IronRouteAI takes the heavy lifting out of route planning by handling the kind of daily complexity that slows most dispatching teams down.
Instead of relying on generic routing tools, it uses a purpose-built optimization engine designed for roll-off, junk removal, and similar operations.
The system evaluates billions of options in seconds, builds cost-efficient plans that follow your rules, and evens out the workload across your fleet so drivers get fair routes and you get a clearer, faster path to a productive day.
Before You Start
Here are a few things to know before you continue:
- In order to use IronRouteAI, you need to be on Docket's Pro Plus plan. If you're interested in upgrading to this plan, please contact your original Sales Rep or our Support team to upgrade your contract in order to add DocketShop to your account.
- Using IronRouteAI requires specific configurations in your Docket account. Please review this setup article and complete the 5 setup steps, if you haven't already.
- IronRouteAI uses specific settings in your Docket account and operates with certain assumptions if those settings aren't configured. Jump to the "Understanding Key Settings & Assumptions" section to see a list of the tool's assumptions.
- To get familiar with IronRouteAI's terminology and our suggested troubleshooting steps, check out this article.
Why IronRouteAI is the Next Generation of Routing
We do not use off-the-shelf commercial tools. IronRouteAI was built from the ground up as a proprietary optimization tool to handle the unique complexity of the hauling industry.
It eliminates the time cost of manual planning by instantly calculating the most efficient and fair plan for your entire fleet.
The Engine for Cost Minimization
IronRouteAI's main goal is to save you money. It evaluates billions of possible route combinations to find the options with the lowest total estimated cost.
To do this efficiently, it uses advanced, proprietary algorithms to instantly filter out billions of inefficient combinations in seconds, focusing only on routes that meet your strict business rules.
The tool minimizes cost by balancing three factors:
- Labor Costs: Drivers' hourly wages and time spent on the road.
- Fleet Costs: Fuel consumption and vehicle wear-and-tear (mileage).
- Dump Fees: Choosing the most cost-effective dump locations based on your configured materials and costs.
Built-in Fleet Intelligence and Fairness
IronRouteAI is a sophisticated engine that strictly adheres to your operational limits like:
- Honoring Constraints: It ensures that every route respects fundamental constraints like your vehicles' Carry Capacity (trucks only carry what they're able to), Asset Availability (inventory), and all client-requested Scheduled Times and Time Windows.
- Automatic Load Balancing: After finding the lowest-cost routes, the system runs a final pass to smooth the workload. It balances the routes across your entire selected fleet to ensure work is spread evenly among all drivers.
Use IronRouteAI to Create Cost-Efficient Routes
You'll use IronRouteAI from the Dispatch page, and there are two ways you can optimize your drivers' routes:
- Optimize all of your drivers' routes at once.
- Optimize individual drivers' routes one at a time.
Optimize the Full Day for All Drivers
This is best for planning the entire day's schedule across multiple drivers. IronRouteAI can be used the night before to prep for the next day or in the morning before drivers have started for the day.
To optimize your full day, watch the video above or follow the below instructions:
- From the Dispatch page, click "Optimize Day" in the top right.
- Select your configurations so IronRouteAI can optimize your drivers' day. Each field is explained in the "Optimize Day Configurations Form" section below.
- Click "Optimize". The optimization process will run in the background, shown by a status bar at the top of the Dispatch page.
- Once the process finishes, click "Preview" to review the proposed routes.
- When you're satisfied with the routes, click "Apply" to assign the tasks to your drivers.
In the preview window, you can see the suggested routes, savings calculations (if new routes have been created from pre-existing routes), and any tasks that could not be included.
You'll also be able to use IronRouteAI's chatbot in the top right corner to figure out why the tool made certain decisions, like leaving out a particular task. Check out the below video to learn more!
Optimize the Day for a Single Driver
This is useful for quickly optimizing the tasks already assigned to a single driver.
To optimize your full day, watch the video above or follow the below instructions:
- From the Dispatch page, assign the tasks to the driver, if you haven't already.
- Click "Optimize" at the top of the driver's column you want IronRouteAI to optimize. The optimization process will run in the background, shown by a status bar at the top of the Dispatch page.
- Once the process finishes, click "Preview" to review the proposed changes to the task order.
- When you're satisfied with the route, click "Apply" to reorder the assigned tasks for that driver.
