Tracking Consignments Using Track
Sorted Ship integrates seamlessly with our dedicated shipment tracking platform, Sorted Track. Ship can automatically register your shipments with Track, and share carrier and tracking information.
This page explains how both products interact with each other and the benefits this can bring.
Note
For integration guides and user help on Track, see the Track overview documentation.
Why Use Track?
Ship's native tracking API enables you to build simple tracking pages that a consumer can access to check the status of their order. Track, on the other hand, offers a full suite of tracking tools, giving you much more flexibility in the way that you supply tracking updates to your customers. Track offers:
- Custom webhooks that notify you of shipping events proactively. Whenever a shipment enters a selected state, Track will send that shipment’s data to you, thereby enabling you to build services such as push notifications as email alerts.
- A tracking dashboard that gives you advanced shipment monitoring features, and enables administrators to configure the system.
- Customisable shipment state labels, enabling you to to communicate tracking information to your customers in your brand’s tone of voice or in an alternative language, as opposed to using default tracking state names.
- Customisable web-based tracking pages that can be published with no development work needed.
- Calculated events, whereby shipment properties are changes based on Track's internal processing rather than a carrier update. For example, Track can automatically flag a shipment as late if it passes its expected delivery date.
Integrating Ship and Track
When you sign up to Track as a Ship customer, your two accounts are automatically linked. You do not need to do any additional configuration beyond the regular configuration processes for each product.
Track uses carrier connectors to keep shipments from a particular carrier up to date. Carrier connectors contain configuration that enables Track to obtain carrier tracking data. Ordinarily, you would need to configure carrier connectors yourself as part of the Track setup process. Therefore, when you sign up to Track as a Ship customer, Track uses your carrier configuration from Ship, enabling you to use your existing carrier integrations without needing to provide any additional details.
To use your Ship carriers with Track, go to Settings > Carrier Connectors in Track, and click Connect.
Registering Ship Consignments in Track
Once Ship and Track have been linked, Ship will automatically create new Track shipments from manifested consignments. The process is as follows:
- Ship tells Track that a consignment has been manifested and sends the details of that consignment to Track.
- Track validates the consignment details and generates a new Track shipment object from it.
- Track can register shipments using a number of methods. See our Register Shipments documentation to find out more.
At this point, the shipment can now be tracked in the same way as any other Track shipment.
Mapping Table
This table shows how the properties in a Ship consignment resource map to the properties in a Track shipment resource.
| Track | Ship |
|---|---|
| customer_id | CustomerReference |
| carrier | Carrier |
| carrier_service | CarrierService |
| shipped_date | DateShipped |
| promised_date.start | EarliestDeliveryDate |
| promised_date.end | LatestDeliveryDate |
| expected_deliver_date.start | EarliestDeliveryDate |
| expected_deliver_date.end | LatestDeliveryDate |
| retailer | Retailer |
| shipment_type | ShipmentType |
| address.address_type | AddressType |
| address.reference | Reference |
| address.property_number | PropertyNumber |
| address.property_name | PropertyName |
| address.address_line1 | AddressLine1 |
| address.address_line2 | AddressLine2 |
| address.address_line3 | AddressLine3 |
| address.locality | Locality |
| address.region | Region |
| address.postal_code | PostalCode |
| address.country_iso_code | CountryIsoCode |
| tracking_references | ShipmentTrackingReferences |
| metadata | ShipmentMetaData |
| tags | Consignment Tags |
| custom_reference | ShipmentCustomReferences |
| consumer.email | Consumer.Email |
| consumer.phone | Phone |
| consumer.mobile_phone | MobilePhone |
| consumer.first_name | FirstName |
| consumer.last_name | LastName |
| consumer.middle_name | MiddleName |
| consumer.title | Title |
Mapping Example
This example shows a Ship consignment and a Track shipment that has been generated from that consignment at the point it was manifested.
