How to configure A&B (ANB) in techSHIP

[ADD SYNC BLOCK: Type /sync and select "TS - Carrier - 1"]

The A&B integration supports:

• Void

• Rate Shop

• Tracking History, through techTRACK

• Collect (COD)

• Time in Transit

• Label References

• Signature Required

Information to be Provided

The following credentials and data points are mandatory to connect to A&B. Ensure you have these items available before starting the setup:

Specifications and Constraints

Operational Details

A&B offers courier, Less-than-Truckload (LTL), and Full Truckload (FTL) services. The integration includes Canadian and US service options; confirm service availability for your account and shipment lane with A&B.

Bill of Lading (BOL): For LTL and FTL services, the carrier-returned shipping document is made available as the BOL. Configure the required document output at the Baseline Account before processing shipments.

• Pickup appointments: Populating the order's Ship date/time requests a pickup appointment and may result in an A&B appointment accessorial charge. Enter a complete date and time when an appointment is required.

• Pickup availability: Use pickup times accepted by A&B. An explicitly entered time is sent to the carrier without being moved into office hours.

• Shipment addresses: Provide a contact name, street address, city, postal code, and country for both pickup and delivery.

[ADD SYNC BLOCK: Type /sync and select "TS - Carrier - 2"]

Carrier Tab

Configure the following settings in the Baseline Account.

A&B Credentials

• Access key: Enter the API access key provided by A&B.

• Client ID: Enter the account identifier provided by A&B. It must be a positive integer.

Pickup Settings

The following scheduling fields apply when pickup scheduling is configured per carrier. Portals using centralized pickup scheduling manage these scheduling settings separately.

• Ready time: Enter the earliest time shipments are available for pickup. This value also supplies the pickup-ready time when a shipment date contains no time of day.

• Pickup close: Enter the latest time the warehouse is available for pickup.

• Pickup ready hours: Enter the preparation interval in hours. When calculating pickup readiness from the current time, techSHIP adds this interval and adjusts the result for the pickup opening and closing times and weekend settings.

• Weekends mode: Select the weekend availability that matches warehouse operations.

• Pickup instructions: Enter any instructions that A&B needs when collecting shipments.

Sender Address

Complete the Sender address section with the warehouse induction address and pickup contact information.

Labels Tab

Formats: A&B returns shipping labels and documents in PDF.

Configure Mode for PDF output. Supported output dimensions are 4 × 6 inches and 8.5 × 11 inches.

Document layout: For 8.5 × 11-inch output, configure Waybill Type in the Baseline Account's Carrier tab to request the required layout, such as BOL or Waybill. This setting is available when the account uses the 8.5 × 11-inch size.

[ADD SYNC BLOCK: Type /sync and select "TS - Carrier - 3"]

Carrier Tab

Configure the following client-specific settings in the Client Account.

Service and Package Settings

• Service code: Select the service to use for the client's shipments, or retain the service supplied with the order. Use the rate-shopping option when the account should select the lowest-priced available service.

• Package type: Select the package type that matches the client's shipments.

• Vehicle type: Select a vehicle when the shipment requires a specific type. If left unset, A&B calculates the vehicle type from the package information.

• Caller: Enter the caller information to send to A&B with shipment bookings, when applicable.

Sender and Contact Information

• Override sender address: Enable this option when the client ships from a different pickup address, and complete the client's sender address.

• Contact Email: Enter the client's contact email to send with shipment bookings.

• Contact phone: Enter the client's contact phone number to send with shipment bookings.

Specifying Rate Shopping Service Codes

When using Rate Shop, you can restrict which services are included or excluded from consideration.

For detailed instructions on how to configure this, see: Include or exclude Service Codes when Rate Shopping [Step-by-Step guide].

Label References

A&B supports one shipment reference, configured through Reference 1 in the Client Account's General tab, under Labels.

Only Reference 1 is sent to A&B. The other generic reference fields do not add further references to this integration.

For a comprehensive guide on how to use label references, see: Using order References in your labels [Step-by-Step guide].

[ADD SYNC BLOCK: Type /sync and select "TS - Carrier - 4"]

Configure shipment-specific settings in the order's carrier settings, under Options.

Pickup and Delivery Appointments

• Ship date/time: Enter the pickup date and time. A populated order-level value requests a pickup appointment; no separate pickup-appointment checkbox is required. Pickup times calculated solely from batch or scheduling settings do not automatically request this appointment.

• Set delivery appointment time: Enable this option when a delivery appointment is required.

• Delivery appointment date/time: Enter the complete delivery date and time after enabling Set delivery appointment time. The full date and time are sent to A&B.

Set the delivery appointment after the planned pickup. To remove a delivery appointment, disable Set delivery appointment time; a previously stored value is not sent while this option is disabled.

Shipment Options

• Collect on delivery amount: Enter the amount to collect when COD applies.

• Insurance required: Enable carrier insurance when needed and enter Declared value for the shipment.

• Tailgate at pickup and Tailgate at delivery: Enable the required tailgate services.

• Inside pickup and Inside delivery: Enable the required inside handling services.

• Handbomb at pickup and Handbomb at delivery: Enable the required manual handling services.

• Vehicle type: Select a shipment-specific vehicle when it should take precedence over the Client Account's selection.

Click Save to apply the order-level changes. After the Order is updated, continue with the standard shipping workflow.

Troubleshooting

• Carrier credentials rejected: Verify Access key and Client ID in the Baseline Account's Carrier tab against the values provided by A&B. The Client ID must be a positive integer.

• Office-closed rejection: If A&B returns Our office is closed and no one may see this request., review Ship date/time on the order and the configured Ready time. Use a pickup time accepted by the carrier. For a pickup appointment, enter both date and time rather than a date-only value.

• Incorrect delivery appointment: Enable Set delivery appointment time and review Delivery appointment date/time on the order. Enter the intended delivery date as well as the time, and verify that it follows the planned pickup.

• Vehicle cannot be calculated: Review package dimensions, weight, and Package type. If the carrier cannot calculate a vehicle, select an appropriate Vehicle type in the Client Account or on the order.

• Missing shipment reference: Configure Reference 1 in the Client Account's General tab. Additional generic reference fields are not sent to A&B.

• BOL appears instead of a parcel label: Confirm the selected service. LTL and FTL services return the carrier document as a BOL; review the Baseline Account's output size and Waybill Type if a different document layout is required.