In the preview window, you can see the suggested route changes and all the savings calculations between the original task order and IronRouteAI's suggested order.
Please Note: The chatbot feature isn't available for single driver optimizations yet.
Overview of the Fields in the Optimize Day Configurations Form
When you optimize a full day of tasks/routes, you'll need to review the fields in the Optimize Day Configurations form and adjust them if necessary.
Vehicles: This will automatically pull in all the drivers on your Dispatch page that have a vehicle assigned to them. You can remove any drivers as needed, but you won't be able to add drivers to the tool if they don't have a vehicle assigned to them.
Maximum Hours Per Driver: This defaults to 10 hours. This number tells IronRouteAI how long you want a single route to last and acts as a flexible limit. This means that the system will try to stay below this number, but may create routes that are up to 20% shorter or longer to find the most optimal route. For example, if you set this maximum to 10 hours, you may see a suggested route fall between 8 and 12 hours.
Include Only Tasks Marked "Ready": If you use Docket's 'Not Ready' / 'Ready' statuses on tasks, you'll probably want to toggle this setting on (blue) so IronRouteAI doesn't include any 'Not Ready' tasks in its optimization.
Exclude Tasks: If there are any tasks that you don't want IronRouteAI to include in its optimization, you can select them here.
Exclude Tasks in Zip Codes: If there are any particular areas that you don't want IronRouteAI to include tasks for in its optimization, you can select their zip code(s) here.
Exclude Asset Types: If there are any dumpster sizes that you don't want IronRouteAI to include in its optimization, you can select them here.
Exclude Dumpsites: If there are any dump locations that you don't want IronRouteAI to route drivers to in its optimization, you can select them here.
Exclude Yard Locations: If there are any yard locations that you don't want IronRouteAI to route drivers to in its optimization, you can select them here.
Default Waste Material: If there's a task that doesn't have a specific Waste Material, IronRouteAI will use this default waste material for that task and determine which dump location fits best.
Road Restrictions > Avoid Toll Roads: Toggle this setting on (blue) so IronRouteAI doesn't include any toll roads in its routes.
Inventory Management > Assume Infinite Asset Inventory: If this is toggled on (blue), IronRouteAI will assume that all of your yards have infinite asset inventory. This is helpful if you're not tracking your inventory and not adding your assets to Docket. We always recommend tracking your assets in Docket, but we built this setting so Docket remains flexible to all business types.
Company Defaults > Save as Company Default: If you want to save your selections as a default, click this button so IronRouteAI preloads your choices next time you use the tool. At this time, you can only save one configuration as a default.
Key Settings and Assumptions
IronRouteAI uses specific settings in your Docket account and operates with certain assumptions if those settings aren't configured.
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Cost Calculations: The tool calculates savings based on Fleet Costs, Labor Costs, and Dump Costs, and displays them in the route preview for your review. By default, it uses:
- $1.50/mile for fleet costs, which includes estimated costs based on fuel consumption and wear and tear.
- $25/hour for labor costs (if the Hourly Wage field is blank in a driver's profile).
- 7am driver start time (if the Start Time field is blank in a driver's profile).
- Carry Capacity (Drop Offs and Pick Ups): The tool will assume a vehicle can carry all your dumpster sizes if the Carry Capacity (Drop Offs) and/or the Carry Capacity (Pick Ups) fields are empty.
- Vehicle Capacity: The tool will assume that a vehicle can only carry one dumpster at a time. This cannot currently be changed.
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Weight Allowance per Dumpster Size: If the Weight Allowance field is blank in your Dumpster Settings by Size area, the tool will use default weights to calculate dump costs.
- 10 yard = 1 ton
- 20 yard = 2 tons
- 30 yard = 3 tons
- ...so on and so forth.
- Time Windows: The tool will factor in each task's set time window or scheduled time, if there is one, when creating routes.
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Task Priority: The tool will factor in each task's set priority, if there is one, when optimizing drivers' routes.
- High Priority = first time window of the day
- Medium Priority = second time window of the day
- Low Priority = last time window of the day
Exclusions and Auto-Adjustments
The system automatically prevents issues with duplicates:
One Vehicle, One Driver: Each vehicle can only be assigned to one driver per day.
One Driver, One Vehicle: Each driver can only be assigned to one vehicle per day.
