A report by RAJA UK has considered the impact of current technologies for delivering packages to consumers purchased online as part of an assessment of last-mile logistics. See the Digital Journal article “Ecommerce dilemma: The greenest way to send packages” for a breakdown of the environmental impact.
Going forwards, RAJA UK predict there will be an increase in contactless delivery methods for the last mile of package delivery systems. This provides convenience for consumers and, in the long-term, lower costs for logistics companies. The interest in contactless delivery has also risen during the era of the coronavirus pandemic.
The carbon footprint of the emerging technologies is not equal. For logistics companies that which to minimize the impact of atmospheric pollution, this requires an examination of newer technologies to cover the last mile from the warehouse to consumers’ front doors.
These types of transportation solutions include electric vans, Sidewalk Autonomous Delivery Robots (SADRs) and Road Autonomous Delivery Robots (RADRs). The types of companies manufacturing the last two solutions include NURO and Udelv.
NURO is a self-driving delivery startup, is partnering with Domino’s for pizza delivery in Houston. Udelv produces similar driverless technology.
But how ‘green’ are these autonomous solutions? The table below shows the carbon emissions of the electric vehicles as a percentage of the carbon emissions generated by the ICE Dodge RAM vehicle as the baseline (RAM is a U.S. brand of light to mid-weight commercial vehicles). The ICE Dodge RAM generates 22.5 more carbon dioxide equivalent emissions.
| Customers served | Vehicle type | ||||
| SADR +MS* | NURO | Udelv | E-van | Drone | |
| 25 | 1.4% | 0.6% | 0.8% | 0.9% | 1.4% |
| 50 | 2.1% | 0.9% | 0.8% | 0.9% | 2.3% |
| 100 | 2.5% | 1.0% | 0.8% | 0.9% | 3.7% |
| 200 | 3.1% | 1.4% | 1.1% | 0.9% | 5.8% |
*Mothership not utilized when distance is 0.
These findings are in keeping with a 2020 academic research study that concludes: “Even modest improvements in delivery efficiency can result in large reductions in carbon emissions given the size and growth of the delivery industry.”
Nigel Smyth, Transport Manager at RAJA UK, tells Digital Journal what he thinks the future of last-mile logistics will look like and what needs to be achieved to make the industry more sustainable.
Smyth says the future of last mile logistics may mean, for the consumer, collecting their cardboard wrapped packages from fulfilment warehouse hubs (a concept that may replace the high street store) or via a drone that will deliver a package directly to the door.
There are various possibilities as the logistics industry seeks to utilize novel technologies to ensure a better customer experience and, with some, to avoid an unnecessary environmental impact.
While the technologies listed move through the product development curve, another issue presents itself to online retailers – sending items abroad. The carbon impact of various modes of transport are explored in a follow up article “The greenest way to send packages abroad”.
