The tong and winding road
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Despite being a major player in the US routeing and scheduling market, Roadnet is little known in the UK. But distributor 121 Systems aims to change that, saying that this is one of the most comprehensive and fast systems available
Words: Toby Clark The Roadnet Transportation Suite consists of a number of modules, which make up a comprehensive package of routeing, scheduling, load optimisation and telematics products.These come from a subsidiary of US parcels giant UPS, but are sold in the UK by 121 Systems.
Chris Sisson is the MD of 121 Systems, and approaches the role with the transport industry's needs in mind. Sisson is keen to see that routeing and scheduling systems should work in the real world, and that they should improve the functioning of an operation: -There's a bit of aclosed book on the service that the transport department does. but anything they do will impact their customers and their internal customers, like business development. Full visibility is vital."
He thinks that this approach will benefit the customer too: "As an end user you want something delivered. I don't think an AM or PM delivery is good enough and clearly the technology is there. You should be able to share where the trucks are, and where the delivery is."
Sisson is also adamant that speed is vital in a scheduling system: -A lot of routeing companies arc not far off optimising the plan what's important is the speed of the plan, so you can change it rapidly." He gives the example of DX Group, which schedules 80,000 loads a day a task that is undertaken in just 11/2 hours. "Customers think that the computer constrains them but by using the power of the computer you can be much more flexible.
"We create a solution design it's always a working document, it's never complete. We are not sales-driven but delivery-driven.Today the software works but does your process have to work around it? A piece of software has to be integrated into the business"
Roadnet, UPS and 121 Systems
Roadnet Inc was founded in 1983, and was initially marketed as a product for the foodservice industry "We're not just in foodservice though we're very strong in it," says Sisson, who reckons that the system is number one in foodservice applications around the world.
Roadnet was eventually absorbed into UPS Supply Chain Solutions, and in the 90s was renamed as UPS Logistics Technologies. Sisson says that it has around a quarter of the global market for routeing and scheduling systems which is dominated by US customers and suppliers.
121 Systems itself was started in 2003, and recently moved to new premises on the Nottingham University Science Park. The firm has just nine employees, but Sisson points out that UPS Logistics Technologies has more than 150 staff, including more than 40 developers. He also says that differences between US and UK logistics firms are not significant: "There are some differences, but the strength of the software means that it is not a problem." In fact, he says. UK road network lends itself more to computerised optimisation than the grid-based US network.
Although primarily the exclusive UK and Ireland distributor for the UPS products,121 Systems also has customers in Russia. Poland and Germany.
Sisson also stresses that Roadnet is not particularly a package or parcel application: users can have one or multiple depots. and typically have 10 or more vehicles on multi-drop
operations. UK users of the system are diverse, and include IT Foodservice, Biffa, Iron Mountain and Pepsico.
The Roadnet Transportation Suite's modules run from a common database, which may be on either the Oracle or SQL platform. Solutions consultant Neville Cann says: "If you add a new module, you already have the data you need."
Sisson points out that the Roadnet system can get its source data from a 'flat file' system — this has typically been the way that routeing and scheduling software is run — or via an API layer: what this means is that users (or other programmes) can look at or modify data directly, so that changes can be made without re-entering a whole shift's data. As he puts it: "It's not just about pull and push — it's about interaction."
Territory Planner
The Territory Planner module is a 'what if modeller, primarily for medium-term planning of depot territories. However, it can equally be used to plan territories for drivers or service engineers, As Cann points out: "It's the logical rules that matter — not the actual subject."
Territory Planner can deal with operations that need repeated deliveries, even if those are infrequent: it is able to optimise deliveries over a period as long as 24 weeks.
Users can also specify different strategies for creating territories, such as clusters, spokes and depot distance, using sliders (rather like volume controls) to alter the balance between different criteria. This level of sophistication might suggest that an experienced operator is vital, but the system's speed makes running a variety of 'what-if scenarios practical.
According to Sisson, one project saw Territory Planner reduce the number of depots needed from 15 to 11— and this took just 15 days from start to finish. Perhaps surprisingly, there are no independent third-party consultants using the system: -But we wouldn't say no," says Sisson. He jokes that consultants like to take a lot of time to solve a problem: "But with Territory Planner it can take just hours."
Sisson also makes the serious point that it is vital to model a system quickly, before the conditions change again: "It's the speed of getting your plan to the table that's vital," Cann demonstrates the speed of the system using the example of a six-depot operation with 7000 delivery locations: with the programme running on a modest laptop all the locations are initially assigned to each depot in about five seconds. A refined, more complex analysis takes around a minute — still an astonishingly fast result
Planning the schedule
Once the initial input data has been imported from the order system, the Roadnet system constructs a 'traversable network' of all the possible journeys that could be undertaken; and filters this result to deliver a practical schedules.
These schedules are represented as tables: "It tries to make it easier to see what can be done," says Sisson.
There are many setup options, as well as the ability to restrict different users to different levels of information — it makes the operator's job easier and prevents unauthorised changes.
At the setup stage, it is possible to alter the balance between route cost and delivery speed using a slider control. And of course, you can alter a delivery schedule manually.
As with other routeing and scheduling packages, you can change the sequence of deliveries by dragging and dropping items either on the table view or on the map.
Roadnet Anywhere
Roadnet Anywhere is a pay-as-you-go version of the Roadnet Transportation Suite, which is sold as software as a service (SAAS).This is a web-based version of the suite, optimised for fleets of between 2 and 20 vehicles, which requires no capital outlay and no software installation on the user's computers.
Currently Roadnet Anywhere is a cut-down version of the full suite, but a 'Platform 2' version coming soon will be a full version of the suite, initially to he targeted at foodservice customers.
The bottom line
Although the modular nature of the Roadnet system can be complex, the pricing structure seems straightforward. According to 121 Systems, a typical appropriate price for a Roadnet licence for a 50-vehicle fleet would consist of: • .£22,250 initial licence fee (one-off payment) • £11,250 implementation (one-off payment) • 0,338 annual maintenance fee.
The pricing structure is based on the precise mix of modules purchased, the number of vehicles to be routed and
the number of separate installations. Support and software upgrades are included in the price. "There are no hidden charges. We make sure our clients are self-sufficient, but know that we are there to help them:. says Sisson. •