SMARTFORMS TM 6.0 Lowe s Reference Guide Creating A Shipment
L G Sourcing, Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary of Lowe s Companies, Inc. Lowe s and L G Sourcing, Inc are working in cooperation with our ocean freight providers, our U S Customs Brokers, Consolidators and our vendors on a container tracking database. Lowes, in collaboration with GXS, is working in a web-based application that will help Lowes to better manage their inventory flow. Better inventory flow will mean more consistent ordering of product for each of you. All import vendors will be required to input the necessary data into this application. This will be a financial instrument requirement on shipments after April 15, 2001. A printed copy of a successfully submitted GXS SmartForm will be presented to the bank or to Lowe s with your documents for payment. Attached are the instructions for getting into the GXS Internet site and also the instructions for the input of the. The site http://my-test.celarix.us.gxs.com/ is a test site. You will need to assign someone in your organization to input the required information, as per the Smartforms Guide. BE SURE TO REVIEW THE REFERENCE GUIDE VERY CLOSELY AS IT CONTAINS VERY PRACTICAL AND USEFUL TIPS AND INFORMATION. Please let LG Sourcing or your Inventory contact know when you have started inputting data providing them with the purchase order number and container number that was attempted. That input will be monitored for successful update of the necessary information. We ask that three successful test transmissions (three po s/containers) are completed and verified by the LGS or Inventory contact.. At that time you will be given a new password and you will start using the Internet site (my.celarix.com). This site will be the production site where your shipment records will be matched to ocean carrier and Customs brokerage inputs to provide a complete record of the progress of the shipment from vessel departure to return of the container to the ocean carrier. In order for this match to these other records to take place, all data input must be carefully checked for accuracy. Please contact Import Administration (email addresses: melissa.l.royall@lowes.com or michelle.s.wood@lowes.com) for your test site USER NAME and PASSWORD. We appreciate your participation in this initiative. 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS Logging In...4 Creating a Shipment...7 Entering Seaway Bill Information...7 Using the Browse For and Calendar Functions...11 Adding a Note...13 Entering Container Information...14 Entering Order Information...21 Entering Item Information...24 Saving a Draft...26 Editing...28 Deleting...28 Copying...29 Printing...29 Submitting a Shipment Record to GXS...30 Logging Out...34 Changing Your Password...35 3
LOGGING IN 1. Enter the GXS URL address: http://my.celarix.com in the address field at the top of your Internet browser. 2. The Login Popup Window will appear. GXS Login Popup Window Login Link 3. Enter the following Login information: Username: Password: (please note that passwords are case sensitive) Company ID: lowes (please note that Company ID is not case sensitive) 4
4. After entering the Login information and verifying it is correct, click on the Log in button. 5. Click on the SmartForms link under Our Solutions in the toolbar menu on the left side of the screen Smart Forms Link 6. Depending on your Java client software, the first time you log in to SmartForms, you may receive a Security Warning window as the application loads. Click on the check box next to Always trust content from GXS. and click on the Yes button. By clicking on the check box, the Security Warning message will no longer appear when you log in. Note: If a user accidentally selects No on the Security Warning pop up window, the application will not load. The user must close their Internet browser and open the browser up again and then click on the SmartForms link. 5
7. The following screen will appear as the application loads. Please note that it will take a couple of seconds for the screen to fully load. 8. The following SmartForms home screen (Dashboard) will appear: Create Shipment Button 6
CREATING A SHIPMENT Click on the Create Shipment button at the bottom of the Dashboard screen and the following Create screen will appear: Shipment Info Tab Navigational Outline ENTERING SEAWAY BILL INFORMATION 1. To enter the Seaway Bill, click on the Lookup button adjacent to the field and the Key Assembler screen will launch. A red arrow indicates a required field 7
