ABSTRACT
Have you ever been to a postal service station to
pick a package and was told its yet to arrive or the package has been processed
but yet to be dispatch. These are occurrences we wish we can control and track
our packages right from the dispatch station
This project focuses on solving the problem by
developing an application to solve the problem inherent to real-time parcel
tracking and monitoring in Nigeria, using Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST). The Real-Time
Parcel Tracking and Monitoring Application is a
web-based application intended to be accessible online. This allows the
application to be available to both mobile phone and PC users who can access
this application online. The system was developed using open source web
technologies notably HTML, PHP, JAVASCRIPT and MySQL.
The system produced in this research work has
functions that will enable both the receiver and sender of various packages to
track and monitor their packages with ease from the comfort of their homes,
offices, market using a web enable device.
The
developed application was tested using the WAMP application suite and the test
results show that the application works as expected.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Certification………………………………………………………………………………..i
Dedication…………………………………………………………………………….…….ii
Acknowledgement
…………………………………………………………………………iii
Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………..iv
Table of
contents…………………………………………………………………………….v
CHAPTER ONE.. 1
1.0 INTRODUCTION.. 1
1.1 BACKGROUND
OF STUDY.. 2
1.2 STATEMENT
OF THE PROBLEM... 2
1.3 AIM
AND OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY.. 2
1.3.1 AIM... 2
1.3.2 OBJECTIVES. 2
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY.. 3
1.5 SCOPE
OF THE STUDY.. 3
1.6 LIMITATION
OF STUDY.. 3
1.7 GLOSSARY
OF TERMS. 4
CHAPTER TWO.. 5
LITERATURE REVIEW... 5
2.0 INTRODUCTION.. 5
2.1 PARCEL
TRACKING.. 5
2.2 HISTORY
OF TRACKING.. 5
2.3 ADVANTAGES
OF ELECTRONIC PARCEL TRACKING.. 6
2.4 DISADVANTAGES
OF ELECTRONIC PARCEL TRACKING.. 6
2.5 DESCRIPTION
FLOW OF PARCEL TRACKING DIAGRAM... 7
2.6 HISTORY
OF THE CASE STUDY.. 8
2.7 ORGANIZATION
STRUCTURE OF THE CASESTUDY.. 9
CHAPTER THREE.. 10
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.. 10
3.0 INTRODUCTION.. 10
3.1 OVERVIEW
OF THE EXISTING SYSTEM... 10
3.2 PROBLEM
OF THE EXISTING SYSTEM... 11
3.3 OVERVIEW
OF THE PROPOSED SYSTEM... 11
3.4 SYSTEM
DESCRIPTION ANALYSIS AND DEFINATION.. 12
3.4.1 LANGUAGE
JUSTIFICATION.. 12
3.5 SYSTEM
DESIGN.. 13
3.5.1
OUTPUT DESIGN.. 13
3.5.2 INPUT DESIGN.. 13
3.5.3 SYSTEM
FLOWCHART. 15
3.5.4 ENTITY
RELATIONSHIP DIAGRAM... 16
CHAPTER FOUR.. 17
SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION
AND TESTING.. 17
4.0 INTRODUCTION.. 17
4.1 SYSTEM SPECIFICATION.. 17
4.1.1 HARDWARE
REQUIREMENT: 17
4.1.2 SOFTWARE
REQUIREMENT: 18
4.2 SYSTEM
DOCUMENTATION.. 18
4.2.1 USER
MANUAL.. 19
4.2.2 INSTALLATION PROCEDURE.. 19
4.3.3 RESULT
/ DEMONSTRATION.. 20
CHAPTER FIVE.. 23
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATION.. 23
5.0 SUMMARY.. 23
5.1 CONCLUSION.. 24
5.2 RECOMMENDATION.. 24
5.3 SUGGESTION
FOR FURTHER STUDIES: 24
REFRENCES.
APPENDIX..
CHAPTER ONE
As children playing
hide and seek, there seemed to be so many places where we could hide and never
be found. With the world be-coming ever smaller through technology, hiding is
increasingly difficult. Cameras peer down on us at red lights, in our workplace,
in stores and even at home. Now, those cameras are being augmented by new
technologies that track our cars, cell phones and possibly any product we buy.
This location-tracking technology also is being used to streamline supply
chains for corporations, seeking to move products to the market faster, and to
monitor assets and prevent inventory loss. In view of the phenomenal growth in
transportation industry and the trend of information technology in delivery
first class service to the customer with minimal cost. This project aim to
develop online and real-time transit parcel monitoring system to the NIPOST clients. Existing system is the way the system is
being operated, that is the manual way of monitoring client parcel or freight.
