FAQ

Do I need Postie?

No, but it is the point. Postie is what turns pallets into a live carrier quote. Without it Palletizr still builds pallets for the simulator, your templates and its own freight tariffs.

Does it change anything before I write a rule?

No. Nothing palletizes until a rule says to, and "palletize when no rule matches" is off by default.

Why do my pallets come out half empty?

Look at the cube-used figure in the simulator. Consistently low numbers usually mean your carton sizes and your deck do not get on — which is worth knowing, because changing a carton size is often cheaper than shipping the air.

If it is one pallet in a spill that is nearly empty, switch the rule's spill strategy to spread the layers evenly.

Why is my order not palletizing?

php craft palletizr <order-number> --explain

Every rule that was evaluated, whether it matched, and the first condition that failed if it did not.

What is the difference between block and optimised?

Block lays every carton the same way round and takes the better of the two orientations. Optimised searches guillotine cuts for interlocked patterns. On many carton sizes they agree; on many others optimised fits a whole extra row per layer. Both ship in the one edition; optimised is the default.

Is the pattern solver optimal?

No, and it says so. It searches patterns that can be produced by repeated straight cuts across the whole remaining area, which is a real restriction — a handful of carton sizes have a best packing that is not guillotine-cuttable. It is also exactly the restriction a human loader works under: a pattern nobody can build from a stack of cartons and a diagram is not worth finding.

Is the freight class it derives authoritative?

It is the NMFTA density guideline, which is what the great majority of LTL freight is classed on and what every carrier's tariff is built around. It is not a classification. A commodity with its own NMFC item number is classed by that number regardless of what it weighs, and some commodities are classed on stowability or liability instead of density. Set the pallet's freight class override for those.

Are the carrier limits my carrier's actual limits?

They are each carrier's general published limits. A store with a negotiated tariff will have different numbers, which is why a violation is a warning on the load rather than a refusal to quote, and why a tariff may pick a different carrier's limits.

Why is a carton shipping loose?

Because it has no dimensions recorded, or because it fits no enabled deck, or because a rule's maximum pallet count was reached. All three are named in the load's warnings.

Does the pallet's weight get charged?

Yes, and that is the point of entering it. A GMA pallet is about 34 lb and a hardwood Australian pallet about 88 lb; on a three-pallet shipment that is over a hundred pounds of billable weight that has nothing to do with what was ordered. Weigh one of yours and enter the real number.

What happens if Palletizr throws during a Postie rate request?

The error is logged and Postie's original packing stands. The worst case is a shipment quoted as loose cartons — which is what would have happened without the plugin.

Can I use a Palletizr tariff and Postie at the same time?

Yes, for different services. Do not enable both for the same one, or the customer sees two prices for one shipment.

Are there editions?

No. Palletizr is $59 with a $49/year renewal, and everything is switched on: the optimised solver, per-class hundredweight rates, condition-builder rules, the Postie bridge, the simulator and the console. The renewal buys updates and support; the plugin keeps working if you let it lapse.