{
"ConsignmentLegs": [
{
"Leg": 1,
"TrackingReferences": [
"1Z9A80W5D991115692"
],
"CarrierReference": "UPS",
"CarrierServiceReference": "UPSHSADCS",
"CarrierName": "UPS"
}
],
"CollectionDate": "2020-04-08T00:00:00+01:00",
"DateDelivered": null,
"FirstAttemptedDeliveryDate": null,
"DateReturned": null,
"DateShipped": null,
"DateCollected": null,
"AttemptedDeliveryDate": null,
"MetaData": [],
"Allocation": {
"CarrierServiceGroupReference": "",
"MpdCarrierServiceGroupName": null,
"MpdCarrierServiceReference": "EDC5_UPSHSADCS",
"MpdCarrierServiceName": "UPS SAVER (Delivery Confirmation Signature Required)",
"AllocationDate": "2020-04-08T08:57:20.0959259+00:00",
"Price": {
"Net": 22.99,
"Gross": 22.99,
"TaxRate": {
"Reference": null,
"CountryIsoCode": "GB",
"Type": "Standard",
"Rate": 0.0000
},
"VatAmount": 0.00,
"Currency": {
"Name": null,
"IsoCode": "GBP"
}
}
},
"FailedAllocation": null,
"Source": "Api",
"LabelCount": 0,
"LabelsPrinted": false,
"DateLabelsWereFirstPrinted": null,
"IsLate": false,
"LateForCustomer": false,
"CustomerReference": "338a3524-5a17-44dd-a601-1527574f1a5d",
"Weight": {
"Value": 2.00000,
"Unit": "Kg"
},
"Value": {
"Amount": 20.00,
"Currency": {
"Name": "United States dollars",
"IsoCode": "USD"
}
},
"Direction": "Outbound",
"Tags": [],
"Reference": "EC-000-05E-BKJ",
"ConsignmentState": "Manifested",
"DateCreated": "2020-04-08T08:57:17.5970788+00:00",
"ShippingDate": "2020-04-08T17:00:00+01:00",
"RequestedDeliveryDate": {
"Date": "2020-04-10T00:00:00+00:00",
"DeliveryWindow": {
"Start": "00:00:00",
"End": "00:00:00",
"UtcOffset": null
},
"IsToBeExactlyOnTheDateSpecified": true
},
"EarliestDeliveryDate": "2020-04-10T00:00:00-04:00",
"LatestDeliveryDate": "2020-04-10T23:30:00-04:00",
"ConsignmentReferenceProvidedByCustomer": "PostDeploymentTest_API_v1.1_UKtoUS_NonGBP",
"Addresses": [
{
"AddressType": "Origin",
"ShopLocationReference": null,
"Contact": {
"Reference": null,
"Title": "Miss",
"FirstName": "Laura",
"LastName": "Somebody",
"Position": null,
"Telephone": "01234 567 890",
"Mobile": "01234 567 890",
"LandLine": "",
"Email": "laura.somebody@mpd-group.com"
},
"CompanyName": null,
"ShippingLocationReference": "Sorted1",
"CustomerName": null,
"AddressLine1": "Third Floor",
"AddressLine2": "Merchant Exchange",
"AddressLine3": "Whitworth Street West",
"Town": "Manchester",
"Region": "",
"Postcode": "M1 5WG",
"Country": {
"Name": "United Kingdom",
"IsoCode": {
"TwoLetterCode": "GB"
}
},
"RegionCode": "",
"SpecialInstructions": "",
"LatLong": null,
"IsCached": false
},
{
"AddressType": "Destination",
"ShopLocationReference": null,
"Contact": {
"Reference": null,
"Title": "",
"FirstName": "Robert",
"LastName": "Smith",
"Position": null,
"Telephone": "07495747394",
"Mobile": "07495747394",
"LandLine": "0161111454",
"Email": "robert.smith@email.com"
},
"CompanyName": "",
"ShippingLocationReference": null,
"CustomerName": null,
"AddressLine1": "400 N Calhoun Street",
"AddressLine2": "",
"AddressLine3": "",
"Town": "Leeds",
"Region": "West Yorks",
"Postcode": "LS1 6TH",
"Country": {
"Name": "United Kingdom",
"IsoCode": {
"TwoLetterCode": "GB"
}
},
"RegionCode": "IA",
"SpecialInstructions": null,
"LatLong": null,
"IsCached": false
}
],
"Packages": [
{
"ConsignmentLegs": [
{
"Leg": 1,
"TrackingReferences": [
"1Z9A80W5D991115692"
],
"CarrierReference": "UPS",
"CarrierServiceReference": null,
"CarrierName": null
}
],
"Items": [
{
"Reference": "099681e6c66d47c982c86e1e5aaa803c",
"Sku": "sku",
"Model": "model",
"Description": "desc",
"CountryOfOrigin": {
"Name": "United Kingdom",
"IsoCode": {
"TwoLetterCode": "GB"
}
},
"HarmonisationCode": "h code",
"Weight": {
"Value": 0.34000,
"Unit": "Kg"
},
"Dimensions": {
"Unit": "Cm",
"Width": 1.10000,
"Length": 1.10000,
"Height": 1.10000
},
"Value": {
"Amount": 10.0000,
"Currency": {
"Name": "United States dollars",
"IsoCode": "USD"
}
},
"ItemReferenceProvidedByCustomer": "Sorted Package 1 Item 1 Referene",
"Barcode": {
"Code": "code",
"BarcodeType": "AztecCode"
},
"Quantity": 0,
"Unit": null,
"HarmonisationKeyWords": [
"one",
"two"
],
"Status": null,
"ContentClassification": "Unrestricted",
"ContentClassificationDetails": "NotSpecified"
}
],
"Charges": [],
"Reference": "EP-000-05G-CAH",
"PackageReferenceProvidedByCustomer": "",
"Weight": {
"Value": 2.00000,
"Unit": "Kg"
},
"Dimensions": {
"Unit": "Cm",
"Width": 5.00000,
"Length": 10.00000,
"Height": 1.00000
},
"Description": "test description",
"Value": {
"Amount": 20.0000,
"Currency": {
"Name": "United States dollars",
"IsoCode": "USD"
}
},
"PackageSizeReference": null,
"Barcode": {
"Code": "010101",
"BarcodeType": "AustraliaPostalCode"
}
}
]
}
Note
- For more information on the structure of a Track shipment, see the Register Shipments section of the Track API reference and the Registering Shipments page of the Track help.
- For more information on the structure of a Ship's consignment, see the Create Consignment page of the Ship API reference and the Creating New Consignments page of the Ship help.
After Registration
Once a Ship consignment has been registered as a Track shipment, Ship automatically keeps Track updated of any changes. Whenever Ship downloads a new carrier file, it updates any shipments in that file that you have registered with Track accordingly.
Next Steps
- View the Track User Guide for a full overview of how to use Track.
- Learn how to get customs docs and invoices for international shipments at the Getting Customs Docs and Invoices page.
- Learn how to manifest consignments at the Manifesting Consignments page.