The AFD Postcode Everywhere integration is accessible through Name searches, either from the Name Search facility on the left-hand side of Proclaim Desktop, or from within a case by updating the case and double clicking on a correspondent field e.g. name. To add a new record, you will need to click Maintain and then New.
Entering Search Criteria
The user can then type in the Address line 1 field starting with the most specific (for example, a house number and/or street name) and enter a “@” then move on to more general elements (for example, a town or postcode). When the user presses the tab key, the AFD Postcode Everywhere XML application will perform the searches.
The following are examples of the keywords that can be used:
Kelso House@BD15BJ (Building Name and Postcode)
11@BD15BJ (Building Number and Postcode)
Eclipse,11@BD15BJ (Organisation,Building Number and Postcode)
Eclipse@ (can be organisation, street name, locality or town)
Burnett Street@Bradford (Street Name and Town)
Thorpe@Millbank Close (Surname and Street Name)
The postcode look up also works when the user enters the full name e.g. Gemma Hall@ in the Surname/Co field. A list of addresses will be displayed. Similarly, if a broad postcode only search was required, fill in the postcode field followed by “@”
Results
If there is a Single result from the search, the fields will automatically be populated with the data.
If Multiple result are returned, these will be presented for you to view and select the correct record.
Nearest
The Nearest facility is provided as a way for the XML Server to handle a distance calculation. Proclaim will connect to the CSV file, in order to read the existing records with the postcode and quickly allows the user access to the Nearest function; i.e. to find correspondent records that are within a set distance away from the chosen postcode e.g. Medical experts. Using the Grid References supplied as part of the AFD product data, this will calculate the approximate linear distances between postcodes.
This feature will only be available if the Enable Nearest option for the specified SQL has been ticked on the Advanced Tabs in the SQL Maintenance screen.
When running the search, the user enters the radius e.g.100 miles and clicks the icon to the right. This will call the XML server to calculate the approximate linear distances between postcodes and return the nearest locations.