April/May 2003

Addison Lee, which claims to be London's biggest courier company, has become one of the first users in the transport and logistics world to adopt the QuikTrak tracking and location system launched in the UK last year.

The company is using the system to track and locate a fleet which ranges from cars and vans to motorcycles.

QuikTrak differs from most other tracking systems in that the company behind it uses its own network of radio beacons to do the locating, and handles communication via a dedicated spread-spectrum local-area radio network. A further unusual feature in this instance is that it tracks the individual, rather than the vehicle; the transponder is carried by the staff member, and there is no antenna or other permanent equipment to install.

Addison Lee says this combination has proved more effective than other motorcycle tracking systems it has tried in the past. According to chairman John Griffith, previous experiments have culminated in expensive equipment being damaged by the weather or through violent shaking on motorbike chassis.

 

The company is also storing the information gathered so that it can retrace data on specific journeys in the event of a query about delivery.