Air freight company Australian Air Express has finished testing a scanning system that will be the foundation of a fully integrated online delivery portal and will start rolling out the system by the end of the year.

It is designed to streamline the delivery process by enabling customers to enter the pick-up and delivery details and print a barcode for a package, which drivers will download when they pick up the item.

The whole customer interaction is in the booking and the customer produces their own label with the information for delivery and pick-up, which is downloaded to the driver's scanner when they pick it up.

The driver is then able to plan the stops on their route, which used to be done by hand.

The company has been testing the scanning system in Adelaide and Hobart since late last year, and expects to have its national network of 1800 scanners updated by the end of the year.

The devices are controlled from the head office, which is supported by an upgrade of the hardware and software, including a custom-built Oracle middleware platform.