PASS THE PARCEL
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb057112 |
| Pages | 44-45 |
| Published date | 01 October 1980 |
| Date | 01 October 1980 |
| Subject Matter | Economics,Information & knowledge management,Management science & operations |
PASS
THE
PARCEL
Spending on innovative computer
technology and mechanised parcel
handling has established Lex's Wil-
kinson Transport Ltd as trendsetter in
the express parcels business.
Wilkinson Transport recently
launched a computer system which
provides instant information on the
progress of any of the 65,000 parcels
carried daily by its fleet of 550 collec-
tion and delivery vehicles.
In a highly competitive indsutry
that has been slow to adapt new tech-
nology, the company claims the ser-
vice is at least two years ahead of its
competitors, which include several
companies in the private sector as well
as the National Freight Corporation
companies. Next year Wilkinson
Transport will open the Hub - a
machanised sorting depot in a 10 acre
site in the centre of Britain at
Nuneaton, Warwickshire, whilst this
year will see the full mechanisation of
up to 7 depots in the 16 depot nation-
wide network. When Lex began its
multi-million pound investment in
Wilkinson Transport in 1977, it was
an outstanding move in an industry
where the keen competition makes
that amount of money rarely avail-
able.
But Lex aimed to establish Wil-
kinson's reputation as the market
leader by creating new standards of
control and information flow in
express parcels delivery.
"Our aim is clearly to establish
ourselves as a company which pro-
vides higher service standards than
any other carrier", says Wilkinson
Transport's Managing Director,
Colin Millbanks.
"We have invested, and are con-
tinuing to invest, large amounts of
capital in bringing modern technology
into the parcels carrying industry - an
industry which has frequently failed
to keep pace with our changing
times."
Wilkinson has a current turnover of
£20m, and with the sophisticated
computer system, the Hub centre
opening soon, and the Depot
Mechanisation programme, the com-
pany is poised for expansion, espe-
cially at the 'quality' end of the
express parcels market. The
development of computer systems
was a priority.
"From the start we wanted a tool
for operating an express parcel sys-
tem", says Wilkinson's Transport
Commercial Manager Robin Davies.
"Some other carriers use comput-
ers in a limited conventional way and
they get a good accounting system
rather than an express parcels sys-
tem".
The endemic problem of parcel
delivery is the discrepancy between
the trailer's waybill and the load - lost
parcels, the wrong parcels, split loads
and damage. From the start it was
decided to use computers to keep tabs
on the thousands of parcels moving at
any time between Wilkinson's 2,220
customers and 10,000 destinations in
high streets and trading estates.
To solve this problem, Lex ordered
two Sperry Univac 90/30 computers
and Wilkinson Transport first instal-
led Case VDU screen terminals in its
16 depots. The Case units were later
mostly replaced by Sperry Univac
intelligent UTS 400 terminals to link
the depots to the Lex computer at
High Wycombe.
Wilkinson Transport then recruited
two programmers. Dr Graham
Matthews and Phil Hoare, with help
from Sperry Univac's John Bastable,
wrote the parcel control system, enti-
tled 'Wilkcontrol', with impressive
speed.
"Imagine a system when you post a
letter and the GPO can tell you where
the letter is on route to its destina-
tion" says Dr Matthews.
"In writing the computing program
44 INDUSTRIAL MANAGEMENT + DATA SYSTEMS
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