ATLANTA-UPS said it plans to roll out new equipment with wireless capabilities co-developed with Symbol Technologies to its drivers.
The company said the deployment, which will include 32,000 units in the United States and 8,000 outside the United States, is part of a technology upgrade it expects will help reduce the company’s fuel consumption while improving route planning, vehicle loading and package delivery.
UPS said the new equipment is smaller and lighter, has more memory and is easier to use and allows for more customized services. It includes GPS capabilities; the ability to connect in real-time to Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPRS and CDMA networks; and a color screen that accommodates color-coding of messages to drivers.
“There’s really nothing like it,” said Dave Barnes, UPS’s chief information officer.
“This is a key component of a bigger system that we call Package Flow Technology. Our drivers are going to have all the information in their handheld computers to make even more reliable deliveries while driving fewer miles.”
The new computer, which the company has field tested for more than a year, is known as the fourth-generation Delivery Information Acquisition Device.
UPS said it plans to complete the initial rollout of the devices by the end of this year, with plans to have more than 70,000 units in use worldwide by the end of 2007.
