• February 17, 2021 2:41 pm
• by Ajanth

Currently, Logistics companies are moving through a transformational phase where traditional techniques and processes of Logistics management are completely replaced with more optimized processes that rely on cutting edge technologies. They include advanced technologies such as AI, ML, Big data, Robotic Process Automation (RPA), predictive analytics just to name a few. In an era where the use of digital technology has a massive impact on our lifestyle, Logistics companies are also radically shifting towards digital transformation. Giant players in the logistics industry such as DHL, UPS, FedEx, etc have already achieved digital transformation by making strategic changes to their traditional processes and incorporating advanced technologies into their digital ecosystem. Your logistics business can also achieve this massive leap to the future by effectively making use of cutting edge technologies to modernize, enhance and optimize your end-to-end business processes.

Similar to other businesses, Logistics companies also have multiple sources from where they can frequently capture data. You can capture critical pieces of data from IoT devices from your warehouse facility, trucks, shipments, etc. These high volumes of complex data that are collected from these sources can be later processed and used for advanced analytics to generate intelligent and highly critical insights that drive process automation and aid strategic decision making. In this blog post, we will zero in on some of the key trends in 20121 that will digitally transform the future of logistics.

Trend 1: Customers Experience Transformation

Digital Transformation is all about improving your customer’s experience and your operational efficiency. Out of the two, Transforming customer experience plays a critical role in your Logistics business’s digital transformation journey as it makes it easier for your customers to interact with you and helps them access all the info they need 24X7. To achieve this, you need to equip your digital landscape with state-of-the-art digital platforms.

Improved customer experience can not only positively impact your digital transformation efforts but also shift the trajectory of your logistics business to new heights. It can also offer you complete control over your warehousing, shipping, and transport facilities. Moreover, efficiently making use of immersive experience technologies that include AR and mixed reality into your logistics business can deliver you a host of benefits that allows you to transform many of your traditional processes into seamless experiences.

Trend 2: Automated Warehousing

On average, a typical warehouse employee walks nearly 12 miles per shift walking around between shelves picking up items. You can evade this by automating your warehouse by deploying an army of autonomous robots that are powered by AI. These robots can pick up items from a shelf or the whole shelves themselves and bring them to a human picker located at a stationary workstation. Amazon’s warehouses use these robots and can lift nearly 1000 pounds of weight whilst traveling at a speed of 3 miles per hour. Amazon gained significant positive results for their warehouse management by switching their warehouse workers with these robots. Amazon’s warehouses can now hold 50% more stock and retrieve stocks three times faster. This helped them to minimize their overall cost of fulfillment by up to 40%. Apart from this, you can also automate routine tasks associated with your warehousing such as data capture using RFID, picking, packing, cross-docking, or inventory processing that are done manually. As a result, you can significantly increase your warehouse’s efficiency and ship an astonishingly vast amount of sheer bulk safely, precisely & rapidly to your customers.

Trend 3: Digital Twin

The concept of mathematical models that are a copy of real-world physical objects is not a new thing for many of us. However, software engineers of today are using this idea to build a digital model or a digital twin that mimics the properties of an offline physical asset. One of the main capabilities of a digital twin is its ability to capture the changes experienced by its physical counterpart and reflect those changes in it to generate intelligent insights. You can harness these insights from the digital model and make critical decisions about the offline physical object with unmatched precision no other systems can offer. It is possible to build digital twins for virtually any kind of logistics infrastructures such as distribution centers, warehouses, fleet operations, or even cross-dock facilities.

You can build a digital twin of your warehouse by feeding data that are captured from your warehouse management system (as well as data from IoT devices that are placed in your facility) with a 3D model of your warehouse. Having a digital twin of your warehouse allows you to optimize your facility’s space utilization and simulate the flow of equipment, shipments, and employees. You can also update digital twins with data that are collected from AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicles), drones (used for counting stock), auto pick, automated palletizing units, etc. Having a 3D view of your warehouse can also be used to improve the efficiency and productivity of your employees. However, to deploy these capabilities to your warehouse, you need to consult a software development company that has tremendous experience in building futuristic technologies for global logistics businesses.

Trend 4: 5G Networks

When we compare the data speed and processing capabilities of 4th gen networks, 5G Networks is one of today’s greatest achievements that help businesses to rapidly achieve digital transformation and make industries smart.

Trend 5: Autonomous Vehicles

Deploying autonomous vehicles in the warehouse for product handling and other warehouse operations is not a new thing and many logistics companies have experimented with this in their warehouse. However, the greatest challenge some logistics companies face with these self-driving vehicles is that they stop when they reach in front of an obstacle, and won’t operate again until the obstacle is physically removed. Another con that is associated with these vehicles is their limitation to move along a predefined route. However, with the help of AI powered navigational technology, engineers have developed Autonomous Vehicles that can easily evade the challenges that are associated with indoor navigation. These autonomous vehicles can also be integrated with your warehouse management system and this will increase the overall efficiency of your warehouse.