April/May 2008

PDM Group, a food processing and distribution company, is to introduce a mobile data solution from Wire3 to manage its transport activities and provide a real-time proof of delivery capability. The project is valued at more than £200,000.

In the office, Wire3's Sat3 solution will be integrated with PDM's existing Optrak vehicle routing and scheduling system, while in the field it will link with Intermec CN3 handheld terminals. Initially 61 of these are being supplied.

The system will enable jobs to be pre-allocated to each driver and passed through to the Wire3 e-pod software, which then delivers it to the drivers' handsets by GPRS. The driver will be able to record all data required at every job, including recipient's signature, and send this information straight back to the office.

The activities of PDM Group (Prosper De Mulder) include food processing and distribution, pet food ingredient manufacture, animal by-product processing, renewable energy and bio-fuel production. Its turnover is nearly £200 million, and it employs over 1,100 people at 18 sites across the UK.