Swedish Post to go wireless

Following in the footsteps of commercial package delivery companies like FedEx Corp. or United Parcel Service of America Inc., Sweden Post is in the process of deploying wireless handhelds for delivery workers. The new system is expected to increase efficiency and allow customers to easily track packages online.

The platform replaces a mainly paper-based system, said John Viirman, project leader at Sweden Post. Currently, drivers ask customers to sign a paper form when packages are delivered and those forms make up the record for deliveries. If customers wish to enquire about the status of a package, they call a customer service line and representatives must look through the paper records to track packages. Drivers carry cell phones and receive SMS (Short Message Service) messages about changing their routes to pick up last minute packages.

The new system will do away with the paper-based system, making it easy for customers to track packages online and streamline the recording system. When the platform becomes fully operationally next summer, delivery drivers will arrive at a post facility at the start of the day and pick up one of 2,500 Intermec 761 handheld devices. Every user has a unique identification sign-on, so they'll log onto the devices and electronically receive their route for the day. The drivers will then use the devices to scan and register the packages that are loaded onto their trucks.

When drivers make a delivery, the recipient will accept the package by signing their name on the device. Drivers will also receive messages on the device with orders to make last minute package pick-ups throughout the day.

The devices will send and receive data over a wireless LAN in the post facilities and via GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) in real time outside of the facility. Only some of the facilities will have the wireless LANs, however, and Sweden Post isn't likely to build the wireless networks in all of its facilities. "Mainly, that's because it's expensive," said Viirman. The post has negotiated a good deal with TeliaSonera AB, the mobile operator in Sweden, so using GPRS in the facilities when available is more cost effective than building new wireless LANs in all the facilities, he said. Where GPRS coverage isn't adequate in the facilities, workers can place the handhelds in a cradle and sync via the wired LAN.

With the wireless platform in place, customers will be able to check the Sweden Post Web site to find that packages were loaded onto trucks in the morning and should be delivered that day. Today, customers must call a customer care center. "That costs us a lot of money," Viirman noted. In the future, the post may also upload recipient signatures so customers can view online the signature of the person accepting the package.

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