent safeguard. If your policy includes postcode exceptions, the postcode condition captures them without relying on memory or separate lookup tables.
Where more than one rule could match an order, you control priority. In Clarus you can order rules so that the most important safeguard runs first. You can also stack conditions inside a single rule, for example a value threshold only within a specific postcode range. Any efficiency claims are estimates, but most teams find that removing manual checks reduces decision time and relabels.
Do I need custom development to use ExFreight with Clarus WMS?
No, not for the functionality described here. Clarus provides native automation for assigning ExFreight and selecting ExFreight services based on total order weight, total order value, delivery postcode, and destination country. Configuration happens in the Clarus dashboard with plain language controls. You can create rules, edit thresholds, test scenarios, change rule order, and enable updates without writing code. Once saved, the next eligible orders follow the updated logic.
You also do not need middleware for these capabilities. By keeping carrier assignment, label creation, tracking, and inventory updates inside Clarus, you remove an extra layer that can fail or drift from policy. Teams gain a single source of truth for how ExFreight is used, which simplifies training and reduces the chance of unofficial workarounds. If your service mix expands, you add or adjust rules in the same place.
For governance, supervisors can review a history of which rules applied to which orders. This helps with continuous improvement and with explaining outcomes to colleagues or customers. If a service is paused or a policy shifts, disabling or reordering a rule is a simple change in the dashboard. Any statements about setup speed are estimates, since every operation has different data and timelines, but the steps are accessible to non technical users.
How does Clarus keep orders, labels, tracking, and inventory aligned when using ExFreight?
Clarus keeps the shipping workflow in one system. Sales orders enter the WMS, inventory updates as picks are confirmed, and by the time an order is ready to ship the ExFreight assignment has already been made by your rules. Clarus then generates the label and tracking where applicable and records the shipment against the order while updating inventory at the same time. This removes copy and paste steps and reduces the chance of mismatched information across systems.
At the bench, packers see a single screen that guides the job. Because the carrier and service are chosen upstream, the focus is on confirming picks and printing labels rather than checking eligibility. For supervisors, the benefit is visibility. You can see rule definitions, rule order, and which orders matched which rules. That makes it easier to refine policy and to explain outcomes to colleagues and customers. Customer service teams benefit from the same clarity when answering delivery queries.
If an exception occurs, the audit trail inside Clarus helps you find and fix the root cause without switching between multiple tools. You can trace which rule applied, whether a threshold was met, and whether a postcode match triggered a specific path. This supports continuous improvement and reduces time spent on investigations.
What does setup look like, and how can we validate our ExFreight rules before go live?
Setup follows a structured sequence that most teams complete without developers. First, review your current ExFreight usage, including domestic and international pathways, weight and value thresholds, and any postcode or country based exceptions. Second, model that policy as rules inside Clarus using the native conditions for total order weight, total order value, delivery postcode, and destination country. Third, create a set of sample orders that reflect your real scenarios and use them to test the rules in Clarus. Fourth, enable the rules in your live environment and monitor the first shipments for confirmation.
The Clarus dashboard uses clear fields and plain language so non technical users can configure and adjust logic. You can label each rule with a description so colleagues understand the intent, and you can reorder rules when priorities change. If you discover a new exception, for example a postcode that requires a different service, you add a condition and test it immediately. Any quoted timelines for setup or training are estimates, because operations differ in data quality, service mix, and availability of test orders.
La formation se concentre sur deux groupes. Les préparateurs apprennent le flux de préparation simplifié, le service est déjà attribué, ils confirment les prélèvements et impriment les étiquettes. Les superviseurs apprennent à lire et à modifier l'ensemble des règles, à tester les modifications en toute sécurité et à examiner quelles règles s'appliquent à quelles commandes. Cela vous donne le contrôle avec moins de complexité et réduit la dépendance vis-à-vis de points de connaissance uniques au sein de l'équipe.
Want a WMS that handles ExFreight complexity for you?
If you want to replace manual service selection with clear rules and ship with more confidence, Clarus WMS is designed to help. You define the rules once, Clarus evaluates every order and assigns the correct ExFreight option automatically. Labels, tracking, and inventory updates live in the same workflow, with no middleware and no code required for the capabilities described here. The bench becomes calmer and more predictable. Any improvement figures are estimates, so the best way to judge the impact is to try your own scenarios in a demo.
Book a short walkthrough and bring sample orders that reflect your ExFreight usage. We will model your thresholds, postcode exceptions, and destinations as rules in Clarus and run them end to end so you can see the outcome immediately.
FAQ
Can Clarus apply different ExFreight services for domestic and international orders automatically? Yes. You can use the destination country condition to route non United Kingdom addresses to international pathways while domestic orders follow your UK rules. No custom development is required for this routing.
Que se passe-t-il si plus d'une règle peut correspondre à une seule commande ? Vous définissez la priorité. Dans Clarus, les règles sont ordonnées, vous pouvez donc placer une protection de haute valeur avant une règle générale basée sur le poids. Vous pouvez également combiner des conditions pour capturer un scénario spécifique dans une seule règle.
Les emballeurs doivent-ils encore calculer le poids et la valeur au banc ? Non. Clarus calcule le poids total de la commande et la valeur totale de la commande à partir des lignes de commande. Les préparateurs n'ont pas besoin d'additionner les poids ou de vérifier les valeurs manuellement, ce qui réduit le risque d'erreurs.
How are labels, tracking, and inventory kept in sync when shipping with ExFreight? Clarus génère l'étiquette et le suivi dans le même flux de travail qui confirme la préparation et expédie la commande. L'expédition est enregistrée par rapport à la commande, et l'inventaire est mis à jour en même temps, ce qui maintient les données alignées sans copier-coller.
Do we need developers or middleware to go live with ExFreight in Clarus? Non, pas pour la fonctionnalité décrite sur cette page. Clarus fournit une automatisation native de l'attribution et de la configuration des transporteurs dans le tableau de bord que les utilisateurs non techniques peuvent gérer. Toutes les estimations de délais sont des estimations, mais le processus est simple : examinez votre politique, modélisez-la sous forme de règles, testez, puis activez-la en production.