Solving the industry challenges of logistics drones

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E-commerce and logistics companies around the world are investing heavily in drones for use in package deliveries. Experts say the demand for unmanned aircrafts are due to their potential to save trouble, time and money.

"For example the high cost of serving remote areas. There are also companies testing some bigger unmanned aircraft because pilots are expensive and scarce," said Ted Chan, Partner of Boston Consulting Group.

UVS Intelligence System is a drone manufacturer in Shanghai, and in 2015 it developed U650 – the first drone capable of water take-offs. They weigh about 410 kilograms and can fly as high as 2,000 kilometers for about 15 hours.

The UVS’s U650 on water. /Photo via uvssys.com

"The bottleneck for logistics drones is that there aren't enough runways. Taking off on water solves this issue. As cargo between logistics hubs are transported by aircraft and ships, our drones can cover package deliveries from the hubs to second- and third-tier cities," said Liu Jiandong, Founder of UVS Intelligence System.

Drones for logistics use sounds very good on paper, and quite a few companies have been experimenting. But for this idea to really take off in the real world requires so much more effort from more than just the drone makers.

Chan said that drones are easily affected by weather conditions, and are only a small part of the overall logistics flow. So it’s very challenging to get drones to work seamlessly with the rest of the logistics infrastructure.

A drone flying across Shanghai taking high-angle shots of the city on September 2, 2017. /VCG Photo

"Last but not least is about regulations. If you really want to have quite a few flying around across the country, there definitely needs to be some very clear rules as to how the government wants to manage it," said Chan.

That's something UVS is working on. The firm belongs to a drone supervisory committee within the Civil Aviation Administration of China. It also has signed a cooperation deal with a major Chinese logistics firm to expand the commercial use of its drones.

UVS says it can start shipping the drones to clients by the end of this year and will produce up to 20 of the aircraft in 2018.

"The market will put greater focus on operational costs in the future. What solution this drone can provide for logistics firms in the future is vital in our mission," said Liu.

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