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| NETWORK-WIDE COURIER SERVICE MANAGEMENT SOLUTION |
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| Our client required redesigning of its operations management
solution to extend and improve the functionalities of
the previous system. The aim was to automate processes
for their courier service network. Managing
its operations through courier service agents, our client
required a web-enabled system to coordinate its activities,
spanning across different zones. In the process, they
ventured with Icreon to develop this business automation
system. Analyzing the processes followed by our client,
the Icreon team deciphered the system design and modules
for managing tariffs, fee structures,
custom duty reports, and different hubs. |
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| Customer
Profile |
| Our client has a worldwide network
specializing in customized distribution and time-sensitive
delivery of international business materials. With more
than 250 offices and substations, our client offers courier services
across the globe. Our client's India branch manages the India operations
within different zones through its network of agents. |
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| Business
Requirement |
| Our client wanted to
enhance the functionality available in the administrator
and agent modules on their India website. The new system would
provide an integrated set of web-enabled modules to manage
& track shipments, service charges (fees), custom
duty, & tariffs. |
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| Extending
Functionality through Integrated Process-Driven Modules |
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| Benefits |
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Synchronized processing of network-wide
activities |
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Enhanced functionality for automating new business
policies |
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Increased scalability of operations driven by
a 3-tier architecture setup |
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| Technologies used
in developing this web application are: |
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Our client's website was managing
some of its major operations through a manual system including
the fees, and Proof-of-Delivery (POD) management.
They required a system that would integrate these processes
with the existing website functionality. Users of
the system included the administrator and the courier
service agents in different regions. The modules would
be integrated as part of the functionality for either
of these users.
With the new system, the website users would be able to: |
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Upload manifests for dispatch &
arrival of shipments |
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Manage tariffs between importers & exporters |
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Manage courier service stations |
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Manage services charges/fees |
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View custom duty reports |
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| Our client teamed with
Icreon, to enhance the functionality of the existing system,
allowing the streamlining of processes for their India website. |
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The Administrator and
Agent interfaces for the website have been redesigned
to include tools for managing agents, PODs, shipment details,
stations, custom duty, and data backup.
There are three user types for the system – administrator,
agent, and customer.
When a dispatcher sends a particular shipment, the custom-duty
details and weight of the shipment are uploaded along
with the Main Waybill number. The dispatcher agent enters
these details by logging into the Agent interface. Depending
on the weight of the shipment, the fees for our client is calculated.
The shipments, which are not dispatched, are added to
the Pending Pool. Likewise, the dispatched shipments are
added to the Sent Shipment list. When the receiver station
receives the shipment, the status of the newly arrived
shipment is made available in the Shipment Arrival section.
While the agents manage dispatch and arrival of shipments,
the administrator coordinates the tariff rates. There
is a single default tariff plan for domestic courier services.
The administrator can create tariff plans for different
stations on an incremental basis. The Icreon team gauged
the exact requirements and suggested a tariff structure
that would suit our client's network setup. The tariff structure
defines different slabs for different agents. The administrator
can assign the relevant tariff plan for each agent, depending
on individual specifications. Besides this, the administrator
manages agents, Proof of Delivery (PODs), non-delivered
shipments, stations, custom duty reports, and data backup.
The previous system used for managing stations was unable
to manage our client's fee structure, and therefore the fee
calculation process was performed manually. We enhanced
this system to include a ‘fee calculation module’
to manage client's fee structure for Domestic and International
imports – thereby automating the fee calculation
process for the entire network. |
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| The architecture
is based on the 3-tier model for higher scalability. The
front-end is developed on PHP and JavaScript, while the
backend is deployed on MySQL. |
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| Summary |
| Our client's website was under operation prior to its venture with Icreon. However, the entire system
required revamping to match up with the latest business policies including the fee structure and tariff
management. These processes were business-critical for our client and we helped the
organization streamline these processes to manage its network of agents, proactively. |
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