Forest Freight, a leading logistics contractor based in Rainham, Kent, has introduced a real-time mobile computing and asset management solution focusing particularly on the needs of a distribution management contract with Permacell Finesse, an extrusion window and door supplier.

As part of the contract, Forest Freight is providing distribution, tracking and inventory management of the company's transport stillages, which move to and from around 300 locations.

The solution has been developed in association with Sandpiper Corporation, a wireless integrator and mobile computing specialist, and Mandata, the transport management software specialist. The equipment includes Intermec 760 handheld mobile computers and barcode scanners, which are communicating via GPRS with Mandata's ManPack3 transport management system.

Forest Freight is a long-time advocate of tracking and mobile computing. It was one of the first users of VeMIS Logistics, the upgraded on-board computing package launched after DaimlerChrysler acquired the VeMIS system two years ago. The company was also one of the first to introduce ManPack3 Windows-based software when it was launched around the same time.