Since the existing system is done manually, it is imperative that we consider
critically its mode of operation and analyse them. In monitoring the movement
of freight and the ship or any carrier that carried it, the use of paper form
was introduced which include the bill of laden form. The bill of laden form is
the most important of all the forms required. The shipper sends the bill of
laden in advance of the ship to the importer. The importer takes the bill of
laden to the NPA (Nigerian Port Authority) central office for details about the
ship and her located berth. The importer or its agent completes the bill of
laden, cross checked and compared with the ship’s manifest. After certifying
the correctness of consignee documents, a blank form called the delivery order
is then issued out to the importer. The consignee or its agent complete the
delivery order for and returns it to the shipping company, and then the
delivery order is sent to the marketing department of the Nigeria Port
Authority. After, the marketing department then raises all necessary bills
according to the port regulation and their payment term, customer proceeds to
the bank for payment; the documents are subsequently transferred to the transit
shed or delivery point, the consignee then proceed to the appropriate shed or
delivery point. After loading, cargo pass is issued to the consignee or his
agent who then proceed to Nigeria Port Authority gate for security checks and
final exit. In the old system of NIPOST company service, once a parcel or
freight has been sent by the client, there is no way the client will know the
position of that parcel until it get to the destination and acknowledgment
message is sent from the receiver of the parcel that it has been delivered.
This method poses a lot of problem to both the NIPOST clients and the company
herself. Even the company wishes to feed the client back but since there is no
means of doing such, both are incapacitated and everything is at the risk of
the owner of parcel.
Location-tracking
technology also is being used to streamline supply chains for corporations,
seeking to move products to the market faster, and to monitor assets and
prevent inventory loss. NIPOST’s online tracking is the fastest way to find out
where your shipment is. No need to call customer service when we can offer you
real-time details of your shipment’s progress as it speeds through the NIPOST Network
on the way to its destination. Soon, companies also will be able to track your
location. Imagine walking through your local supermarkets, and as you pass
through the aisle, an electronic coupon for your favourite cereal is beamed to
your phone.
Today’s rate at which
clients do call the tracking agents and also the rate at which clients visit
the NIPOST office to confirm the status of the parcel they sent through the
NIPOST service channel is too high . At times, the NIPOST agent may not be able
to say precisely whether the parcel has been delivered or not due to inadequate
means of communication to the company while on journey and secondly, it is more
prone to error due to data lost. The data entry and validation aspect of the old
system are done manually, the system use the data entered as the basis for the
tutorials schedule while all documents given to the clients are generated from
the data collected and result of processed data for use. This process is often
associated with high-levels of manual processing, limited tracking visibility
and poor customer service (at least perceived). An efficient chain-of-custody
proof-of-delivery (POD) solution becomes more and more important to day-to-day
operations.
In
view of the phenomenal growth in transportation industry and the trend of information
technology in delivery first class service to the customer with minimal cost.
This project aim to develop online and real-time transit parcel monitoring
system to the NIPOST clients. Following
objectives:
1. To
provide fastest and most reliable service to the client at all time, all days
through mobile technology
2. To
prove self-monitoring environment for the client’s parcel or freight on
transit.
3. To
ensure proper processing and dissemination of key shipping information for
quick vessel turnaround.
4. To
provide self-management and the unbending security in monitoring client’s
parcels on transit
5. To
ensure efficient management of port operations, optimal allocation and use of
resources.
In implementing the objectives of
this study, the advantages of an E-tracking system over the existing system,
i.e. the manual way of registering and monitoring the movement of freight or
any parcel. Users will be able to tracking / access resource digitally without carrying
books, journals, magazines etc which could result in rapid wear and tear of the
paper documents. Besides, it will afford users the opportunity to see the
current status and position of their goods or parcel. The proposed system will
provide security to help track the movement of each ship and parcel carrier on
transit. The system will also eliminate some of the routine manual work
prevalent in the manual system of tracking.
The
scope of this research work will be limited to the provision of tracking
information provided by the NIPOST for tracking of client’s freight and parcels
on transit as provided by the NIPOST agents.
- Some
problems were encountered during the course of writing this project. These
problems include, difficulties incurred while gathering all necessary
information.
- Financial
problem was also one of the major problems encountered. For every material
needed require money e.g. browsing so as to source for information.
- Erratic
power supply both in school and at home also hindered this project work in
various ways.