2. Click on the drop down arrow in the SCAC field and select Browse for to search for the ocean carrier you are using. The carriers in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will maintain up to 20 of your most recently used carriers allowing you to quickly select a carrier without having to search again. Enter * for all. Only the first 250 results will display. Using Browse For a. Select the Browse for option to search for a carrier (or select a carrier from the list if available). b. Type the carrier name (full or partial) in the search field and click the Search button. c. Select desired carrier from the search results and click the OK button. Carrier name will populate in the SCAC field and additional required fields will appear based off the selected Carrier. 3. The Location field is a free text field that will allow you to type alpha characters in upper case. Type in the appropriate location abbreviation following the SCAC code (where applicable) on the Seaway Bill as received by the carrier. 4. The Reference # field is a free text field. The Reference # is usually the 7 digit number that follows the SCAC and/or location. You will NOT be able to include any spaces or extra characters such as a -. 8
5. Click the Build Key button at any point in time to see the current assembled Seaway Bill. The Build Key button places the SCAC, Location and Reference # together in the Seaway Bill field. Important: Verify that the Seaway Bill exactly matches your document. Carrier Seaway Bill requirements Carrier Location Reference # APL N/A 9-10 Numeric Maersk N/A 3-15 Alpha Numeric (uppercase) P&O 3 Alpha (uppercase) 8-10 Numeric K Line N/A 9-10 Numeric Yang Ming 1 Alpha (uppercase) 9 Numeric ZIM 3 Alpha (uppercase) 5-8 Numeric ZIM-SSPH DO NOT USE DO NOT USE Click on the Build Key button at any time to view your current Seaway Bill. Note: The carrier name is abbreviated to the SCAC code 6. When the Seaway Bill field has been populated correctly, click on the Submit button and the value will populate in the Seaway Bill field on the Create Shipment screen and in the Navigational Outline on the left side of the screen. Note: If you have made any errors, a red exclamation will appear adjacent to the field containing the error in the Key Assembler screen. Click on the exclamation point and text will appear detailing the reason for the error.. 9
Click the red exclamation point and text will appear detailing the reason for the error. Location is required. Value must be exactly 3 characters Value must be exactly 6 characters 7. Continue to enter the following information on the Shipment Info tab: (Note: A red arrow indicates a required field.) Field Name Seaway Bill Shipping Order ASN Provider Ocean Carrier Vessel Name Voyage # Feeder Vessel/Voyage # Create Date Message Origin Date Mode See instructions above. Value to Enter Enter the Carrier Booking number in this field. Carrier SCAC is not required. Use drop down arrow to select or search for your company s name or the correct location if your company has more than one location. The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used provider names. (For search instructions, see Using the Browse For Function on pages 11-12) Use drop down arrow to select or search for the Ocean Carrier who issued the Seaway Bill. The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used carriers. Enter the entire vessel name without abbreviation or punctuation. (e.g. Ming Peace instead of M. Peace ) Enter entire voyage number Enter feeder vessel information separating the vessel and voyage with a / example: Feeder Vessel/Voyage. If there is no feeder vessel for this shipment leave this field blank. Not applicable. No information can be entered into this field. Use 12) button to select today s date. (For calendar function, see page Use drop down arrow to select Cntzd Ocean. 10
Loaded By Customs POE (Port of Entry) Broker Name Broker Ref # Customs Entry # Service Contract # LGS-CNY Sold To Domestic Use drop down arrow to select or search for your company s name and the correct location if your company has more then one location. The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used providers. Leave blank. Field is not required. Use drop down arrow to select or search for the Customs broker as indicated in the Lowe s Shipping Procedures. The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used broker names. Leave blank. Field is not required. Leave blank. Field is not required. Click on the lookup button to search for correct contract number. Contract Numbers are formatted Carrier Name Contract Number. Example: enter AP and your search will produce the current APL Service Contract. The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used broker names. If shipment should be flagged as part of the Lowe's Chinese New Year program, use browse for to search for LGS-CNY Leave blank. Field is not required. Leave blank. Field is not required. USING THE BROWSE FOR AND CALENDAR FUNCTIONS 1. For location and provider fields containing the button, click on the button and select the first option Browse for Browse For appears as 1st option in drop down list. The list may contain up to 20 of your most recently used values. The Calendar function appears next to date fields. 11
