NAMES AND GROUPS FILES

There are a series of download files which can be provided for Traffic/CIS, the costed database module of the Cost Information System, to both identify and consolidate customers for reporting purposes.  These files, which are outlined below, must be provided in a fixed-format layout, as specified in the Traffic/CIS manual (Appendix A).  They must also be processed, using a routine in CIS maintenance, to sort, format, and cross-index the files. 

It is suggested that the files be downloaded under file names different than that used by the system, so that they won’t be corrupted if inadvertently processed twice.

These supplementary files are as follows:

·        Customer Names:  The name and code for all customers, with an optional field for city/state or other identifier to distinguish chains and other multiple customer names.  This should include shippers, consignees and bill-to codes. 

·        Customer Groups:  This links individual customer codes to a master code, for reporting on groups of customers beyond use of the bill-to codes.  This requires two files; one linking the codes and one with the names of the groups.  When choosing a customer to analyze in the Traffic/CIS Report Writer, these group names appear with an “A” (for all) in the center column of the listing.

·        National Accounts:  An “upper tier” distinction in which the group’s files outlined above are then secondary.  When these files are provided, account names appear in the report writer with “A” as the category, and the original groups file accounts show as “B”.  If further tiers of customer groupings are desired, contact TCG.

·        Sales Reps:  Links sales reps to customers.  This requires a file of sales reps names with a corresponding code for each, and a file linking sales reps codes to all respective customer or group codes.

·        Interline Carriers:  A file of interline carrier names, following their SCAC codes, can also be provided to both label reports and display carrier names for report Data Set selection.  This file, CC.NAM, is created and updated when carriers are entered into the interline profile, but it can be replaced with a download file if many interline carriers aren’t profiled.

None of these files are “required” for use of Traffic/CIS.  They do, however add considerable utility to the system.

Copyright (c) 2003 Transportation Costing Group, Inc.

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