UPS Drone Meets UPS Delivery Truck

UPS has announced that it has successfully tested a drone that launches from the top of a UPS package car, autonomously delivers a package to a home and then returns to the vehicle while the delivery driver continues along the route to make a separate delivery.


UPS conducted the test on Monday in Lithia, Fla. with Workhorse Group, an Ohio-based battery-electric truck and drone developer.

Workhorse built the drone and the electric UPS package car used in the test.

“This test is different than anything we’ve done with drones so far. It has implications for future deliveries, especially in rural locations where our package cars often have to travel miles to make a single delivery,” said Mark Wallace, UPS senior vice president of global engineering and sustainability.

“Imagine a triangular delivery route where the stops are miles apart by road. Sending a drone from a package car to make just one of those deliveries can reduce costly miles driven. This is a big step toward bolstering efficiency in our network and reducing our emissions at the same time.”

With ORION, UPS’s On-Road Integrated Optimization Navigation routing software, a reduction of just one mile per driver per day over one year can save UPS up to $50 million. UPS has about 66,000 delivery drivers on the road each day.

Rural delivery routes are the most expensive to serve due to the time and vehicle expenses required to complete each delivery. In this test, the drone made one delivery while the driver continued down the road to make another. This is a possible role UPS envisions for drones in the future.

“Drivers are the face of our company, and that won’t change, what’s exciting is the potential for drones to aid drivers at various points along their routes, helping them save time and deliver on increasing customer service needs that stem from the growth of e-commerce.”

The drone used in Monday’s test was the Workhorse HorseFly™ UAV Delivery system. It is a high-efficiency, octocopter delivery drone that is fully integrated with Workhorse’s line of electric/hybrid delivery trucks.

The drone docks on the roof of the delivery truck. A cage suspended beneath the drone, extends through a hatch into the truck. A UPS driver inside loads a package into the cage and presses a button on a touch screen, sending the drone on a preset autonomous route to an address.

The battery-powered HorseFly drone recharges while it’s docked. It has a 30-minute flight time and can carry a package weighing up to 10 pounds.

For this test, Workhorse preset the route for the drone. But in the future, routes could be determined by UPS’s On-Road Integrated Optimization and Navigation (ORION), which is the company’s proprietary routing software.

“It’s wonderful to see this technology applied in such a practical way,” said Stephen Burns, Workhorse founder and CEO.

“The drone is fully autonomous. It doesn’t require a pilot. So the delivery driver is free to make other deliveries while the drone is away.”

UPS has been testing automation and robotics technologies, including drones, for years. Last September, UPS staged a mock delivery of urgently needed medicine from Beverly, Mass. to an island three miles off the Atlantic coast.

Read: UPS and CyPhy Works Test Drone for Urgent Commercial Last Mile Delivery

Additionally, UPS is using drones extensively for humanitarian relief, partnering with third-party organizations to deliver life-saving blood and vaccines to hard-to-reach locations in Rwanda. UPS also is utilizing drones to check inventory on high storage shelves in its warehouses.

Unlike all of the previous tests, the most recent UPS drone test shows how drones might assist in making non-urgent residential deliveries as part of the day-to-day operation.

Last year, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued small unmanned aircraft systems rules that allow for some commercial use of drones and paved the way for future expanded applications. UPS was one of 35 selected from a cross section of key stakeholders to serve on the FAA’s drone advisory committee.

The committee will provide the FAA recommendations on key drone integration issues that will ultimately allow for safe and secure operations of drones within the National Air Space System.

Related: Customer Demands Reshaping Last-Mile Delivery


Article Topics


PwC News & Resources

Drone Technology: Clarity from Above
Supply Chain Strategies under the Impact of COVID-19 of Large American Companies Operating in China
Supply Chain: Your Brexit Competitive Advantage
Digitization and Autonomous Driving to Halve Logistics Costs by 2030, finds PwC Study
The Era of Digitized Trucking: Charting Your Transformation to a New Business Model
Amazon Drone Deliveries Get a Lift from the Transportation Department FAA Pilot Program
PwC 2017 Holiday Outlook
More PwC

Latest in Transportation

How Can White Glove Service Increase Customer Loyalty?
7 Last Mile Logistics Delivery & Ecommerce Trends You Don’t Want to Overlook
The Implication of Flexport’s Acquisition of Shopify Logistics to Expand Its Global Services into Last Mile & E-Commerce Fulfillment
Rail Carload and Intermodal Market Report with Tony Hatch
CLX Logistics’ McClung Provides Overview of Chemical Logistics Sector
The Importance of Accurate Data Analytics with DAT
AAR President and CEO Jefferies Addresses State of the Freight Railroad Market
More Transportation

PwC focuses on audit and assurance, tax and consulting services. Additionally, in the US, PwC concentrates on 16 key industries and provides targeted services that include — but are not limited to — human resources, deals, forensics, and consulting services. We help resolve complex issues and identify opportunities.



View PwC company profile

 

Featured Downloads

How Roaming Shuttles Improve Order Fulfillment Operations
How Roaming Shuttles Improve Order Fulfillment Operations
Implementing this goods-to-person automated storage and retrieval technology improves customer experience, optimizes operations, and maximizes profitability.
Warehouse Contingency Planning Template
Warehouse Contingency Planning Template
We’ve taken the guesswork out of warehouse contingency planning with this downloadable editable template; from performing a risk assessment to testing...

AlixPartners 2023 Disruption Index A Bias for Action Sets Growth Leaders Apart
AlixPartners 2023 Disruption Index A Bias for Action Sets Growth Leaders Apart
In their 4th annual AlixPartners Disruption Index, business leaders cite this as the central dilemma, with 85% of CEOs telling us that it...
2023 Digital Transformation Report
2023 Digital Transformation Report
In this 2023 Digital Transformation Report, we share insights gained from our annual research on technology trends and digital transformation and explore the...
The State of Digital Transformation
The State of Digital Transformation
This White Paper Report combines our research findings with insights into what transformation truly entails – plus, guidance from our data and digital...