Logistics Shape Profile
A Logistics Shape Profile tells Actualog how Products in a Category become usable logistics values for Product Packs, Packages, and external systems.
For the complete selection guide, all 13 available profiles, mapping policies, inheritance labels, and the LED-strip-on-a-reel example, see Category Logistics Profile. This topic explains the broader division between product facts and shipping facts.
It replaces the old assumption that every physical product category can be mapped directly to four Product attributes: weight, length, width, and height.
Why Actualog needs it
Many product categories do not have meaningful standalone shipping dimensions:
- software, services, digital files, and licenses are non-physical;
- pipes, bars, and profiles are long rigid goods described by length and diameter;
- cable, hose, and flexible goods are shipped as coils, reels, rolls, boxes, or pallets;
- paint, chemicals, and liquids are described by volume and container;
- cement, grain, sand, and other bulk goods are sold by mass or volume and become shippable only after bagging, palletizing, or containerizing;
- live goods require transport packaging and handling rules, not organism dimensions.
The profile lets a Category say which logistics values are known, derived, package-required, not applicable, or blocked until packaging exists.
What the profile contains
| Part | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Shape | The product form, such as non-physical, rectangular solid, long rigid, long flexible, liquid containerized, bulk by mass, bulk by volume, roll, reel, flexible bag, live transport, or kit bundle |
| Role | The logistics value being resolved, such as net weight, gross weight, outer length, outer width, outer height, diameter, volume, density, weight per length, ventilation, temperature range, or maximum transit time |
| Source | Where the Category rule gets a product-level value: Product attribute, Package, approved formula, sold quantity, not applicable, or blocked until packaging. Product Pack overrides remain runtime precedence in the Product Pack, not editable Category metadata |
| Formula parameters | Inputs for approved formulas. The current Category editor offers Long Rigid Cylinder using length and outer diameter; volume and density mappings do not automatically configure a liquid-weight formula |
| Requirement policy | The mapping's intended requirement, such as optional or required for a physical offer. This is not certification that an external channel's contract is satisfied |
Profiles are inherited from the nearest Category first and then from approved Universal Category profiles. A child Category can override a parent or Universal rule when the product class needs a more specific logistics model.
Compact editor behavior
The Category editor shows only the roles that make sense for the selected shape recipe.
For example, a rectangular solid shows net weight and outer length, width, and height. A long rigid product shows length and diameter first; net weight and weight per length stay advanced because many rigid profiles are weighed only after cutting, bundling, or packing. A liquid shows volume and optional density, while packed dimensions come from a Product Pack or Package. A non-physical shape hides the physical mapping table because those roles resolve as not applicable.
Advanced rows, such as gross weight or optional density, stay collapsed until they are relevant. Attribute and target-unit pickers are filtered by the role's accepted measure family. Unsupported stored legacy rules are reported as diagnostics and are not resubmitted when the profile is saved.
Product, Product Pack, and Package responsibilities
Keep the ownership clear:
- Product stores product facts and technical attributes.
- Product Pack stores the sellable or shippable trade unit and can own explicit packed values.
- Package stores the reusable physical packaging material and its external dimensions, internal capacity, tare, and fit constraints.
- Commercial Offer stores price, availability, minimum order, stock, and lead time.
The Logistics Shape Profile describes how the Product can contribute to logistics. It does not copy package dimensions into the Product and does not put price or stock into logistics.
Common shape recipes
| Product type | Typical Product data | Logistics behavior |
|---|---|---|
| Software or service | No physical measurements | Physical logistics roles are not applicable |
| Pipe, bar, rod, rigid profile | Length, diameter, optional weight per length | Unpacked envelope can be length by diameter by diameter; bundles, crates, reels, and pallets use Product Pack or Package |
| Paint or liquid | Volume, optional density | Shipping dimensions come from bottle, can, drum, tank, or Package; volume and density mappings alone do not calculate net weight |
| Cement or bulk material by mass | Sold quantity or net mass | Shipping dimensions come from bag, sack, pallet, or container |
| Cable or hose | Length, optional weight per length | Shipping requires coil, reel, roll, box, or pallet packaging |
| Live goods | Temperature, ventilation, maximum transit time, handling flags | Requires a real transport Package and handling data; verify the consuming integration's supported fields and preflight |
| Kit or bundle | Component Product Packs | Shipping uses the assembled kit Product Pack or Package, not a guessed sum of component shapes |
Package-required logistics
Some products cannot produce valid shipping measurements until they are packed.
For example:
- 25 kg of cement needs a bag or pallet;
- 10 litres of paint needs a can, bottle, bucket, or drum;
- 100 metres of cable needs a coil, reel, carton, or pallet;
- live goods need an approved transport package with handling requirements.
In these cases, the packaging-required profile cannot turn straight material dimensions or contents volume into a shipping envelope. Complete the actual Product Pack or Package data and review unresolved logistics issues. Do not replace missing measurements with zeroes or guessed values.
Marketplace and external-system use
External systems have their own requirements for packed dimensions, gross weight, units, and shipping services. Those requirements belong to the consuming integration and its preflight, not to the Category shape alone.
Available Category profiles do not imply that every marketplace connector, carrier calculation, or typed logistics field is implemented. Verify the specific integration and its current field contract before preparing a listing. A saved profile, a mapped role, and a shipping-ready Product Pack are different checkpoints.
Good profile design
Use the most honest shape for the product class.
Do not add fake width, height, or weight attributes just to satisfy a marketplace. If the value is only known after packaging, require a Product Pack or Package. If the product is non-physical, mark physical roles not applicable. If the value is derived from product facts, use an approved formula rather than free-form arithmetic.