Standardise wireless technology if you want to save money
and be secure, Graham Nugent recommends. It's hard work, but worth
it.
At delivery company UPS, wireless and mobile technologies
are critical to the business. This has been the case since 1991
when the Delivery Information Acquisition Device (Diad) was
introduced to our drivers.
Diad enabled drivers to scan package barcodes, capture signatures
and then up-load this data onto our mainframe from any
telephone.
Every delivery our drivers make is automated; every completed
drop-off or pick-up is recorded on the Diad before being sent over
a mobile message switch to our mainframe.
GPRS, paired with analogue cellular and acoustic coupler
technologies as a contingency, gives our drivers 100% coverage in
most areas.
The advances in these technologies have enabled us to offer our
customers a much better service in terms of keeping them up-to-date
with the progress and location of their parcels. Now we can offer
customers an update almost in real time.
For any business thinking of implementing wireless technologies, I
would recommend trying before you buy. Telecom companies are also
beginning to wake up to this way of working and are supplying test
kits. Companies can then ensure that the technology performs at the
level they require in terms of coverage, signal strength and how
many messages are received first time.
As with any technology, cost is always an important issue. Sending
data over GPRS is charged by the megabyte. This can be expensive,
but the data packets we send are very small and comprise just the
status, the date and the time of delivery. The size of the data
packets is tiny compared to an average e-mail, so we get a lot of
messages for our megabyte.
Standardisation is also something businesses should aim for. Over
the years we have implemented many solutions and every time the
scanning devices are updated, it is almost certain that a new
platform, application code or, in some cases, operating system,
will have to be implemented. Each addition requires a support
infrastructure.
When UPS had upgraded its systems to the level of having 17
different scanning platforms with two scanners for each driver, we
were forced to take action. At this point we revised our approach.
We chose the Microsoft CE operating system, developed our
applications using Visual Studio, with Ethernet, and used 802.11b
wireless Lan with Bluetooth in our buildings. This set-up enabled
us to consider multiple standard devices from a wide range of
suppliers.
Roll-out of this new scanning platform is expected to take five
years and will cover 200,000 devices in 1,700 buildings. This
should lead to a 30% reduction in repair costs, a downtime
improvement of 35% and a reduction in inventory of 35%, all from a
process of standardisation.
Security is another issue that is always on the agenda when
wireless technologies are discussed, especially with regard to
wireless Lans. We use Wi-Fi at our hubs and package centres,
utilising all the security and encryption options within the
equipment, which offers more than adequate protection to the
corporate network.
When wireless technology is first bought, it comes out of the box
with all security options switched off by default. Some businesses
can go wrong by not paying adequate attention to this; putting
security functionality in place does require some effort and
consultation with the hardware and software suppliers.
The security message is clear: you can have a secure wireless Lan
but, to make it work, you have to put in a bit of thought and hard
graft to ensure all parties understand what needs to be done to
maintain a secure network environment.
What do you think?
Do you have a wireless strategy in place?
Tell us in an e-mail >>
ComputerWeekly.com reserves the right to edit and publish
answers on the website. Please state if your answer is not for
publication.
Graham Nugent is European strategic
information services manager at UPS UK and a panelist at Enterprise
Wireless Technology 2003 at London's Olympia on 19-20
November
www.enterprisewirelesstechnology.com