Create new layer - To optimise existing Territories, open an existing project that contains the existing Territory layer and resource location layer (if available) that you would like to base the optimisation on and then choose Add Data, Create New Layer.
Choose which type of layer to create - Select Territory Optimiser to create an optimal Territory structure
Choose to Optimise Existing Territories - Select Optimise Existing Territories to create optimal Territories based on your current Territories and existing resource. An alternative option Optimise Workload is available if you want to create optimal Territories based on your customer location data and existing resource.
Select the input data - In the Territory Optimiser panel you can select the input data and settings for your Territory optimisation. In the Step 1: Input Data section you can select which existing Territories layer from your project you would like to base the optimisation on, by clicking on the dropdown list next to Existing Territories.
The tick box next to Resource Locations gives you the option to select whether to use an existing resource location Map Pins layer, or whether to proceed with no resource locations, asking the system to create new resource locations as part of the optimisation. To proceed with existing resource locations, tick the box and then select the layer that contains your existing resources by clicking on the dropdown list next to Resource Locations.
The tick box next to Regionalise gives you the option to create optimised Territories within your existing regional boundaries, so that the system will split regions into multiple territories without changing the regional boundaries. To regionalise, tick the box and select the Territory layer that contains your regions, by clicking on the dropdown list next to Regionalise. Once the layer is selected the system will calculate which region each existing Territory and resource location (if chosen) is located within. This will result in a Region Options view, outlining the results of the Region calculations.
Select the Territory settings - In Step 2: Territory Settings you can choose how you want the Territory Optimiser to balance your Territories, by selecting a column from your existing Territory layer. The Territory Optimiser will try to create balanced Territories in terms of your chosen balancing variable at the same time as minimising travel time. Select a column by clicking on the dropdown box next to Balancing Value.
The total number of regions in the regional layer that you selected in step 1 is displayed next to Total Regions and the total number of existing Territories is displayed next to Total Territories.
To access additional settings for the territory optimisation and the region settings, click on Advanced Options.
Change advanced optimisation settings - In Advanced Optimisation Settings you can change various default settings if required:
Include Unassigned Components – If ticked this will include any building blocks that aren’t covered by your input data so all building bricks are allocated to a Territory,
Contiguity – If ticked this ensures that Territories are one unit and are not split into several areas.
Settings – Allows you to fix Territory locations so that a Territory will be built around a similar location to existing Territories if available. You can also Lock Territories so that they will be identical to the existing Territory and you can set individual targets for Territories if you want some Territories to have a different workload to others. Please note, this will only be visible if Regionalise has not been ticked in Step 1.
Regions – Allows you to adjust the number of Territories within a Region. The dropdown will allow you to select a Region to review the Territories within the Region. You can overwrite the number of Total Territories by typing a new number of territories into the box or by using the up/down arrows which become visible when you hover the mouse over the number box. You can also overwrite the Weighting for Territories if you want some Territories to have a higher weighting than others.Note that section is only visible if Regionalise has been ticked in Step 1.
Performance – Allows you to adjust the level of detail for the optimisation between Basic, Regular and Detailed. The more detailed option chosen will result in the optimisation taking longer to process.
To return to the main Territory Optimser panel press the Territory Optimiser back arrow at the top of the panel, and if you are happy with your settings, press the Optimise button to start the optimisation process. This process will create a balanced set of Territories. If Regionalise is ticked in Step 1, the system will optimise each Region separately, to split the total balancing variable (as chosen in Step 2) within the Region into equal Territories.
View the optimised Territories - Once the processing has completed, the map will update to show the optimised Territories. You can then click on the Optimised Territories name in the My Data section of the panel to make changes to the size or style of the Territories.
To create optimised Territories, Open an existing project that contains the visit layer and resource location layer that you would like to base the optimisation on and then choose Add Data, Create New Layer.
Select Territory Optimiser to create an optimal Territory structure.
Select Optimise Workload to create optimal Territories based on your customer location data and existing resource. An alternative option Optimise Existing Territories is available if you want to create optimal Territories based on an existing Territory layer in your project.
