Orbit Properties (Custom Fields)
Properties are custom fields your organisation defines to capture information Orbit doesn't hold as standard — a reference number, a service level, a flag — and attaches to the records where you need it.
Overview
Orbit models the common parts of logistics for you: orders, shipments, tours, carriers, vehicles, addresses and more. But every organisation has a few details of its own that don't fit a standard field — an internal reference, a customer category, a "fragile" flag, a required certificate. Properties are custom fields you define yourself to hold exactly those details, and attach to the record types where they belong.
Key highlights:
Defined by your organisation — An administrator creates the fields your business needs.
Several field types — Text, numbers, checkboxes, single- and multi-select lists, and more.
Attach to most records — Orders, shipments, tours, carriers, vehicles, addresses and others.
Appear where you work — Once defined, a property shows up on the records it is attached to, ready to fill in.
Named by you — The label of a field and the options in a list are whatever your organisation chooses.
What a property is
A Property has two parts. First, a definition — the field itself: its label, its type, and, for a list, the options it offers. Second, the value stored against a particular record. You define the field once, then set its value on each order, shipment or other record where it matters. A record only shows a property once a value has been set on it.
Field types
When you create a property you choose its type, which controls how the value is entered and shown:
Text — free-form text.
Numeric — a number.
Checkbox — a simple yes/no flag.
Select — one choice from a list you define.
Multiselect — several choices from a list you define.
Document — an attached file.
Tags — one or more freeform labels.
Setting them up
An administrator creates properties in Orbit MissionControl under Settings → Properties. Use Add Property, give it a label, choose its type (and its options, for a list), and choose which record types it should attach to — for example orders, shipments, tours, carriers, vehicles and drivers. Each property can also carry an identifier, used when the field appears in exports, webhooks and the Orbit API.
Where they appear
Once a property is attached to a record type, it appears in a Properties section on records of that type. There you set or update its value — Orbit checks the value fits the field's type, so a Select only accepts one of its defined options. A property attached to orders, say, appears on orders but not on tours, so each field shows up only where you meant it to.
Because properties are defined by your organisation, their meaning is yours too — a field called "Service Level" means whatever your organisation decided it means. To bring property values in from a spreadsheet or an external system in bulk, see Structured Data Import.
Example
A logistics company needs to track a customer purchase-order number on every job and mark which shipments are temperature-controlled. An administrator opens Settings → Properties and adds two fields: a Text property, "PO Number", attached to orders, and a Checkbox property, "Temperature Controlled", attached to shipments. From then on, an operator sees a "PO Number" box on every Order and a "Temperature Controlled" tick on every Shipment, capturing details Orbit didn't hold as standard — without any change to how the rest of Orbit works.
FAQ
Who can create properties?
An administrator, in Orbit MissionControl under Settings → Properties. Once created, anyone working on the relevant records can fill in the values.
What can I attach a property to?
Most record types, including orders, shipments, tours, carriers, vehicles and addresses. You choose the types when you create the field.
Can a field offer a fixed list of choices?
Yes. Use a Select for one choice or a Multiselect for several, and define the options yourself.
Will a property I create on one record type show on another?
Only on the record types you attach it to. A property on shipments won't appear on tours unless you attach it there as well.