Loadhaus / Cold storage billing software
Cold storage billing software that builds the invoice from your scans.
Every case your crew scans in and out already tells Loadhaus what was in your building and for how long. Storage billing turns that into a monthly invoice for each customer, with the rates and charges you set, so month end is a review instead of a rebuild.
The month-end problem
Most cold storage warehouses still build invoices by hand. Someone pulls receipts and shipping paperwork, counts pallet days in a spreadsheet, adds handling and extra charges from memory, and then waits for the customer to dispute it. It takes days, and an error in your favor or against it costs trust either way.
Loadhaus counts from the scans instead. Each case has a receive time and, when it ships, a ship time. The invoice is built from those, using the rates you entered for that customer.
Three ways to bill storage
Different customers have different contracts. Set the method per customer:
- By the day. A daily rate for each unit for each day it is in the building. The day it arrives counts. The day it ships does not.
- Anniversary. A full month charged on the day a pallet arrives, then again each month on that same day while any of that pallet remains. Arrivals on the 29th to the 31st use the last day of shorter months.
- Split month. Storage renews on the 1st. Product received from the 1st to the 15th is charged a full month. Product received from the 16th on is charged a half month.
Charge per pallet, per case, or per 100 pounds (cwt). You can set separate freezer and cooler rates, and a monthly storage minimum.
Handling, picks and minimums
Storage is only part of a warehouse invoice. Loadhaus also handles:
- Handling in and handling out, per pallet or per case
- A minimum handling charge on each outbound PO
- Case picking, with a per-PO minimum, for cases shipped without their full pallet
- A per-PO fee
Voided cases are left out, and dates follow your own time zone, so a truck that arrives late on the 31st lands in the right month.
Extra charges from your price list
Shrink wrap, re-palletizing, labeling, inventory counts, after-hours dock time and similar services go on a price list. You can set a different price for a specific customer. Dock staff log a charge as it happens, tied to an order, and it lands on that customer's next invoice at the price in effect that day. Only an admin can change prices or override one.
Review, edit, issue
Before an invoice is made you see every line. Change the wording, quantity or price, remove a line, or add one, including a negative line for a deposit. Then issue it and print it or save it as a PDF. Each invoice carries your name, the bill-to customer, the activity summary for the month (on hand at start, received, shipped, on hand at end), and your payment instructions.
Invoices are numbered in order, starting wherever you need, so you can carry on from your old numbering. A finished invoice is locked. If something is wrong, void it and make a new one, and any charges it used are released. Download all invoices to a spreadsheet for your bookkeeper.
What it takes to get accurate bills
The invoice is only as good as the scans. Crews need to scan every case in and out. If a full pallet ships, scan the pallet label so its cases are not counted as individual picks. Brand new accounts usually run one month alongside the old method to check the numbers before switching.
Questions
Does Loadhaus support per pallet per month billing on the anniversary date?
Yes. Anniversary billing charges a full month on the day a pallet arrives and then every month on that day while any of that pallet is still in the building.
Can I bill different customers different ways?
Yes. The billing method, units, rates, handling charges and minimums are set per customer, with separate freezer and cooler rates if you want them.
Can my crew add extra charges like shrink wrap?
Yes. Charges come from your price list, and dock staff can log them against an order. They are added to the customer's next invoice at the price in effect that day.
Does it connect to QuickBooks?
Not directly yet. Invoices and reports download as spreadsheets that your bookkeeper can enter into QuickBooks or any other system.
Is storage billing included?
Storage billing is an add-on to the Loadhaus subscription. See the pricing section on the home page for the current price.