Alternative last-mile delivery

So that online purchases actually arrive

Everyone knows the feeling: that suit or dress bought online absolutely has to arrive the next morning, otherwise you'll look foolish at the wedding. Or: the ingredients for that exquisite Italian dinner with friends have to arrive, otherwise it's frozen pizza for dinner. Everyone has experienced this or something similar, crumpling up in frustration the notification of the failed delivery attempt, only to find it in the otherwise empty mailbox. And these experiences are becoming more and more common, because we're increasingly shopping online and having our goods delivered to our doorsteps by various courier services – where, all too often, they find no one to take them. If there's no helpful neighbor and no parcel shop nearby, the item is quickly returned and awaits another delivery attempt.

To improve this inconvenient process for customers and expensive for logistics providers, courier services and young startups are constantly devising new ways to ensure that the buyer actually receives their eagerly awaited package in the evening. We have compiled a number of current solutions.

Parcel box

Currently, probably the best-known solution is parcel boxes, which are placed in front of apartment buildings and into which couriers deliver the packages. Regardless of whether the buyer is home, online orders arrive at the private parcel station. The solution isn't expensive; according to DHL , the purchase price is €99 or a monthly rental fee of €1.99.

One problem remains: choosing between two competing systems. DHL offers its parcel box exclusively, while competing service providers have joined forces to promote ParcelLock , an open solution. Launched as a joint venture between the parcel services DPD , GLS , and Hermes , the concept, with its universally usable system for parcel boxes and parcel bags, is also open to other logistics companies. The goal is to establish a new standard in the German parcel market with ParcelLock. Certainly not a bad idea, because who wants to install multiple parcel boxes in their front yard?

In addition to the solution for private households, parcel boxes are also being installed in front of office buildings or directly at the reception of large companies, where employees can easily pick up their ordered goods after work and take them home (see also Pakadoo below).

parcel bag

This solution from a Munich-based startup is aimed primarily at apartment renters who have difficulty installing a parcel box in their building's hallway. Instead, they can attach a foldable parcel bag made of natural wool felt, developed by the company, to their apartment door. If a package is delivered while the tenant is away, the delivery person unfolds the bag and places the package inside. The courier then secures the bag with a padlock, for which only the recipient has a key. One drawback of this solution is that once the package has been placed inside, no further packages can be added to the already locked bag. Furthermore, the delivery person, who rings the doorbell at the front door in vain, has no way of knowing that a parcel bag is even available for the delivery.

Lockbox

A similar option is the lockbox, where the package is placed in a hard plastic box attached to the recipient's front door.

Due to its insulation, this system is also suitable for storing fresh produce or frozen food.

Trunk as a transshipment point

This solution turns your own car into a delivery address, thus making it part of the logistics chain. The information and communication technology required for the system already exists in the form of GPS, smartphones, and secure mobile identification methods. Several pilot projects are currently underway, including those by DHL, Amazon , and Audi in the Munich area, Volvo in Sweden , and VW and T-Systems in Austria. These projects all share the feature that vehicles can be unlocked via a smartphone app to allow for package delivery.

Using a smartphone app, the courier determines the exact location of the recipient's vehicle. The app then grants them access to the car's trunk. Once the package is placed inside and the trunk is closed, the car locks automatically. The customer is then notified of the delivery via email, SMS, or WhatsApp. However, this requires the vehicle to be parked nearby (i.e., not at the workplace). Several technical hurdles need to be overcome before this solution can be widely adopted – not to mention the trust the customer must place in the delivery driver.

Amazon

Much has been written about the drone delivery service that the California-based shipping giant is supposedly planning. However, a more plausible concept is decentralized, small-scale warehouses where customers of the online retailer could pick up their orders. These warehouses could be built, for example, on main roads that customers would pass on their way home anyway. Similar to a quick trip to the supermarket, customers would pick up their goods and load them into their car trunks. Rumor has it that the customer wouldn't even have to leave their car, but would collect the packages at a central counter after identification: Amazon Drive-Thru pickup.

Delivery to the office

A large proportion of shoppers work in an office or at a company with a central reception area during the day. So why not have the items delivered to where they already are? The company Pakadoo makes this possible by offering interested companies the option of setting up a central delivery (for parcel services) and collection point (for the employees who ordered the goods). A reception area, for example, which is usually staffed during office hours and which employees typically pass through several times a day, would be ideal. The days of unsuccessful delivery attempts at the front door are thus a thing of the past. The advantage for companies? Motivated employees who appreciate the additional service from their employer.

Alternative to delivery by robot

Starship Technologies , founded by former Skype founders Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis, aims to revolutionize last-mile package delivery. Its foundation is a fleet of autonomous robots that handle the delivery of packages.

According to the company, these small helpers are characterized by their compact size, high safety, and minimal emissions. With a speed of approximately 6.4 km/h, the robots are designed to blend seamlessly into their surroundings.

They are designed to be able to transport the weight of approximately two full shopping bags in a lockable system. This makes the technology particularly attractive for local deliveries from nearby supermarkets or retailers, as Starship Technologies claims it costs only about one-tenth of conventional solutions.

Customers can track the robots' movements in real time via an app. Thanks to their integrated navigation system, including various cameras and a central control station for emergencies, the robots can automatically avoid obstacles and move autonomously. Should a problem arise, an employee intervenes from the central control station.

Impact on distribution

The requirement for fast and punctual delivery will force courier, express, and parcel (CEP) services and large online retailers to decentralize their distribution centers. This will lead to a trend towards smaller distribution centers spread across the country, from which goods can be transported quickly (keyword: same-day delivery) to the customer.

Since space for such warehouses is scarce and valuable, especially in cities, compact storage systems with their high-density storage can demonstrate their advantages over conventional, comparatively space-consuming rack storage solutions. Furthermore, comprehensive automation of the equipment (e.g., storage lifts or vertical buffer modules) allows goods to be picked and prepared for shipment even faster and with nearly 100% precision.