Vehicle Logistics: Factory Order to Yard Gate
Between the factory gate and the yard gate, most dealer groups run on email attachments and a shipping spreadsheet. AutoFixia turns that stretch into tracked milestones attached to individual vehicles.
Factory order
FO-2026-0418 · line 03
Production
Completed · VIN assigned
Factory release
Release inspection passed
Port gate-in
Origin port
Vessel loading
Voyage VY-2261 · RoRo
Ocean transit
ETD 28 Jul · ETA 14 Aug
Destination port
Awaiting arrival
Customs clearance
Not started
Yard receiving
Not started
Branch transfer
Not started
Factory order management
A factory order is the formal order a distributor or dealer places with a manufacturer for a defined quantity of vehicles at a defined specification and price. It usually follows a demand forecast and a batch plan, and it is the document against which production, allocation and eventual delivery are reconciled.
The order is where commercial control is either established or lost. If the specification, price and amendment history are not held in a controlled record, everything downstream — cost, margin, allocation, customer promises — is built on an approximation.
Demand into batches
Sales and demand forecasts by model, trim and branch feed a batch plan, so the order reflects expected absorption rather than repeated volume.
Controlled specification
Make, model, trim, model year, exterior and interior colour, options and packages are held as masters, not typed freehand into an order line.
Pricing at source
Factory price and dealer purchase cost sit against the specification, forming the base of every later cost and margin calculation.
Amendments as versions
Changes create a new version rather than overwriting the original, so what was ordered can always be reconciled with what arrived.
Allocation planning
Model, dealer and branch allocation planned against the order, then confirmed as production assigns actual VINs.
Production visibility
Production scheduling and milestone tracking per order line, so sales gets a defensible availability date instead of an optimistic one.
Shipment, vessel and voyage tracking
Vessel schedules move. The operational question is not whether a delay happens but how many days pass before the sales team finds out.
What the shipment record holds
- Shipment linking factory order lines, VINs, vessel and destination
- Voyage details with estimated time of departure and arrival
- Container details, or RoRo where vehicles are driven on and off
- Bill of lading and supporting shipping documents
- Export and import documentation held with the consignment
- Logistics milestones tracked against the planned schedule
- Delay tracking with variance from the original ETA
- Transit damage reporting with photo evidence per VIN
- Logistics claims raised from a recorded damage event
RoRo stands for roll-on roll-off: a vessel type where vehicles are driven on and off under their own power rather than lifted in containers. It is the most common way finished vehicles move in volume, which is why vessel and voyage details matter more than container numbers in a dealer management system.
| Voyage | Type | Units | ETA | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VY-2261 | RoRo | 148 | 14 Aug | At sea |
| VY-2254 | RoRo | 72 | 11 Aug | At sea |
| VY-2247 | Container | 96 | 09 Aug | Delayed 3d |
| VY-2233 | RoRo | 72 | 02 Aug | Berthed |
Delay exposure
Port, customs and operational landed cost
Port and customs is where cost accumulates fastest and gets recorded latest. Capturing it operationally, per VIN, changes what the business knows about its own margin.
Port and customs workflow
- Port arrival and discharge milestones per consignment
- Port arrival inspection with photo evidence
- Customs clearance tracking with status and elapsed time
- Customs duty recorded against the vehicles concerned
- Port charges and storage charges captured as they arise
- Transporter master and transport orders for inland movement
- Port-to-yard and yard-to-branch movement recorded per VIN
- Vehicle receiving with a yard receiving inspection
Operational landed cost per VIN
Operational landed cost is the accumulated cost of getting one specific vehicle to the dealer yard: factory cost plus freight, marine and transit cost, customs and duty, port charges, storage, inland transport and allocable preparation cost.
| Factory cost | Base, from the specification |
|---|---|
| + Freight | Per shipment, apportioned per unit |
| + Marine / transit | Insurance and transit cost |
| + Customs & duty | Recorded at clearance |
| + Port charges | Handling and terminal |
| + Storage | Including demurrage exposure |
| + Inland transport | Port to yard, yard to branch |
| + Preparation | Allocable preparation cost |
| = Landed cost | Per VIN, not per shipment |
AutoFixia records operational cost and passes financial postings to AutoFixia Finance or the existing accounting platform. The DMS does not maintain a general ledger.
Stage-wise inspection and PDI
PDI stands for pre-delivery inspection: the structured check a dealership performs before handing a vehicle to a customer, covering condition, cleanliness, functionality, fluids, fitted accessories and documentation. In AutoFixia, PDI is the last of several inspections rather than the only one — because damage found at delivery usually happened much earlier.
The commercial value of inspecting at every handover point is not thoroughness for its own sake. It is that when a mark appears on a bonnet, the record already shows which stage it appeared at, and therefore who carries the cost.
| Inspection | When it happens | Typical findings |
|---|---|---|
| Factory release | Before despatch from the manufacturer | Specification mismatch, factory damage, missing items |
| Pre-shipment | Before loading to vessel | Handling damage at the origin port |
| Port arrival | On discharge at the destination port | Transit damage, water ingress, securing damage |
| Yard receiving | On arrival at the dealer yard | Inland transport damage, missing keys or documents |
| Branch receiving | On transfer to a branch or showroom | Damage during internal movement |
| Pre-delivery inspection | Before customer handover | Preparation quality, accessory fitment, functionality |
| Final delivery inspection | At handover, with the customer present | Agreed condition at the moment of transfer |
Configurable templates
Checklists defined per stage, brand and vehicle type, so an EV inspection is not forced through a combustion-vehicle template.
Evidence, not assertions
Photos and media attached to each result, held against the VIN and readable months later when a claim is raised.
Three-state results
Pass, fail and observation, with rework required, re-inspection and an approval workflow before a vehicle can proceed.
Damage classification
Factory, transit, port, yard and showroom damage classified with location, stage and responsible party.
Claims and rework
Repair estimate, claim management and approval, repair or rework, then re-inspection tracked to closure.
Delivery hold on damage
Unresolved damage blocks delivery readiness, so a vehicle cannot be scheduled for handover while a rework is open.
What changes operationally
Before
- Shipping status held in a spreadsheet updated weekly by one person
- Delays discovered when a customer calls to ask about their vehicle
- Customs and port charges reconciled at month end, per shipment
- Vehicle cost estimated by dividing shipment cost across units
- Damage disputes settled by argument rather than evidence
- Receiving date recorded approximately, making stock aging unreliable
After
- Every milestone recorded against the VIN as it happens
- Delay exposure visible on a dashboard, by voyage and unit count
- Charges captured operationally at the point they arise
- Landed cost accumulated per vehicle, feeding deal margin
- Damage evidenced at the stage it occurred, with photos
- Receiving as a system event, making aging trustworthy
These are descriptions of how the system works, not measured customer outcomes. AutoFixia does not publish return-on-investment figures without stated methodology.
See factory-to-yard tracking
Follow one VIN from the batch plan through the vessel and customs to the yard slot, with the cost that accumulated on the way.