The Customer Masterfile within the Administration Menu Option in Expedient stores details of your Customers, Creditors and other stakeholders of your day to day business.
Expedient can help automate aspects of job registration and other operations in Forwarding and Brokerage if the Customer Masterfile is contains the right details.
Setting up the Customer Masterfile for the Importer correctly can help ensure that your client’s requirements and expectations are met on every job.
This guide will provide a step by step flow through adding a new Importer to your Expedient and explain how certain fields in the Customer Masterfile can help automate your daily processes.
Creating the basic Customer Masterfile
Step 1: Main Menu – Administration – Customer Masterfile. You may also have a shortcut to the Customer Masterfile in the ShortCuts tab on your Expedient dashboard.
Step 2: Add Button / “A” Key
Step 3: Enter each field data, where applicable. Use the Tab button to advance to the next field.
Step 4: In the Company Type set Importer to Yes. This automatically sets Debtor to Yes and makes the Importer ‘Active’. This means the Importer can be used when creating new jobs. If this Customer Code is no longer required update the Customer Masterfile to Inactive and users will not be able to create new Jobs for the Customer Code.
Step 5: Tab to the Import Tab.
Fields in the Importer Tab
This section will show how entering specific fields in the Importer Tab can help speed up the job registration and other operations processes within Expedient.
Customs Bill To
Expedient automatically sets the Customs Bill to the Customer Code. Expedient will default all Brokerage Jobs to be invoiced to the Customer Code in this field.
You can see this happening in the Charges screen available from the Job Registration screen
Invoices for Brokerage Jobs added in the Debtors>Invoices screen will also default to the Customs Bill to Customer Code
Update the code in the Customer Masterfile ‘Customs Bill To’ field if you always want to invoice Charges to another Customer Code.
Expedient will allow the default Bill To code to be changed.
Forwarding Bill To
Expedient automatically sets the Forwarding Bill to the Customer Code as you tab into the field. Expedient will default all Forwarding Only Jobs to be invoiced to the Customer Code in this field if the Job.
You can see this happening in the Charges screen available from the Job Registration screen
Invoices for Forwarding Jobs added in the Debtors>Invoices screen will also default to the Customs Bill to Customer Code
Expedient will allow the default Bill To code to be changed.
Customs Broker
This field will automatically populate the Broker field in the Job Registration screen. If the Importer always uses the same Broker enter the Broker code in this field
Send Automatic Email Notification at Cargo Check In
If your site does Air Cargo and/or Sea Cargo Reporting and your site is set up to send Cargo Check In Notifications this field determines whether the notification is sent automatically to the Clients Broker. The default Broker for the Importer has to be set up to receive Check In Notifications within their own Customer Masterfile. This field cannot be updated unless the Importer’s Customs Broker is set up to receive Check In Notifications.
In the below screenshot the Broker SLCTEST is set up to receive Check In Notifications and any Air or LCL Cargo checked in for the Importer TRAINING will trigger an email advising Cargo Availability to the appropriate contacts at the Broker SLCTEST.
You can select particular contacts at the Broker to receive the Notifications for the Importer by entering the email address in the ‘Automatic Check In Notification Broker Contacts’ table. Use the 
zoom button in the Email Address column to bring up a list of existing contacts at the Broker. Use the 
button to add or update Broker Contacts if required.
If you do not specify contacts for the Broker within the Importer’s Customer Masterfile the Check In notifications will go to all the Contacts listed in the Broker’s Customer Masterfile to receive Check In Notifications.
Owner EFT
This field determines if the Importer has Customs Charges paid from their Customs EFT account.
When set to Yes the EFT Authorisation Expiry Date field will appear. An automatic report, report code OWNEREFT, can be set up to alert you when EFT Payment Authorisations are about to expire so any delays in payment can be avoided.
The Importer’s Customs EFT Band Details must be entered if the Owner EFT flag is set to Yes
Land Cost
This field is used to indicate to Users that the Importer requires a Landed Costing report. Within the Job Registration screen the Landed Cost flag will be set to match the Importers Customer Masterfile
Defer GST
This field is used to indicate that the Importer always defers GST. This flag is referred to when calculating Duty
ONS Factor
This field stores the Marine Insurance Factor for this Importer. Expedient stores a default ONS factor but a different factor can be stored for particular Importers using this field. This factor is used in the Nature 10/20 screen.
Entry Type
This field is used to allow your Importer to always have either Consolidated or Unconsolidated Entries.
If this flag is set to ‘Ask at Entry Time’ Users will be asked to select either Consolidated or Unconsolidated at the time of preparing the Entry. Therefore setting the Entry Type within the Importer’s Customer Masterfile saves the Users and additional step when preparing the Entry.
Supplier Invoice P/O Edit Default
This field determines if the P/O Edit Toggle button in the Supplier Invoice and the Pre-Job Supplier Invoices screen is On when the User Adds or Updates a Supplier Invoice
Automatic Printing
This section determines which Customs documents are printed to your Customs Printer automatically on receipt from Customs. The number of copies of the Entry can also be sent.
