LEEDS, England, January 8 /PRNewswire/ --     World-leading pallet and container pooling company CHEP has awarded
Masternaut a GBP 300,000 contract to supply its satellite tracking service
for a major pilot programme based in the UK. There is potential to install
1000 articulated vehicles with mobile collection units giving CHEP a
comprehensive real-time view of its European fleet using the innovative
Masternaut web-based satellite-tracking service.

Initially, CHEP will use Masternaut to track 175 articulated vehicles,
with the goal of providing an enhanced benchmark for increased efficiency and
improved customer service. This will set the path for the future rollout of
the service to cover a large percentage of the UK and European CHEP fleet.
The Masternaut online vehicle tracking service will provide the logistics
management team with detailed real-time information about each vehicle and
its assigned driver.

By using Masternaut, CHEP is already gaining the benefit of being able to
identify and investigate turnaround times, find and resolve issues that cause
delays, confirm true start and finish times for drivers and notify customers
of late running vehicles. Masternaut is also helping provide a clear picture
of idling times and establish its causes. This will help with encouraging
drivers to reduce unnecessary vehicle emissions and cut fuel bills.

Eamonn Casey, Logistics Director UK and Ireland, CHEP, says: "The use of
the Masternaut service is helping us to improve customer service and it
clearly has improved our performance levels. Using the Masternaut reporting
functions gives us the opportunity to show our customers exactly how we are
performing."

Masternaut is, therefore, helping deliver much more control of CHEP's
logistics operation. This is no mean feat as the UK operation alone is moving
over 100 million movements on pallets and providing collection and delivery
services to more than 80,000 locations, including every major retailer and
other companies that require the eponymous CHEP wooden pallet. Masternaut has
simplified this process with its online service allowing the logistics
management team to access real-time fleet information using the Internet. In
addition, the majority of CHEP's UK subcontractors have been equipped with
Masternaut so that they can also track their own vehicles.

CHEP is also trialing mobile computers for capturing customer signatures
and sending proof-of-delivery instantly back to HQ using Masternaut. By using
mobile computers CHEP sees the potential to substantially reduce paper
documentation and streamline the subsequent administrative and accounting
processes.

"We are very happy with Masternaut. The customer service is excellent;
and the team is readily available to answer any query. We appreciate their
responsiveness and how they are able to resolves issues quickly to our
satisfaction," concludes Eamonn Casey.

http://www.masternaut.co.uk