Schedule jobs with a due date over several days

Do you have jobs to complete before a deadline and want to spread them over several days?

With AntsRoute, you can add your jobs to the delivery basket, then use the Spread (dispatch) feature to automatically distribute them over a given period.

AntsRoute takes your constraints into account to determine the service dates, assign jobs to field workers, and optimize routes.

💡 The Dispatch feature is available from the PRO plan onwards.
 

Step 1: Add jobs to the basket

Before you can dispatch your jobs over several days, they must be available in the delivery basket.

You have two options.

Add jobs manually

If you want to add jobs as you go:

1. Go to the Plan module.
2. Click the Delivery basket tab.
3. Add your jobs to the basket using the “+” button in the top-right corner.

Import multiple jobs

If you have a large number of jobs to add, you can import them using a CSV, XLS, or XLSX file.

In particular, you can specify a due date, i.e. the date by which the job must be completed.

👉 Read our article: Import jobs with a due date into AntsRoute.
 

Step 2: Dispatch jobs over several days

Once the jobs have been added to your basket:

1. Go to the Plan module.
2. Click the Delivery basket tab.
3. Select the jobs you want to schedule.
4. Click the Spread button.
5. Select the period over which the jobs should be distributed.
6. Select the field workers to whom the jobs can be assigned.
7. Choose whether the jobs’ availability dates should be taken into account.
8. Click Spread.

AntsRoute then distributes the jobs across the different days of the selected period, taking your constraints into account.

The jobs are assigned to field workers and the routes are automatically optimized.

☝️ Good to know: You do not have to manually select all the jobs. You can click Spread directly and enter the number of jobs to include. For example, if you enter 20, AntsRoute will dispatch the first 20 jobs displayed in your list.

👉 To learn more about the available options, read our article: Smartly dispatch jobs over a period.
 

Edit multiple jobs in the basket

Before starting the dispatch, you can edit several jobs at once.

You can edit:

• the open date;
• the due date;
• the job location;
• the duration;
• the time slot;
• the assigned field worker;
• delivery-type custom fields.

To make these changes:

1. Go to Plan > Delivery basket.
2. Select the jobs you want to edit.
3. Click Edit.
4. Select the information you want to edit and enter the new values.
5. Click Save.

💡 You can use the filters in the job basket to display only the jobs you are interested in.

If you encounter any difficulties, feel free to contact our support team via the chat available in AntsRoute or by email. 😊