How it works
From packing list to loading plan
Four steps, each one checked. Here is what happens at each step, and what stays in your hands.
An animation: a row of the packing list (valves, 6 pieces, 120 × 115 × 110 cm, 180 kg) travels past four stations, import, plan, check and ship. It becomes crate V-01, the crate is checked, and it leaves in a container stamped final.
Import
Bring the packing list you already have
Excel or CSV, the way your supplier or ERP sends it. Tell Stowtix once which column is which; the next file with the same headers is matched on its own.
- .xlsx, .xls and .csv files
- Columns matched once, remembered by their headers
- Problems shown row by row, and fixed in the browser before anything is planned
- Millimetres, centimetres or inches; kilograms or pounds
- Your cargo library: products saved once, added by their SKU
An animation: the sheet's six column headers light up one by one, and each is matched to its Stowtix field: description, quantity, length, width, height and weight. Then its four lines appear: pump housing × 6, valves × 6, steel drum × 12 and compressor parts × 6.
MATCHED TO STOWTIX FIELDS · SAVED AS "SUPPLIER A"
Plan
Choose the equipment. The solver does the stacking.
Pick one container or several, trucks or trailers, our presets or your own. Stowtix places every piece in turn, by your priorities, from the back wall to the doors.
- Several containers or trucks in one plan, filled one after another
- Priorities decide what goes first when not everything fits
- Groups stay together; multi-drop loads come off in stop order
- How units fill: wall by wall, the floor first, or a line's own way
- Virtual walls keep chosen lines in front of the others
- Anything that does not fit is listed, with the reason
- Plans of up to 10,000 pieces
An animation: of four choices (a 20' standard, a 40' standard and a 40' high cube container, and a 13.6 m trailer), the 40' high cube is chosen. Seen from above, it fills from the back wall to the doors: drop 3 first, then drop 2, then drop 1, nearest the doors.
Check
See every piece. Move any piece.
The plan opens in 3D. Step through it in loading order, or take over by hand: the checks run in your browser while you drag, and again on our side when you save.
- Drag, snap and rotate; select several; undo and redo
- A green ghost where a piece fits, red where it does not
- Axle loads and the centre of gravity, updated as you go
- A ruler to measure gaps and heights
- Lock the pieces you placed and plan the rest again
- Every save kept as a version you can go back to
An animation: crate V-07 is dragged in a 20' standard container. Over a crate that takes no load on top, it shows red: it does not fit. Set down on the floor beside it, it shows green: it fits, with the weight, stacking and axle loads within limits, and the front and rear axle loads rise, still within their limits.
Ship
Sign it off. Send it to the dock.
Mark the plan final, and the shipment stays exactly as signed off until someone unlocks it. Then give the crew what they need.
- A link the crew opens on a phone or tablet, without an account
- Step-by-step loading, one piece at a time
- A PDF loading plan with your logo and views from every side
- An Excel loading list, which imports back in if plans change
- Withdraw a shared link whenever you want
An animation: the plan, a 40' high cube with 10,180 kg, 83.7 % full, is stamped final. Then what the crew gets appears: a PDF loading plan with your logo, an Excel loading list that imports back in, and a shared link that opens at step 1 of 38.
The whole team
One plan, the right hands on it
OWNERS AND ADMINS
Run the account
Invite the team by link, choose who does what, and keep the company's equipment and settings in order.
PLANNERS
Make the plans
Import, plan, edit and sign off. Planner seats are what a paid plan counts.
VIEWERS
See every plan
Sales, customer service, the warehouse lead: as many as you need, free on every plan.
Questions
Before you ask
Which files can I import?
Excel (.xlsx and .xls) and CSV. Match the columns once and Stowtix remembers them for files with the same headers.
Which containers and trucks can I plan?
20', 40', 40' high cube and 45' high cube containers, 13.6 m and mega trailers, 53' dry vans, rigid trucks and vans, and any equipment of your own, with its axles.
Can I change the plan by hand?
Yes. Drag, rotate, lock pieces and plan the rest again. Every move is checked against the same limits as the plan.
Does the loading crew need an account?
No. A shared link opens on any phone or tablet, and you can withdraw it whenever you want.
Can one shipment fill several containers?
Yes. Choose the equipment, and Stowtix fills each in turn, by your priorities.
Can our ERP send shipments to Stowtix?
Yes, through the Stowtix API, with signed webhooks when a plan is ready. See Developers.
Is Stowtix a load calculator or a container stuffing plan?
Both. Like a load calculator, it works out how much fits; like a stuffing plan, it says where every piece goes, in the order it goes in. Then it checks the weight, axle loads and balance before the crew loads.
See it on your own packing list
Book a demo, or ask to join the private beta: 30% off monthly, 50% off yearly, locked for a year.