Unconventional delivery methods can save time, money and environment

The delivery man knocks on your door but you’re not at home. You missed the parcel, the courier wasted time. Either he will have to revisit you the next day or you’ll need to drive to an access point. In both cases the environment will get polluted a tiny bit more. But if you’re not there, you’re not there. Is there anything anyone can do about it? Yes, there is.

In order to understand how slowly the logistics industry is evolving, one should realize that its core idea hasn’t changed since… forever. A person visiting another person with a parcel wouldn’t be an uncommon sight even in Middle Ages. However, a person using an electronic device to access a garage and stream the moment of delivery to the house owner would raise some medieval eyebrows.

As an industry, we have matured enough to introduce alternative delivery methods. We’d like to present two of them, both compatible with Hublock – an innovative platform for every participant of the logistics process.

Smart home integration

Integrating smart home technology will enable couriers to leave parcels at the recipient’s home even when no one’s present. Contrary to the risky practice of leaving parcels at the door or behind a bush, it’s a 100% safe method.

Imagine the following scenario. The courier is nearing the recipient’s house. When he is in the destination area, the Hublock system sends the recipient an automatic message that a delivery attempt is about to commence. The recipient isn’t at home, but he agrees to a smart home delivery.

When the delivery man is at the target location and scans the parcel, smart home opens the garage door a little for 30 to 60 seconds, enough for the courier to slide the parcel inside. The entire process is being recorded and streamed to the recipient’s smartphone using smart home security cameras and the Hublock app.

Both the courier and the recipient confirm the delivery and Hublock automatically settles accounts between the sender and the delivery company.

GPS coordinates delivery (car trunk delivery)

Smart solutions combined with GPS enable couriers to deliver parcels pretty much anywhere, even to a parked car.

Let’s picture the following. The recipient is downtown and he does not own a smart home. However, he owns a car with a smart system, and requests a car trunk delivery.

Hublock sends the current GPS coordinates of the car to the courier, along with the car’s description. When the courier arrives and scans the parcel, the system opens the trunk of the car and the parcel is left inside. This also may recorded and streamed to the recipient, e.g. using the delivery truck’s rear-view camera.

When the trunk gets shut, the delivery is confirmed and accounts are instantly settled.

There are five main benefits of using these methods.

– Delivery companies save time since they do not have to attempt second deliveries.
– They also save money since cargo space is used more effectively and parcels can be distributed in less time.
– The method may result in lower prices of delivery services.
– Recipients don’t have to wait for another delivery attempt or visit an access point if both attempts are unsuccessful.
– Increased effectiveness of logistics processes will result in decrease in exhaust emissions.

Hublock will enable companies from the logistics industry to integrate alternative delivery solutions in two ways. The platform can be used as a separate control center for management of unconventional deliveries, or as a tool integrated into an existing delivery management system.

There are plans for even more unconventional delivery methods.