Handling Duplicates: Only the first driver/vehicle combination is kept, others are removed.
Vehicles/drivers are automatically excluded if:
Not a Technician: If the Technician toggle is off (grey) in a driver's profile, the tool won't include that person.
The system will make the following adjustment automatically when necessary:
Automatic Start: If a driver starts after earliest task assigned to them, their starting time is adjusted to 30 minutes before the earliest task.
Best Practices
To Get the Best Results:
Provide complete driver names for clear identification.
Set accurate start times to match actual work hours.
Specify accurate vehicle capacities for each vehicle.
Fine-tune the cost to operate each vehicle per mile for accurate route cost calculations.
Set maximum hours to comply with labor regulations.
Update hourly wages regularly for accurate cost tracking.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
General & Getting Started
Are we able to use IronRouteAI now?
Yes! IronRouteAI is currently available as part of the Pro Plus plan. If you are on this plan, you can begin using these features immediately.
Does this replace the current Dispatch Board?
IronRouteAI is designed to enhance your existing workflow. It works alongside your dispatch tools to automate and optimize the routing process rather than replacing the board entirely.
Where can I provide feedback on the tool?
We'd love to hear your feedback about IronRoute AI - please contact our Support team via support@yourdocket.com or by using the chat widget in the bottom of this page to share feedback.
Technical Functionality
How does IronRouteAI handle driver changes or truck swaps?
If drivers aren't in the same vehicle daily, you simply need to reassign the truck to the employee within the system and click the "Optimize" button with the new assignment to generate proper routes for the new configuration.
Does the system account for available inventory when routing?
Yes, IronRouteAI takes your current available inventory into account when creating and optimizing routes to ensure you have the necessary assets for each task.
Will the Optimizer consider "General Tasks" (like truck maintenance) in the route timing?
Currently, the Optimizer focuses specifically on Dumpster Tasks. General tasks are not factored into route creation at this time, and would be moved to Unassigned when routes are applied.
What happens if some tasks can't be included in the route?
Tasks that cannot be routed, like those with no available vehicle with the required carrying capacity, are moved to the Unassigned column so you can handle them manually.
Does the AI account for the trade-off between dump fees and task volume?
Yes. IronRouteAI calculates the "least cost" routes while balancing the workload across all selected drivers. It evaluates whether it is more efficient to handle an extra task at the expense of a slightly higher dump fee versus performing fewer tasks at a cheaper location.
Can we set specific "must-do" tasks that aren't moved by the tool?
You can set certain tasks with a High priority, or schedule those tasks for a specific time, and IronRoute will take those settings into account when creating routes.
Why would a route creation attempt fail?
Failures are rare, but can sometimes be resolved by adjusting your settings, like increasing the "Max Hours per Driver" to give the tool more flexibility. If you continue to see failures, please contact our Support team to investigate.
Logistics & Operations
How do we handle call-outs or planned time off?
You can adjust your active driver list for the day to reflect current staffing. The tool will create routes based on your selected drivers only.
Do I need to go through the configuration every single day?
No, your core configurations can be saved as defaults. You only need to review the specific tasks and active drivers for that day before hitting the "Optimize" button to generate the day's plan.
Does the system handle multiple disposal sites?
Yes, you can configure multiple disposal sites with varying fees and locations, and the tool will determine the most cost-effective site for each trip based on the overall route.
How do we designate a further dump for a material if there are multiple dumps that accept that material type?
You would need to designate in some way so that it understands there is a difference. You could do something as easy as: C&D (Dump A), C&D (Dump B).
Can we differentiate between roll-off drivers (10yd, 20yd, 40yd) and 3 yard drivers?
Drivers cannot be assigned task sizes at this time, the vehicles are able to be assigned capacity and then the driver is assigned to the vehicle.
Permissions & Pricing
Are driver wages viewable by office staff?
Wage visibility is controlled by user permissions. You can configure your settings so that only authorized administrative staff can see financial data like driver wages.
- Anyone with access to the IronRouteAI Wizard and Dispatch tab could see wages in the wizard or in print optimized day.
Is this an additional cost to my current subscription?
IronRouteAI is included in the Pro Plus plan. If you are on a lower tier, you may need to upgrade your subscription to access IronRouteAI.
If you have any questions, please reach out to our Support team through the chat widget on the bottom of this page or by sending an email to support@yourdocket.com!