2. One of the following pop up windows will appear depending on whether you are searching for a provider or location: Provider Browser Location Browser Type value in a search field and click Search. Select desired value and click OK to accept. a. Type in value or part of value. For example, typing the letter A will return all values beginning with A. Click on the Search button. Matching results will appear. Select the desired value so it is highlighted and click the OK button. Value will populate in the appropriate field. 3. For date fields containing the button, click on the button and the following calendar pop up window will appear: a. Click on desired date and the field will populate accordingly. PLEASE DISREGARD THE DESCRIPTION TAB. 12
ADDING A NOTE 1. You may also add any desired Notes to the shipment information via the Notes tab. Click on the Notes tab and the following screen will appear: Notes Tab 2. Click on the Add Note button and type in desired Note. Click on the Add Note button when finished and the Note will appear in the Notes tab. Type note text and click the Add Note button. * Notes cannot be edited or deleted. 3. Once the Shipment Info tab within the Shipment screen is complete, the next step is to add container information. 13
ENTERING CONTAINER INFORMATION 1. From the Create Shipment screen, click on the Add Container button at the bottom of the screen. Add Container button 2. The Container: New Container screen will appear: 14
3. To enter the Container reference number click on the Lookup button adjacent to the field and the Key Assembler screen will launch. Key Assembler (for Container) A red arrow indicates a required field. 4. Click on the drop down arrow in the Container Alpha field and select Browse for to search for the container s four (4)-letter SCAC code on your document. The SCAC codes in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will maintain up to 20 of your most recently used codes allowing you to quickly select a SCAC code without having to search again. 1. Enter SCAC code (full or partial) in the search field and click the Search button. 2. Select desired code from the search results and click the OK button. NOTE: If you cannot locate your 4-letter SCAC code, please contact Lowe s Import Administration (see page 1 for contact information) and indicate the SCAC code that is missing. 15
5. Enter the Container number. The Container # field is a free text field that will allow you to type in a seven (7) digit number. 6. Click the Build button at any point in time to see the current assembled Container. The Build button places your Container Alpha and Container # together in the Container field. 7. Click the Submit button and the Container will populate in the Container field on the New Container screen and in the Navigational Outline on the left side of the screen. 8. Continue to enter the following information on the Container tab: Field Name Container Fumigated Port of Loading Port of Unloading Customs Status See instructions above. Value to Enter Check box if container has been fumigated Use drop down arrow to select or search for the port of loading as listed on the Seaway Bill. The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used locations. (For Browse For instructions, see pages 11-12) Only valid Lowe's Port of Loading locations will be available for selection. Use drop down arrow to select or search for the port of unloading as listed on the Seaway Bill. The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used locations. Only valid Lowe's Port of Unloading locations will be available for selection. Leave blank. Field is not required. 16
Vessel Depart Discharge Port ETA Use Use button to select the departure date of the Mother Vessel button to select the US port of discharge ETA Rail Destination Destination Location Service Description Booking ID Leave blank. Field is not required. Use drop down arrow to select or search for Lowe s destination location (for example, DC location). The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used locations. Only valid Lowe's RDC's will be available for selection. Use drop down arrow to select or search for service descriptions. The values in the drop down list will increase with each search you perform. The list will include up to 20 of the most recently used locations. (for example, CY/CY, CFS/CY, CFS/CFS). For all Lowe s vendor direct loads, CY/CY should be selected. Leave blank. This is not required. * To add another container, click on the Seaway Bill level in the outline on the left side of the screen and click on the Add Container button at the bottom of the screen. Refer to Steps 1-8 on pg. 14. 9. Once the Container tab is completed, click on the Properties tab. The following screen will appear: Properties tab Note: To delete a container at any point, click on the Remove Container button to remove the entire container. 17
