Wednesday, May 18, 2016

NOT HOME DELIVERY, BUT PARKED CAR DELIVERY

We've seen the package delivery guys and the eCommerce guys struggling with how to effectively deliver packages. We've dubbed it "the last mile," taking a term used in the telecommunications industry for how to get telephone, television, and internet to the home in the last mile. For package delivery we've seen the concept of drone delivery combined with electric walk-in vans by WorkHorse, and lockers at the grocery store by Amazon. Grocery stores have, again, started doing home delivery of groceries.

Now, Volvo car has come up with a slightly different idea that is intriguing. Often times, a package delivery service attempts to deliver a package that requires a signature and finds no one is at home. They leave some sort of note on the door, and attempt to deliver it again the next day. Failing again, the note tells you to come to the package delivery local location and pick up the item yourself. That's a whole lot of waste.
Volvo car thinks an answer is to enable delivery to your parked car at work with a special authorization that allows the unlocking of the vehicle for this particular purpose. This makes me think of Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) communications in a new light. I can see the trunks on car after car popping open as a package delivery vehicle moves around the parking lot. Why not? We already have Safelite Autoglass repairing windshields in parking lots and detailing being done while you work. Why not delivery of things while you work?
https://www.media.volvocars.com/global/en-gb/media/pressreleases/190579/volvo-cars-pioneers-two-hour-in-car-delivery-service-with-swedish-start-up-urb-it
by Paul Menig
CEO, Tech-I-M LLC

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