Redesigning Vehicle Gate-In to Reduce Operational Dependency
Impact
TL;DR
What is it
A redesign of the vehicle gate-in process on our TMS platform, moving it from a locked security checkpoint to an enterprise-owned verification step.
The problem
Vehicle details were locked right after gate-in, so any last-minute change (a swapped driver, a substituted vehicle) needed a backend fix from our operations team.
What I did
Extended editing until gate-out, brought gate-in to the web for the team that actually performs it, and built a configurable Vehicle Inspection Sheet.
The outcome
90% fewer change-request tickets and 60% faster turnaround in the loading area, with enterprises resolving exceptions themselves.
The Problem
In our TMS platform, an enterprise would raise an indent, after which the transporter accepted it and assigned a vehicle. Both the enterprise and transporter could edit vehicle details (vehicle number, driver’s mobile number) until the vehicle reached the origin. Once the vehicle completed gate-in, these details were locked.
Before the redesign: vehicle details stayed editable only up to origin, then locked at gate-in with no way back without operations support.
This created a recurring operational problem. In reality, vehicle information could change at the last moment because:
- Drivers changed shortly before loading
- SIM-tracking consent sometimes failed, resulting in no vehicle tracking
- Transporters substituted vehicles at the loading location
- Incorrect vehicle or driver details were occasionally entered by transporters
Since the information was locked after gate-in, enterprises had to depend on our operations team to make backend changes: 4–6 change-request tickets every day, creating unnecessary operational dependency and delaying the loading process.
The Key Insight
We had designed gate-in assuming that the security team would perform the process using a phone.
In practice, this was often not true. At many enterprise sites, the logistics team themselves performed gate-in and inspected the vehicle. This meant the people closest to the physical vehicle were already involved in the process, but our product did not support their actual workflow.
This led me to rethink gate-in, not simply as a security checkpoint but as a vehicle verification and confirmation step owned by the enterprise.
The Redesign
1. Extended vehicle editing until gate-out
Instead of locking vehicle details immediately after gate-in, I extended the editing window until gate-out from the origin.
This allowed the enterprise team to handle real-world exceptions during loading:
- Change of driver
- Vehicle substitution
- Incorrect transporter entries
- Tracking/SIM consent issues
- Other last-minute vehicle-detail corrections
The details become locked only after the vehicle leaves the origin. This moved exception handling from our backend operations team to the people managing the vehicle on-site.
2. Brought the gate-in experience to the web
Since the enterprise logistics team was frequently performing gate-in themselves, I explored how the existing mobile-based workflow could be brought into the web platform to make the process more accessible to the teams managing shipments.
2.1: Made vehicle & gate status visible in the Indent
The first step was to bring all vehicle-related information into the Indent experience, rather than making users rely on a separate workflow to understand the vehicle’s status.
- Redesigned the Vehicle Details tab to bring vehicle assignment, driver details, tracking, documents, and current gate status into one place.
- Integrated the vehicle information with the existing shipment timeline, giving users a clearer view of where the shipment currently stands.
- This reduced the need to switch between different workflows when inspecting or confirming a vehicle.
Outcome: Users could now understand the vehicle’s current state and shipment progress directly from the Indent.
Vehicle Details tab: before vs after
2.2: Enabled gate-in / gate-out directly from the dashboard
Once the relevant vehicle information was available on the web, the next step was to make the gate-in and gate-out actions accessible to the teams actually performing them.
- Added a new entry point from the dashboard to initiate gate-in and gate-out.
- Users no longer needed to open an individual Indent before performing the action.
- This made the workflow more direct and aligned the product with how the enterprise logistics team was actually operating.
Outcome: Gate operations became a first-class web workflow, allowing users to inspect and confirm vehicles with fewer steps.
Gate-in web
Vehicle Inspection Sheet
As part of the redesign, I also built a configurable Vehicle Inspection Sheet, based on an enterprise-requested need. Enterprises can configure inspection questions independently for different sites and specify whether they apply to loading sites or unloading sites.
During gate-in, the logistics team completes the relevant inspection questions before confirming the vehicle. The inspection flow supports:
- Configurable questions by site
- Vehicle inspection during gate-in
- Hold/report outcomes
- Completion tracking
- Mandatory question completion before gate-in confirmation
- A record of the inspection associated with the vehicle’s movement
This transformed gate-in from a simple status update into a structured vehicle verification process.
Configuring an inspection sheet
Inspection sheet during gate-in (web)
Inspection sheet during gate-in (mobile)
What I Learned
The assumed user and the actual user aren’t always the same
Gate-in had been designed around the security team, but on the ground it was usually the logistics team doing it, often from a shared device. That gap only showed up once I looked at the physical process on-site, not just the reporting hierarchy, and it’s now something I check for early in any workflow redesign.
Reducing dependency doesn’t mean reducing control
The easy fix would have been fewer checks. Instead, I moved exception handling to the team already standing next to the vehicle, and kept it auditable with structured inspection questions, mandatory remarks, and photo evidence. Backend tickets dropped 90% without losing the record enterprises relied on.
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