ContainerTRACKER® supports two types of automation, internal and external.

Internal automation initiates communication for the local users of ContainerTRACKER®, other partners and interested parties external to the system. The optional features of Alarms, Messages, inbound EMail, outbound EMail, Custom Reports and Triggers, used individually or in combination, initiate messages, reporting and various actions in response to defined conditions within ContainerTRACKER®. Internal automation allows system supervisors to provide instruction to operators when predefined situations occur. This reduces the organization's need to train operators to respond to circumstances within the system that need timely attention.

External automation receives data into the system and provides data to external programs. External transaction (the movement of tracked items throughout the system) information is provided to ContainerTRACKER® through the Standard Automation Interface (SAI). The SAI accepts raw data from external sources including bar code, RFI, GPS, MRP and EDI systems or any other source that can be programmed or manipulated to produce a properly formatted ASCII Interface File.

ContainerTRACKER® provides data to external programs through its reporting DB feature (optional) and through various system reports.

The SAI interface allows programming independence. It supports aliasing of field contents to convert information from legacy systems to the names of items and destinations used within ContainerTRACKER®. This reduces the amount and complexity of interface programming necessary to use your existing data sources.

There is additional information about internal and external automation in the 'Features' and 'Technical Notes' pages of this site.