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How do I set start locations for Route Optimization?

  • Updated

Route Optimization is an optional feature. To find out more, or add this to your vWork account, please contact support@vworkapp.com.  A member of the vWork Team will be in touch to discuss your requirements.

Alternatively, you can read all about it in the article What is Route Optimization?

In this article

In this article, you will learn where and how to set Start Locations for Route Optimization. This is part of the planning you should do for Route Optimization. This article explains:

Why do I need to set a start location?

Route Optimization requires a starting point for every route you want to optimize. Without this information, the optimization algorithm won’t have a point to begin working out and comparing alternative routes. Where you choose to set the start location is part of the planning and preparation you do to make Route Optimization work in the best way for your organization.

Where can I set the start location?

Start locations can be set in 3 places within your vWork account:

  • Globally in the General Settings of your vWork account: the optimization will default to this if a start location is not set elsewhere. You must use this if you don’t set Start Locations elsewhere in vWork.
  • In a Group (if you have Groups enabled): this will override the global setting. It is good to set this if you have different depots or divisions that your workers begin from. For example; when depots are in different geographic locations.
  • For a User (mobile worker or vehicle): this overrides both the global and group settings for start location. When an individual user has a start location set, the optimization will always use this. It is good to use this when your workers start from different locations; for example, if your workers started their scheduled jobs from their homes.

You can choose to set your start location in all of these or a combination of them but you must set a start location using at least one of these: Global, Group, or User. You can also choose to override any of these manually when you run a route optimization.

 

 


How do I set the start locations?

Choose one or more of the 3 options: Globally, by Group, or by User.

Set the start location Globally

This will apply the same start location for all jobs in an optimization (unless a different start location is specified elsewhere in vWork).

It is good practice to set the start location globally when all your workers always start from the same location. 

To set the start location globally:

  1. Select Settings > General to open General vWork settings for your account.
  2. Scroll down to Optimization 
  3. Type an address into the Start Location field>
  4. Select a geocoded address from the list. This will display with this symbol 
  5. Click Save to save the new Start Location setting.

Set the start location by Group

If you have Groups enabled in your vWork account you can set the Start Location by Group. This is particularly helpful when you have your workers across several geographic locations.

Note: When you set a start location for a Group it will override the Global start location set in your vWork General Settings only for this Group. It will not override the start locations set for individual workers.

To set the start location for a Group:

  1. Select Settings > Users > Groups to open the Groups settings.
  2. Select the Group you want to set the Start Location for and open its Update Group page.
  3. Type an address into the Start Location field.
  4. Select a geocoded address from the list. A geocoded address will have this symbol
  5. Click Update to save the new Start Location setting.

 

Set the start location by User

If your Mobile Users start from different locations (from home for example) you can set their individual start location within their User Details.

Note: Start Locations set by User will override start locations set in both Global and Group settings for the User unless you choose to override this when you create the optimization.

To set the start location for a User:

  1. Select Settings > Users > Users to open User Management.
  2. Select the user you want to set the start location for and open their User Details.
  3. Type an address into the Default Start Location field.
  4. Select a geocoded address from the list. This will display with this symbol 
  5. Click Update to save the new Start Location setting.


 

To find out about other settings and permissions used in optimization, see the article How do I set up my vWork account to use Route Optimization?

 

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