July/Aug 2004

Productivity and operational flexibility have both improved since Doncaster-based Dixon Motors upgraded the radio-frequency data capture system at its purpose-built car preparation and distribution centre.

The company has installed an 802.11b wireless networking application from Peak Technologies, at the same times as migrating its corporate legacy system from IBM's proprietary AS/400 platform to the same company's RS6000 UNIX open system.

The Doncaster site houses up to 8,000 cars at any time. It handles all new car arrivals at group premises, along with despatch to its 60 showrooms in the North of England. About 400 car transporters pass through the premises a week.

Operational teething problems with the older system meant the company was anxious about deploying 802.11b. However, the company was reassured by visiting two existing Peak installations - one at car transporter and logistics specialist Walon's 200,000-acre site.

The new RF application enables Dixon Motors to capture more data on each car, gaining a complete and traceable record of when the vehicle arrived, where it was stored, any work carried out, and when and where it was despatched.

As new vehicles arrive, the vehicle identification numbers are scanned using Symbol PDT 6846 handheld terminals, and the make, model, colour and other relevant data are entered. All the data is then sent wirelessly to a central control system. Access points on lamp posts throughout the site (and inside the office building) provide network coverage, so wherever Dixon staff are, they can access up-to-date, centrally held records.

Each inbound car is given a printed barcode label for scanning at despatch. All operators have been issued with portable Zebra PT400 printers, bringing a big productivity gain.

It took five days to install the Peak system, and the two systems ran in parallel during the transition. The Symbol handhelds work with both the computer platforms, so there was no major interruption to the logistics processing system.

Any enabled laptop can also connect to the RS/6000 system through the wireless network, increasing flexibility.

The biggest financial saving, says special projects manager Darryl Ericson, came when the company decided to expand into a building across the road. "We found that by installing a number of access points inside the new building, we did not have to run network cables to create a fully functioning IT environment, and that has saved thousands of pounds. "