Container depot and yard operations

    Control every container event from gate activity to repair and billing.

    Flatorb connects container identity, yard location, condition, survey, approvals, workshop activity, EDI and commercial evidence—creating one operational history across the depot.

    Discuss your operation ↗Explore workflows ↓

    Workflow-led engineeringSoftware, devices and integration

    GateCapture arrival and release
    LocateKnow yard position and status
    RepairTrace survey, approval and work
    BillCreate dependable charge evidence

    Industry operating model

    A container’s commercial record begins with physical events in the yard.

    When gate, location, survey, repair and release activity lives in separate notes or spreadsheets, service, EDI and billing records become late and difficult to defend.

    Flatorb creates a continuous operational history from arrival to release. Mobile users capture evidence where work happens while planners, customer teams and management see current position, responsibility, exceptions and readiness.

    01Gate event

    The unit enters with identity and interchange context.

    Container, vehicle, party, time, condition and documents establish the operating record.

    →
    02Yard & workshop

    Location, survey, estimate, approval and work remain connected.

    Moves and status changes preserve responsibility and evidence through the depot flow.

    →
    03Release & commercial

    Completed operations support EDI, customer and billing outputs.

    Gate-out validation and charge inputs are derived from the same governed history.

    Priority workflows

    Replace disconnected yard records with one controlled container narrative.

    The platform must work at the gate, in the yard, during survey and inside repair operations while maintaining one identity and status model.

    01CYMS

    Gate-in and gate-out control

    Capture container, vehicle, driver, party, condition, documents and release authority.

    • Interchange
    • Release
    • Timestamp
    02CYMS

    Yard location and movement

    Maintain block, row, stack, slot or configured location through deliberate moves.

    • Location
    • Move
    • Search
    03CYMS

    Survey and damage evidence

    Record condition, component, damage, repair code, measurement, photo and responsibility context.

    • Survey
    • Photo
    • Damage code
    04CYMS

    Estimate and approval workflow

    Route repair estimates, revisions, approvals, holds and customer decisions with history.

    • Estimate
    • Approval
    • Hold
    05CYMS

    Workshop execution

    Trace repair tasks, labour, material, completion and readiness against the container record.

    • M&R
    • Work order
    • Completion
    06CYMS

    EDI, customer and billing outputs

    Generate governed status, movement and charge evidence from completed operations.

    • EDI
    • Portal
    • Billing input

    Relevant Flatorb solutions

    Connect gate, yard, survey, repair and commercial evidence.

    Flatorb combines mobile execution, yard visibility, structured repair control and system interfaces in one configurable container workflow.

    01Solution pathway

    Container Yard Management System

    Control container movements, condition, approvals, repair and release.

    The core solution for depot and yard operations. ↗
    02Solution pathway

    Asset Management System

    Manage yard equipment, workshop tools, maintenance and inspections.

    For supporting operational asset control. ↗
    03Solution pathway

    GPS & Location

    Connect vehicles, mobile equipment and selected outdoor movement evidence.

    For wider mobile and location context. ↗
    04Solution pathway

    Systems Integration

    Exchange EDI, customer status, finance and enterprise information.

    For dependable external and commercial records. ↗

    Connected architecture

    Create commercial and customer outputs from the same events used to run the yard.

    Container, MLO, customer and authorization context enters the operation. Flatorb governs the physical flow and produces validated status, evidence and charge inputs for connected systems.

    Inputs & eventsContainer, MLO and customer contextGate documents and release instructionsYard locations, survey and repair codesMobile capture, photos, approvals and EDI
    →
    Flatorb operational layerValidate gate and release eventsMaintain location and responsibilityControl estimate, approval and repairCreate governed commercial evidence
    →
    Outputs & systemsEDI movement and status messagesCustomer visibility and reportsBilling and finance inputsYard, repair and dwell analytics

    Technology fit

    Engineer mobile capture and location around the physical yard.

    Barcode, OCR, mobile devices, photos, GPS and integration can each support different control points. Selection depends on container identity, outdoor conditions, network reliability and required proof.

    01

    Barcode & QR

    Identify documents, jobs, locations, parts and controlled workshop events.

    Explore technology ↗    02

    GPS & Location

    Connect selected vehicle, equipment, arrival, departure and dwell evidence.

    Explore technology ↗    03

    AI-Enabled Automation

    Assist controlled extraction or image review where data and tolerances support it.

    Explore technology ↗    04

    Systems Integration

    Connect EDI, customer, MLO, finance and analytics platforms.

    Explore technology ↗

    Implementation approach

    Prove the full gate-to-release chain with real yard exceptions.

    Flatorb maps actual traffic, survey, approval, repair, location and billing practices, then pilots the complete history with representative container conditions and customer rules.

    01
    Yard process study

    Observe gate, moves, survey, workshop, planning and customer information flow.

    02
    Code and status model

    Align locations, condition, repair, approval and release states.

    03
    Field pilot

    Test devices, network, photos and workflows under real outdoor conditions.

    04
    EDI and commercial validation

    Verify messages, reports and billing inputs against completed operational events.

    International deliveryUSA↗Canada↗Middle East↗Africa↗South Asia↗South East Asia↗Australia↗

    Frequently asked questions

    Questions teams ask about Container Depots & Yards.

    Clear answers for early evaluation, internal discussion and implementation planning.

    01What container yard workflows can Flatorb support?+

    Gate-in, gate-out, location, movement, survey, damage, estimate, approval, repair, hold, release, EDI and billing-support workflows can be configured according to the depot model.

    02Can the system show a container’s current yard location?+

    Yes. Configured yard locations and movement confirmations can maintain current position and location history.

    03Can survey photos and damage codes be retained?+

    Yes. Structured survey information, photos, notes, timestamps and responsibility can remain linked to the container and repair history.

    04Can Flatorb exchange EDI messages?+

    Yes. EDI or other interfaces can exchange agreed movement, status, customer and commercial information.

    05Does the system support repair estimates and approvals?+

    Estimate lines, revisions, approvals, holds, work execution and completion evidence can be configured within the container workflow.

    Start with one real operating gap

    Show us where the container’s yard history stops matching the customer or billing record.

    We will map the gate, location, survey, repair, EDI and commercial events needed to create one dependable flow.

    A useful first conversation30 minutes around one physical workflow
    • What moves, changes state or requires proof?
    • Where does the current record become late or unreliable?
    • Which users, customers and systems depend on it?
    • What measurable outcome would justify action?
    Talk to a solutions architect ↗