Plug-in Architecture

The DigitalShipper Plug-in Architecture is our framework to customize DigitalShipper to meet your shipment processing needs.  The Plug-in Architecture works with the standard browser-based DigitalShipper Enterprise application to extend the usage of the basic functions and allow you to control how DigitalShipper behaves for a vast number of trigger points (such as “After Login”, “On Lookup”, “Before Ship”, “After Ship”).

The Plug-in Architecture is extensible to any programming language that is .NET capable so you can utilize your programming skills in an environment you are familiar with – whether you prefer C#, VB or some other language, you can write code to automate your business requirements quickly and efficiently.

Through the use of the framework’s methods and properties, you can execute business rules and control all aspects of shipping. Below is a small sampling of the common uses and rules our customers implement using the Plug-in Architecture:

  • Validate the user login based on the domain’s Active Directory
  • Retrieve the ship to address and ship via method for an order from the host system database when the user clicks the Lookup button on the Shipments page
  • Automatically set the C.O.D. (Collect On Delivery) or Insurance amount with the total cost of goods retrieved from the host system database when flagged on the order or by the user
  • Automatically set the Billing Options (i.e. Bill Recipient or Bill Third Party) based on the customer number tied to the order or by using a carrier account number that is passed down to DigitalShipper with all the other shipping data
  • Check the order status before allowing the user to ship the packages
  • Retrieve the order line item details from the host system database to automatically set the required information for hazardous materials or international shipments
  • Write back the results of shipping (i.e. tracking number, freight charge, accessorial fees, weight) to the host system database after each package or shipment is shipped through DigitalShipper
  • Update the host system or remove the results of shipping if the user voids the package or shipment to keep the information in synch
  • Map valuable instructions about the order to the DigitalShipper shipping notes so the user is forced to read and take the appropriate action before shipping the order

Whether you need to just simply map the ship to address from the host system database or you need to write code to extract order details to fully automate your international shipping, the Plug-in Architecture gives you the flexibility and power to build a robust application suitable for all your outbound shipping.