In the Territory Optimiser panel you can select the input data and settings for your Territory optimisation. In the Step 1: Input Data section you can select which visit locations Map Pins layer from your project you would like to base the optimisation on, by clicking on the dropdown lists next to Visit Locations.
The tick box next to Resource Locations gives you the option to select whether to use an existing resource location Map Pins layer, or whether to proceed with no resource locations, asking the system to create new resource locations as part of the optimisation. To proceed with existing resource locations, tick the box and then select the layer that contains your existing resources by clicking on the dropdown list next to Resource Locations.
The tick box next to Existing Territories gives you the option to compare the optimised Territories to your existing Territories. To compare to existing Territories, tick the box and then select the Territory layer that contains your existing Territories, by clicking on the dropdown list next to Existing Territories.
The tick box next to Regionalise gives you the option to create optimised Territories within your existing Territory boundaries (e,g, optimising 1 territory/region into multiple territories). To proceed with regionalising your existing Territory layer, tick the box and then select the Territory layer that contains your existing Territories, by clicking on the dropdown list next to Regionalise. Once the layer is selected from the Regionalise dropdown, the system will begin calculating which Region/Territory each visit location and resource location (if chosen) is located within. This will result in a Region Options view, outlining the results of the Region calculations.
In Step 2: Workload Settings you can choose how to define the workload for your Territory optimisation. The Territory Optimiser will try to create balanced Territories in terms of workload at the same time as minimising travel time. There are a few different options for defining the workload depending on the data that you have:
The Visit Time Settings gives you the option to select a visit duration and frequency by either selecting a column from your visit locations layer or by entering a global value for all the visits into the box next to Visit Time and Frequency. The format for Visit Time needs to be hh:mm and Frequency needs to be a number.
The tick box next to Average Travel Time Settings gives you the option to include travel time between visits as part of the workload calculation. Ticking the box to proceed with average travel times will give the option either to select a previously calculated column from the visit layer, or to select CALCULATE from the dropdown. After selecting the required option from the dropdown, the following settings will need to be specified:
Nearest Stops (only available when CALCULATE is selected)–this provides you with the option to select the number of nearby stops to take into account when calculating the average travel time between stops. Please note that a higher number of nearby stops will result in a longer average travel time.
Suppression –recommended to be set to 100%, however this provides you with the ability to override travel times/speeds, to make these faster or slower (e.g. 50% suppression will make the road speeds in the calculations about twice as slow, whereas 200% suppression will make the road speeds about twice as fast).
The tick box next to Stem Time Settings gives you the option to include travel time from the visit location to the nearest/assigned resource as part of the workload calculation. Ticking the box to proceed with stem times will give the option either to select a previously calculated column from the visit layer, or to select CALCULATE from the dropdown. After selecting the required option from the dropdown, the following settings will need to be specified:
Direction -this provides you with the either the option to include travel time Two Way (to and from the resource location) or One way (only include the stem for either to or from the resource location).
Suppression -recommended to be set to 100%, however this provides you with the ability to override travel times/speeds, to make these faster or slower (e.g. 50% suppression will make the road speeds in the calculations about twice as slow, whereas 200% suppression will make the road speeds about twice as fast).
Please note, stem time will only be available if resource locations have been setup in Step 1 - Input Data.
In Step 3: Resource Settings, the system will specify the total number of resources (reps) that you currently have. The value shown will be based on the resources file that you selected in Step 1: Input Data. Please note, if no resources were chosen in Step 1 this would show as 0 Total Resources. Please note, you are unable to overwrite this value until Step 4: Optimisation Settings.
You can select Advanced Options if you want to specify further resource settings.
The Advanced Resource Settings panel allows you to specify parameters for all of the resources, either by using the Default Resource Settings or the Existing Resource Settings.
The Default Resource Settings can be manually edited apart from the settings highlighted in bold. These will automatically update as the other parameters are changed.
The Existing Resource Settings gives you the option to select different settings (e.g. Start/Finish Time) for each resource, by selecting a column from your existing resource locations layer. The Start, Finish, Breaks, Administration and Other Time will need to be setup in the format of hh:mm in the existing resources layer. The Total Days and Utilisation Target (this value will be applied to the total time available to the resource)will need to be setup at a number in the existing resources layer. If any of the Existing Resource Settings are not outlined, the system will take the default value specified in the Default Resource Settings. The system will also use the Default Resource Settings if any additional resources are required for the optimisation, following the initial workload calculation.