10. On the Properties tab, the following fields should be filled in accordingly: Field Name Container Size Seal # 2nd Seal Weight/Unit of Measure Volume/Unit of Measure Rated As Trucker SCAC Fees (at bottom of screen) Value to Enter Use drop down arrow to select the container size shipped. Enter container Seal number as shown on the Seaway Bill. Leave blank. Information is not required. Leave blank. Information will be summed up and auto populated from quantities entered at the item level Leave blank. Information will be summed up and auto populated from quantities entered at the item level Use drop down arrow to select the appropriate equipment size the container is rated as on the Seaway Bill. Leave blank. Information is not required. Leave blank. Information is not required. 11. Once the Properties tab is completed, click on the Activities tab. The following screen will appear: Activities tab Add button 18
12. Click on the Add button to add the shipment activity Vessel Departure. The following pop up window will appear: 13. In the Activity pop up window, the following fields should be filled in accordingly: Field Name Activity Date/Time Time Zone Value to Enter Use drop down arrow to select Vessel Departure. For Date, use button to select appropriate date from calendar. Time defaults at 00:00 and should not be modified. Use drop down arrow to select Universal Time Coordinate. *Note: If you choose a date over 365 days ago from the current date, the system will present a warning message. If the date is valid, click ok to accept and continue, otherwise recheck your selection: Completed Activity Pop Up Window 19
14. Click on the Submit button when activity information is complete and the information will populate on the Activities tab (see screen below). Activity information populates here Use the Action button to Edit or Delete any information. PLEASE DISREGARD THE QUANTITIES TAB. The system will sum and auto populate the quantities tab at the container from the quantities that will be entered at the item level. PLEASE DISREGARD THE TRANSLOADS TAB. 15. You may add any desired Notes to the container information via the Notes tab. Click on the Notes tab and refer to Adding a Note on pg. 13 for instructions on Notes functionality. 16. To add additional containers, click on the Seaway Bill in the navigational outline on the left side of the screen and the Shipment screen will appear. Click on the Add Container button in the lower section of the screen to add container information. Repeat Steps 1-15. 20
Add Container button ENTERING ORDER INFORMATION 1. To add Order information, click on the Lookup Order button at the bottom section of the Container: New Container screen. (Lowe s users will not use the Add Order button.) Lookup Order button 21
2. The following Search window will appear. Type an order reference value in the Order field containing the green arrow. Click on the Search button and matching records will appear. Click on desired order number and click OK. Order Search Pop Up Window 1. Type in order search value and click Search. 2. Select desired value and click OK. *If desired Order number does not appear, please contact your respective LGS office or the appropriate Lowe s representative. 3. Order number, Factory and Country of Origin fields are automatically populated based on the Order selected. Note that the order number will also appear in the navigational outline on the left side of the screen. Order number, Factory and Country of Origin fields are automatically populated Click on the Remove Order button at any time to remove the entire order. 22
4. In the Order screen, the following fields should be filled in accordingly: Field Name PO #-LOC-RR # Factory (Vendor) Country of Origin Invoice # FCR Number Value to Enter Automatically populated via Lookup function. Automatically populated via Lookup function. Automatically populated via Lookup function. Enter invoice # from Bill of Lading. Field is not required Leave blank. Field is not required. 5. The lower section of the Order screen contains quantity information at the ORDER level. NOTE: You do not need to enter quantity information at the order level. The system will sum and auto populate the values from the quantities that will be entered at the item level. 6. To add additional Orders, click on the appropriate Container level in the outline on the left side of the screen and the Container screen will appear. Click on the Lookup Order button in the lower portion of the screen to add additional orders to the container. Repeat Steps 1-5. Lookup Order button 23
ENTERING ITEM INFORMATION 1. To add Item information, click on the Lookup Items button in the lower section of the Order screen. (Lowe s users will not use the Add Item button.) Lookup Items button 2. The following search pop up window will appear with the order number in a read-only field. Click on the Search button to return the associated items. 1. Click the Search button 2. Select item(s) and click the OK button 24
