A radical shake-up in the way all supply/delivery logistics are handled is being offered by a new concept in the fast-expanding proof of delivery world.
The POD Father is the UK’s first pay-as-you-go tariff and the most integrated Proof of Delivery (PoD) system on the market, seamlessly capturing time-critical data, enabling job details to be instantly sent to drivers via a handheld PDA device.
The POD father is the brainchild of Edinburgh-based Valley Technology and managing director, Alastair Broom, explains why industry will see enormous benefits from the concept:
“We were looking at ways of using technology to improve logistics and wanted to come up with a product that would be of benefit to even the smallest firms. Using an electronic, on-line system has so many advantages, but smaller businesses often don’t have the budget to make the change. In designing the POD Father, we created something that everyone can afford to invest in and benefit from, whether you are one man with a van or a multinational construction company with a 2000 strong fleet – in essence, we prioritised cost and simplicity.”
Jobs can be entered into The POD Father manually or uploaded from an existing system via an XML interface, and can then be viewed immediately, both in the office and on the road. Allocating them to a team member is easy with a drag and drop system. Once a delivery is complete the signature is captured immediately using a 3G or a GPRS equipped handheld portable and PODs can also be sent to customers via fax or email. An online customer portal lets customers search for and retrieve their own PODs, which reduces administration and improves customer service.
Broom continued:
“The transparency of the system, whereby everyone can view job information at every stage of the process, is what makes it so efficient. We’ve had a really positive response from our customers so far and are confident we will continue to build on this.”
The POD Father is an easy to install product requiring only a handheld PDA and an office based computer system with an internet connection. More details at www.thepodfather.eu