To return to the main Territory Optimiser panel when you are happy with your settings press the Territory Optimiser back arrow at the top of the panel.
Press Calculate to calculate the number of territories required to service the visits, with the visit and resource settings that have been applied.
If you did not select to Existing Territories in Step 1, then you will need to choose a geography to use as the building blocks for your Territories such as Postcode Area, District or Sector. If you did select to existing Territories, then the system will automatically select the geography that the existing Territories are based on and use this to build the optimised Territories from.
The results of the territory calculation are shown in Step 4: Optimisation Settings. If the Total Territories figure is different to the number of resources, this means that the system has calculated that that the resource required to service the visits is different to the number of resources currently. The value in brackets after the Total Territories number shows the difference between the current number of resources and the required number. You can overwrite this number by typing a new number of territories into the box or by using the up/down arrows which become visible when you hover the mouse over the number box.
Alternatively, if the Regionalise option has been chosen in Step 1, the system will outline the Total Regions (which will match the total number of Existing Territories in the layer chosen in Step 1 - Regionalise) in addition to the Total Territories required to service the visits, keeping within the Existing Regions chosen. The value in brackets after the Total Territories number shows the difference between the current number of resources and the required number. In order to change the Total Territories, you will need to access the Advanced Options.
To access additional settings for the territory optimisation and the region settings, click on Advanced Options.
In Advanced Optimisation Settings you can change various default settings if required:
Include Unassigned Components – If ticked this will include any building blocks that aren’t covered by your input data so all building bricks are allocated to a Territory,
Contiguity – If ticked this ensures that Territories are one unit and are not split into several areas.
Settings – Allows you to fix Territory locations so that a Territory will be built around a similar location to existing Territories if available. You can also Lock Territories so that they will be identical to the existing Territory and you can set individual targets for Territories if you want some Territories to have a different workload to others. Please note, this will only be visible if Regionalise has not been ticked in Step 1.
Regions – Allows you to adjust the number of Territories within a Region. The dropdown will allow you to select an Existing Territory/Region to review the Total Workload, Target Minutes and Total Territories required within a Region. You can overwrite the number of Total Territories by typing a new number of territories into the box or by using the up/down arrows which become visible when you hover the mouse over the number box. You can also overwrite the Target Minutes available to each Territory/Resource, as any new Territories will be added using the Default Resource Settings specified in Step 3. Please note, this will only be visible if Regionalise has been ticked in Step 1.
Performance – Allows you to adjust the level of detail for the optimisation between Basic, Regular and Detailed. This more detailed option chosen will result in the optimisation taking longer to calculate.
To return to the main Territory Optimser panel press the Territory Optimiser back arrow at the top of the panel, and if you are happy with your settings, press either the Analyse or Optimise button to start the optimisation process.
Analyse – This will only show if Existing Territories was ticked in Step 1. This will enable you to calculate an optimisation outlining how many Resources are required within each Territory/Region, to provide a view on how much resource is required to complete the work within each existing territory.
Optimise - This will create an optimisation, to split the visits/workload into equal Territories for each Resource. If Regionalise is ticked in Step 1, the system will optimise each Region separately, to split the visits/workload within the Region into equal Territories.
Once the processing has completed, the map will update to show the optimised or existing (if analyse is selected) Territories. You can then click on the Optimised Territories or Existing Territories name in the My Data section of the panel to make changes to the size or style of the territories. Please note that the colour of the Territories will initially be styled based on Utilisation. This Utilisation value relates to the amount of workload that is assigned to the territory, e.g. if the territory/resource has 200 minutes available, but has been assigned 150 minutes workload, this would be shown under capacity at 75%. Alternatively, if the territory resource had been assigned 210 minutes, this would be shown over capacity as 105%. The colour relates to whether the territory is under capacity (under 80% - orange), on capacity (80%-100% - green), or over capacity (100%+ - red).
The style can however be adjusted to a unique colour for each Territory using the Design & Build functionality from within in the Layer Editor Panel.
