Glossary
Dock-scheduling terms, defined.
Plain-English definitions of the terms warehouse, plant, and DC operators run into every day.
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- Dock schedulingDock scheduling is the practice of giving every inbound or outbound truck a specific arrival window at a warehouse or distribution center, so doors aren't double-booked, drivers don't queue, and warehouse teams can plan labor around predictable arrivals.
- Dock appointmentA dock appointment is a confirmed time window during which a specific truck is allowed to use a specific dock door at a warehouse or distribution center. It usually includes the load type, expected duration, and contact info for the carrier and driver.
- Detention and demurrageDetention is a per-hour charge a carrier bills the shipper or receiver when a truck is delayed at a dock beyond a free time window — usually two hours. Demurrage is the same idea but for ocean containers held at a port or rail terminal beyond their free time. Both are signals of operational friction, and both shrink fast with disciplined dock scheduling.
- Yard management system (YMS)A yard management system (YMS) is software that tracks every trailer inside a warehouse yard — where it is, what's on it, and who's moving it. A YMS handles in-yard moves, gate check-in, and trailer pool management. Dock scheduling, by contrast, focuses on booking the dock-door appointment.
- Dwell timeDwell time is the elapsed time a truck spends at a warehouse or terminal from gate-in to gate-out. High dwell time compounds into late deliveries, driver hours-of-service violations, and detention exposure. Disciplined dock scheduling is the highest-leverage way to bring dwell time down.
- Live load vs drop trailerOn a live load, the driver stays with the truck while the trailer is loaded or unloaded — typically 30 to 90 minutes. On a drop-and-hook (drop trailer), the driver drops a pre-loaded trailer and picks up another, taking 15 minutes or less. The choice affects dwell time, dock-door utilization, detention exposure, and how you should configure dock-scheduling appointment types.
- Carrier check-inCarrier check-in is the act of confirming a driver has arrived at a warehouse for a scheduled dock appointment. Modern check-in flows combine SMS-based pre-arrival confirmation, on-site QR-code or kiosk check-in, and a real-time signal back to the dock team.
- Appointment SLAAn appointment SLA is a service-level agreement between a warehouse and its carriers (or vendors) covering how dock appointments are booked, attended, and completed — minimum notice, on-time arrival window, accepted reschedule lead time, and dock-turn time. Dock-scheduling tools enforce SLAs by encoding them as configuration: minimum-notice rules, slot durations, buffer times, and approval gates.
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