Step 1 of 3 — Setting up Routing and Dispatching
Setting up Routing and Dispatching in NikoHealth happens in three steps. This article covers the first: configuring your service areas, which are the geographic regions your team delivers to. Once your service areas are in place, you'll move on to scheduling your drivers and then planning and dispatching your routes.
Understanding Service Areas in NikoHealth
A service area is a geographic region your team delivers to. When your team is working an Order and marks it as Delivery by Driver, the system uses your service areas (along with your driver schedules and preferences) to place each stop on the most appropriate route.
Managing Service Areas in Routing
To set up your service areas, go to:
Management > Premium Features > Settings > Routing.
This takes you to your Routing Management screen. There are two tabs on this screen: Service Areas and Drivers.
On the Service Areas tab, a map shows any service areas that have already been created, displayed as shaded regions.
On the right side panel, you'll find a list of your active service areas. The color next to each area matches the shaded color on the map.
Underneath each service area listed in the side panel, the drivers assigned to that area are shown. When there is more than one driver assigned to a service area, the number next to the driver name shows the total count of drivers. Click the number to see all drivers listed.
Use the action menu next to each service area listed to Deactivate, Edit, or Delete existing areas.
Creating New Service Areas in Routing
To create a new Service Area, click the blue Add Area button.
A side panel opens where you'll configure your new service area. At the top, Name your area and pick a color. The color is what identifies this area on the map and in your lists.
Complete the required details for the service area.
Starting point for service area | Choose a starting point. Your starting point is essentially your warehouse, and the service area you're building is your service location. After you add the address, verify it to confirm the mapping tool understands where it is. |
Build service area by | In this section, choose how you want to identify the geographic region for this service area. You have a few options to pick your area:
|
Additional Options | Configure preferences for this specific service area including the expected time for each stop, how much time you'll need for additional Orders, and the maximum stops you want to allow per route in this service area. |
When you've added all the required details, click Create Area.
Your new service area will appear in the side panel and on the map.
Next step: Once your service areas are set up, continue to Step 2 — Scheduling Your Drivers to assign drivers to each area and set their availability.