Special profile Wincanton
tracking and transportation management solutions provided by Microlise and Isotrak. “These systems help us manage our fleets more efficiently; from a security perspective in terms of GPS tracking, through to the use of telematics, which show us if we are fully exploiting the use of the vehicle to their best
“
Over the past 12 months we have been looking very hard at our channel partners and what value we get from them; and we have realigned some of these services to drive better value and better relationships.”
advantage.” Whelan added that Wincanton’s workforce is also using a range of Symbol/ Motorola mobile computing devices for the real-time data capture in the field; such as signature capture at the point of delivery.
Partner role
Whelan pointed out that Wincanton places its systems partners in two main categories; hardware and software. “On the hardware side we have just selected Camtek, who have taken over from our previous partner in this technology area,” he said. “We chose Camtek primarily because of its proven level of service and availability and cost of service. Over the past 12 months we have been looking very hard at our channel partners and what value we get from them; and we have realigned some of these services to drive better value and better relationships.”
On the vendor front, IBM is beyond doubt one of Wincanton’s most important suppliers. “The hardware we have acquired from IBM amounts to around 800 servers in our UK estates alone, and circa 300 servers across mainland Europe,” said Whelan. On the systems integration side, Wincanton as a group has standardised on Seeburger as its integration platform. “From an IT perspective,
www.logisticsit.com
integration is probably our biggest USP, and we integrate with every single client we operate with,” remarked Whelan. “We have an anything- to-anything approach, and our Seeburger platform has given us this capability.”
Taking the lead
From a business relationship perspective, Whelan reflects that, while Wincanton likes its partners to work alongside the company during system installation, integration and general development, it would never ask a partner to take the lead. “We must always
Wincanton’s transportation services take advantage of every available means; road, rail, air and intermodal systems.
take clear ownership of the IT project because it is we who are ultimately accountable to the end customer,” he said. In terms of IT system choice, Whelan points out that Wincanton always looks at the demands and needs of its customers in the first instance, and then works with its existing vendor partners to implement the right solution with the best functionality for the task. “We also competitively go to market to find out what else is out there,” added Whelan. “We’re constantly doing this almost on a monthly basis to make sure we are keeping abreast of the technological advances in the IT industry from a hard - ware and software perspective. We also use our findings it as a benchmark as to what our competitors are or might be doing.”
May 2010
MANUFACTURING
&LOGISTICS
IT 21
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