If you ship from Sage 300, you already know the routine. Someone opens the order, packs the box, logs into a carrier website, types the address again, prints a label, then comes back to Sage to enter the tracking number and freight. Every step is a chance to make a mistake, and none of it is recorded in Sage until someone remembers to do it.
A shipping integration removes that double entry. This guide covers what a good Sage 300 shipping integration should do, and how Metabox Shipments handles it.
Why Sage 300 needs a shipping integration
Sage 300 Order Entry handles orders, shipments and invoices well, but it has no built-in connection to carriers. It can’t get a live rate from UPS, print a Canada Post label or record which box went with which tracking number. Most warehouses fill the gap with carrier websites and spreadsheets.
That approach causes three problems:
- Retyping. Addresses, weights and tracking numbers are entered twice, once in the carrier’s system and once in Sage.
- No rate shopping. Comparing carriers means opening several websites, so most people just use the usual one.
- Missing margin. Freight charged to the customer and freight paid to the carrier rarely end up side by side, so nobody knows whether shipping makes or loses money.
What a good integration should do
When you compare options, check that the integration:
- works from the Sage 300 order or shipment you already have, not a copy of it;
- compares live rates across carriers on one screen;
- handles multi-box shipments and pallets, with dimensions and weight per box;
- prints labels on the printer at the pack bench;
- writes tracking, Ship Via and freight back into Sage 300 automatically;
- keeps your own negotiated carrier rates.
How Metabox Shipments does it
Metabox Shipments runs in a browser on the handheld at the pack bench and works directly with Sage 300 O/E Shipments.
- Scan and box. Add items by scanning them, assign them to boxes with dimensions and weight, and group boxes onto pallets for larger freight.
- Rate-shop 100+ carriers. Metabox uses EasyPost, which connects to more than 100 carriers, including UPS, FedEx, Canada Post and Purolator. You connect the carriers you use, including your own contract rates, and compare them on one screen.
- Print and post. Print one label per box on a network Zebra printer, then post the shipment. Metabox updates the shipment header with tracking and Ship Via, adds the freight as a miscellaneous charge, and can create the invoice, or leave invoicing for later.
- Track your margin. The carrier’s cost and the rate you charge are stored as separate fields, so freight margin is reportable.
- Close the day. Day-end manifests group the day’s shipments by carrier, and return labels work through Orchid RMA.
Setting up carriers
Getting carriers into Metabox takes three steps: create an EasyPost account, attach the carriers you want to use (including existing contracts), and add your EasyPost API key to Metabox. Then match each carrier to its OE Ship Via code in Sage 300.
What you need
Metabox needs Sage 300 2022 or later with Orchid Extender and Orchid Information Manager. On the floor, any device with a browser works, and Zebra TC52 or similar Android handhelds are ideal, along with network label printers using 4×6 labels.
See it working
Watch a shipment get finalized at the pack bench on the Metabox Shipments page, see pricing, or book a demo and we’ll walk through your shipping process with you.