3. Select the item(s) and click on the OK button. The Item screen will appear with the item number(s) in the navigational outline on the left side of the screen below the Order level. Item(s) will appear in outline Click on the Remove Item button at any time to remove an item. 4. The Item screen needs to be populated with load sequence and quantity information at the ITEM level. For Load Sequence, use a numeric value to indicate where the item has been loaded in the container (use the following formula: Nose of Container = 1,2,3. Tail of Container = n). Please disregard Subgroup and Subelement Information sections. To enter shipped quantities, move to the Total Quantity Shipped column and type in amount in appropriate quantity row. Selected row will appear highlighted in yellow. To enter unit of measure (UM), click on the Unit cell and a drop down arrow will appear. Select appropriate UM. Note: At this point you have entered quantities at the Item level which the system has automatically summed and populated the quantities at the Container and Order levels. 25
SAVING A DRAFT 1. If you cannot complete all required Shipment information and would like to complete the Shipment creation at a later date, or would like to save an editable copy of the record for use at a later date, you may save your Shipment information as a draft. To save a draft, click on the Save as Draft button at the bottom of the screen: Save as Draft button 2. Upon saving a draft, you will return to the Dashboard screen and the following saved message will appear: 26
3. To view saved Drafts, click on the View drop down field and select Drafts: View drop down field 4. Notice the green Action button adjacent to each draft Shipment record. The Action button allows you to Edit, Delete, Copy and Print the draft shipment: 27
EDITING The Edit action allows you to make changes to the draft Shipment record. The Shipment screen will open allowing you to change the Seaway Bill, Container, Order and Item information: DELETING The Delete action allows you to delete the draft of the Shipment record. The following confirmation will appear: 28
COPYING The Copy action allows you to make a copy of the draft Shipment record. The Shipment screen will open allowing you to change the Seaway Bill, Container, Order and Item information. Copy button PRINTING The Print action allows you to print the draft of the Shipment record. The following print screen will appear: Print and Close buttons 29
SUBMITTING A SHIPMENT RECORD TO GXS 1. When all required shipment information is complete, it must be submitted to GXS. Click on the Submit button in the lower left section of the Create screen. If all required information is submitted correctly, a Saved confirmation message will appear. Submit button Saved confirmation message 30
2. If required information was not submitted correctly or required fields were left blank, you will not receive a confirmation message. Instead, you will be returned to one of the Create screens (Seaway Bill, Container, Order or Item) and a red exclamation point will exist in both the outline on the left as well as the Create screen on the right indicating where an error has occurred: Shipment screen containing errors: Message indicating errors were found. Click OK. 3. To view a list of existing errors, click on the Error Report button in the lower left section of the screen and a pop up window will appear listing all errors. Sample Error Report 4. The user may also click on a red exclamation point and a floating text will appear detailing the reason for the error: Floating help text 31
5. Make all necessary corrections and click on the Submit button. A successful submit will yield the following message: 6. To view submitted Shipment records, select the History view from the View drop down field on the Dashboard screen and a list of submitted shipments will appear: Select History from View drop down field. 7. Notice the green Action button adjacent to each Shipment record. The Action button allows you to print the history of a submitted shipment: The Print action allows you to print the history of a submitted Shipment record. The following print screen appear: 32
Note: Submitted records will remain in your history for 30 days. The system will automatically purge the copy in your personal history after 30 days. 33
LOGGING OUT 1. In order to log out of the application, click on the Exit button in the upper right section of the SmartForms screen: Exit button 2. You will return to the Welcome home page for logged in users. Click on the Exit button in the upper right section of the screen to completely log out of the GXS application. Exit button 34
CHANGING YOUR PASSWORD 1. Upon logging in to the application, you will have the ability to change your password. Note the Change Password hyperlink in the Welcome home page for logged in users: Change Password link 2. Click on the Change Password link and the following pop up window will appear: 3. Enter current Password and New Password in appropriate fields. Verify new password by entering it again and click on the Submit button. *Note: passwords must be 6 characters minimum and you will be prompted to change it every 30 days. Passwords are case sensitive. 35