Trailer Assignments
When assigning a trailer to a trip, Ditat tracks the trailer's location at every step of the journey. The correct assignment method depends on how the trailer is handled at each stop.
Assignment Types
When completing a trailer assignment, keep the following in mind:
Coming In – Represents the start of the load. This is where the trailer assignment begins.
Think of this as what trailer did the driver have on their previous load, how do they come to the pickup location.
Going Out – Represents the completion of the load. This is where the trailer assignment ends.
Think of this as what trailer will they have for the next load, how do they leave the delivery location.
Stop Numbers – When stop numbers are shown, they correspond directly to each stop on the trip. For example, Stop 1 is the first stop, Stop 2 is the second, and so on. The assignment should reflect which trailer the truck is arriving and departing with at each of those stops.
Live Load/Unload If the trailer is live loaded and unloaded (the truck stays with the trailer throughout), use the live load assignment.
In a live load there is only one trailer and it is coming and and going out with that trailer.
Drop Trailer If the trailer is dropped at a location and the truck leaves without a trailer, use the drop trailer assignment.
Picking Up a New Trailer If the truck picks up a different trailer at a stop, assign the trailer to reflect that the truck is departing with the new trailer.
Third-Party Trailer If a third-party trailer is used at any point during the trip, this can also be assigned within the wizard.
Common Errors
The following are the most frequently encountered errors when assigning trailers in Ditat.
"To" Location Is Not the Last Stop
This error occurs when the "To" location selected in the assignment wizard is not the final stop on the trip.
Gap in Trailer Assignment
This error occurs when there is a break in the trailer assignment between stops — meaning no trailer is assigned for one or more legs of the trip.
(Image: Gap in assignment example — no trailer assigned from Stop 2 to Stop 3)
Example: If a trailer is assigned from Coming in to Stop 2, and then again from Stop 3 to Going out, but nothing is assigned between Stop 2 and Stop 3, Ditat will flag this as a gap error.
Overlapping Trailer Assignments
This error occurs when two trailer assignments overlap — meaning the same trailer is assigned to conflicting legs of the trip at the same time.
(Image: Overlapping trailer assignment example)
Tip: To avoid these errors, make sure every leg of the trip has a continuous, non-overlapping trailer assignment from the first stop to the last.