Automatic Emailing
This section determines if particular emails are triggered to be send to Customs contacts at the Importer on receipt from Customs
If the Owner EFT flag is Yes the EFT flags in the Automatic Emailing section will appear. The email recipients will be those at the Importer that are set to receive the appropriate Document Distribution Group
The EFT Authority to Direct Debit will be sent if the EFT Expiry Date has passed. Both the EFT Notification and the EFT Authority to Direct Debit emails will include the Entry as an attachment.
Demurrage Terms
The Importer may have special demurrage terms agreed with Shipping Lines. Expedient can store that information to calculate the correct demurrage start date for tracking return of containers
Set the flag to Yes and a new table will appear at the bottom on the Importer Tab screen
Use the zoom button in the Shipping Line Code column to select a Shipping Line, enter the number of demurrage free days, the type of container, and when the Shipping Line begins the calculation of days in demurrage.
Notes Pop Up Configuration
The Configuration tab in the Customer Masterfile determines when important notes pop up to alert Users to the Importers requirements.
The fields are grouped into the actions that would trigger the notes to pop up e.g. Import Job Registration
E.g.
The above example shows that: –
- The Delivery Notes will pop up for this Importer when the Delivery Details tab in the Import Job Registration screen is opened
- The Job Notes will pop up when a Job for the Importer is Added or Updated
- The Supplier Notes will pop up when a Job for the Importer is Added or Updated
- The Pre-Alert Reminder will not appear when a new Job is added. Where Pre-Alert Reminder flag is set to Yes the creation of new Jobs will trigger the below message to appear
Delivery Addresses
Multiple Delivery Addresses can be stored for an Importer. Set the Default Delivery Address to automatically populate new jobs and default the Carrier for the job type.
Step 1: Options Menu – Delivery Addresses.
Step 2: Add Button / “A” Key
Step 3: Enter each field data, where applicable. Use the Tab button to advance to the next field. These fields are used to automatically populate jobs where the Delivery Address code is used.
- Default Address: if this field is ticked every job added for this Importer will automatically use this address for the delivery
- Carrier Instructions: these will automatically appear in the Job Delivery Details tab where the Delivery Address Code is used. This information will also appear on Delivery Dockets and other notifications.
- Delivery Type: If the job is for FCL or LCL the Delivery Type will be automatically populated in the Container Details tab in the Job
Expedient will store the Importers preferred carriers for specific job types and ports to automatically populate jobs.
Step 1: Options Menu – Delivery Addresses.
Step 2: Update button / ‘U’ Key
Step 3: Select the Carrier Type from the pull down list
Step 4: Select if the Carrier is for Import or Exports. Enter the Carrier Code or use 
to search for the code. Select the Port the Carrier should be used at or leave blank for all ports. Select the default job instruction to the Carrier e.g. Wharf to Customer, Wharf to Yard to Customer to Dehire. This column is important for Carriers receiving bookings via EDI. Enter any notes for this instruction that should be conveyed to the Carrier on delivery instructions
Step 5: OK button to Save
Expedient will automatically populate the Carrier Code in Jobs added for the Importer matching the details stored in the screen above
E.g. A new Import FCL Job for Importer TRAINING with destination port Brisbane will automatically populate with the Carrier details below
Expedient can store contacts at the Importer. Email addresses for contacts will be used to send documentation from Expedient.
Step 1: Options Menu – Personnel
Step 2: Add button / ‘A’ Key
Step 3: Enter the contact details for the Personnel
Each document generated from Expedient to an External Contact belongs to a Document Distribution Group. You can assign Contacts at the Importer to a Document Distribution Group so they get the documentation which is relevant to them.
For example, contact Helen Stapely, who works in the Import Department of importer TRAINING, is assigned to the Customs Notifications Document Group. Helen Stapely’s email address will automatically appear in the distribution list for the documents ‘Import Declaration’ and ‘EFT Receipt’ when these are emailed manually and automatically.
A contact can be assigned to multiple Document Distribution Groups or ‘All Documents’.
You can check which Documents belong in which Document Distribution Group using the 
toolbar button.
Expedient will store the details of document held for the Importer, including Permits, Service Agreements, and Packing Declarations.
Your site can maintain the types of documents Expedient is expected to include in the Register.
Step 1: Options Menu – Client Document Register
Step 2: Add / ‘A’ Key
Step 3: Click on 
in the Type column to select a Document Type. Enter the Supplier if the document is relevant only to a particular Supplier to the Importer. Add validity dates were relevant. Expedient will calculate the number of days to Expiry.
Expedient will automatically list Permits that have already been provided for Customs Entries for the Importer.
To keep track of Permits or other Documentation that may have expired, or are about to expire, use the automatic report, Report Code EXPPERMPRT.