Overview

Collection calendars define when and how carriers collect shipments from your shipping locations.
They specify key cut-off times including Manifest, Allocation, and Operational to ensure all shipments are processed and ready before carrier collection.

Each collection calendar is:

  • Defined for a shipping location
  • Configured for each carrier at that location; and
  • Applied either to all carrier services for that carrier (recommended), or to individual services (custom setup)

Cut-off times

Cut-off times define the latest point in the day when specific shipping actions can occur.
You can configure the following types of cut-offs for each carrier in your collection calendar:

Cut-off typeDescription
Allocation cut-offThe latest time shipments can be allocated to carrier services for collection on that day.
Operational cut-off(Optional) The latest time customer-facing systems (for example, checkout) can offer delivery options for that day.

Access collection calendars

To access collection calendars:

  1. Go to Settings > Shipping Locations.
  2. Select the Calendar button next to the shipping location you want to edit.
  3. Expand a carrier row to display its current collection settings.

Add or update cut-off times

  1. From the Collection Calendar screen, choose the day of the week from the tab to apply your cut-off times
  2. Click Add another time and enter the required cut-off values.
  3. (Optional) Enable Manifest automatically and define when manifests should be generated. View the section below for more information.
  4. Click Add to apply the schedule.

Manifest automatically

You can optionally enable Manifest automatically to let Ship automatically manifest your shipments after the allocation cut-off.

When enabled:

  • Specify how many hours after the allocation cut-off the manifest should run.
  • Choose to include only include shipments that have printed labels.
  • Restrict auto-manifesting to shipments in a specific state (Eg, Allocated only, Ready to Ship only or both).

This automation ensures carriers are notified on time and reduces manual manifesting effort.

Remove a collection calendar

To remove a collection calendar:

  1. Expand the carrier and select the day of the week tab.
  2. Click Remove next to the entry you want to delete.

Exceptions

Exceptions let you override standard cut-off times for specific dates — for example, public holidays or special operating days.

To add an exception:

  1. In the Exceptions panel, click Add an exception.
  2. Select the date.
  3. Choose an exception type from the dropdown:
    • Rescheduled – set new cut-off times for that date.
    • Cancelled – cancel all scheduled cut-off times for that date.
  4. (Optional) Configure the new cut-off values if rescheduling.
  5. (Optional) Enable Manifest automatically and define when manifests should be generated. View the section above for more information.
  6. Click Add to save your exception.

Remove an exception

To remove an exception:

  1. Open the Exceptions section for the carrier.
  2. Click Remove beside the exception you want to delete.

Manage calendars for all or individual carrier services

You can configure calendars for individual carrier services, but doing so removes all existing shared calendars and requires setting up each service manually.
Only use this option when services require distinct collection schedules.

Best practices

  • Always apply calendars to all carrier services for consistency.
  • Review and update cut-off times regularly, especially during seasonal or operational changes.
  • Use exceptions to handle public holidays or irregular working days.
  • Enable auto-manifesting to reduce manual steps and ensure timely carrier notifications.