Workshop dispatch schedule for small steel shops (AU)
A practical one-page dispatch board for Australian fab shops and boilermakers: why clipboards fail, how to hand jobs to drivers, and how a shortage check before packing saves a return trip. Links the Small-shop Dispatch Planner.
Small steel shops usually don't need a warehouse WMS. They need a clear answer every afternoon: which jobs are ready to go, what's still short, which ute or contractor is taking which load, and what actually left the bay. This page is a simple workshop dispatch schedule you can run on one A4 sheet or a whiteboard. It isn't legal or transport advice, and it doesn't replace a delivery docket your customer or principal asks for.
Why clipboards fail
A clipboard on the welding bay works until three jobs finish on the same afternoon. Typical failure modes in a 2–8 person fab shop:
- Two versions of the truth. The welder ticks a job done on one sheet; the office has a different order list on the computer; the driver leaves with neither.
- Shortages discovered at the truck. Base plates, brackets, fasteners or a painted handrail are still on the rack, so the load goes incomplete or someone drives back.
- No owner for the hand-off. "It's ready" means different things to the fitter (welded), the painter (coated) and the customer (on site with hardware).
- No closeout. When a site rings about a missing post, nobody can say whether it left the shop, sat on the ute, or was never packed.
Clipboards aren't the enemy. Running three of them with no single board for today's dispatch is.
One-page job board
Keep one board (whiteboard or printed A4) that only covers today and tomorrow. Columns that work for RHS/SHS gates, stairs, frames and small structural jobs:
- Job / customer / site — short name and suburb or site code
- Ready? — cut / weld / paint / hardware complete (or N/A)
- Shortage — blank if clear; otherwise the exact missing item and qty
- Load — ute 1, ute 2, customer pickup, or courier
- Driver / time — who is taking it and the planned leave time
- Actually left — tick + time after the hand-off, not before
Worked example (made-up)
Three jobs on the board at 2pm: (1) Smith stairs — weld done, paint drying, hardware boxed, load ute 1 at 3:30; (2) Gate pair for Jones — weld done, shortage: 4× M12 dynabolts, do not load; (3) Handrail for council depot — complete, customer pickup after 4pm. The shortage row stops Jones going out half-packed. Smith and the handrail can leave without a meeting.
Rules that keep the board honest:
- Only the person who checked the bay marks Ready.
- A job with any shortage stays off the load until the shortage cell is cleared.
- Wipe or archive yesterday's rows each morning so the board stays one page.
Hand-off to drivers
The risky minute is the hand-off from the shop floor to the person driving. Use a short verbal checklist against the board, then write the closeout:
- Read the job row aloud (customer, site, piece count).
- Confirm the shortage cell is blank.
- Confirm hardware, drawings or ITP pack that must travel with the load.
- Note vehicle and leave time on the board.
- After the ute is loaded, mark Actually left and keep a paper or PDF closeout (photos help for painted or fragile pieces).
A planned dispatch is not proof of delivery. If the site needs a delivery docket, sign-off or photographic evidence, record that separately from the shop board. For QA-heavy structural work, your fabrication ITP or dispatch check (see the fabrication ITP guide) still sits above this daily board.
Link to Small-shop Dispatch Planner
When you're packing more than a few line items — fasteners, brackets, left/right handrails, boxed hardware — a one-page shortage calculator beats mental maths. Andwat Co's Small-shop Dispatch Planner is an offline toolkit (browser calculator + printable closeout workbook): enter counted stock and what the order needs, see planned units and shortages before you tape a box, then close out what actually went out.
Get the planner on Payhip — product code 1i5sZ, list price A$6. It doesn't sync inventory, print shipping labels or replace your accounting. Entries aren't saved, so print or save a PDF before you close the page.
Sale note (other kits only): some other Andwat Co kits on Payhip — including the Steel Cut List & Stock Length Optimiser (48fod) and the Sole Trader Invoice & GST Threshold Tracker (k7GIA) — currently show a short sale ending late 7 Nov AEST. Check each product page for the live sale price. List prices on this site stay as list. The Dispatch Planner link above is the matching product for this guide (not the E-commerce Listing kit at 9gTA6).
Related: stock count + cut list
Dispatch only works if the rack count and the cut list were honest earlier in the week:
- Stock count — plan the count, recount variances, and (if you keep trading during the count) log movements. See the Stock Count & Variance kits on the templates list (Core and Plus).
- Cut list — nest pieces into stock lengths with kerf and end trim before you buy bars. Start with the free steel cut list checklist and, when you want the optimiser, the Steel Cut List & Stock Length Optimiser (A$29 list). The steel cut list calculator guide walks through the same idea in plain English.
- After the load leaves — if you're still not GST-registered, send a proper ABN invoice (not a tax invoice). See the sole trader invoice and GST threshold guide and kit k7GIA (A$19 list).
Sources
- Australian Steel Institute – Structural steelwork standard drawing notes v1.0
- Australian Steel Institute – Steelwork compliance management plan v1.0
Related guides
- Free steel cut list checklist (printable A4)
- What goes in a fabrication ITP (AS/NZS 5131 projects)
- Sole trader invoices when you're not GST-registered (and how to watch the $75,000 threshold)
- Structural steel cut list basics: steel weight per metre formulas
General information only, summarised from the official sources above as at the review date. It isn't legal, tax, WHS or engineering advice. Rules change and your situation may differ, so check the source or ask a professional.