In the midst of the present epidemic recurrence, people’s brisk internet orders of everyday requirements have put a strain on deliverers’ capabilities.
To address the issues that will arise, Dada Group, one of China’s leading local on-demand delivery and retail platforms, has deployed its unmanned delivery services to roads and markets in cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, and Hefei in collaboration with JD Logistics and autonomous delivery vehicle developers White Rhino.
Autonomous delivery vehicles can be spotted at Yonghui’s Shanghai Anting branch and SEVEN FRESH’s chain outlets in Shenzhen’s Futian and Beijing’s Daxing. The vehicles, which are operated through Dada’s unmanned delivery open platform, can process orders, pick packages, and wait to be dispatched to drive to delivery spots in nearby communities before delivery staff picks up the packages – ensuring a completely contactless store-to-home process to minimize infection risks. Furthermore, autonomous vehicles are cleaned numerous times every day to ensure safety during the delivery procedure.
Dada’s unmanned delivery platform, created in conjunction with JD Logistics and the autonomous delivery vehicle company White Rhino, will be available in July 2021. It embodies the company’s aim of establishing an autonomous delivery ecosystem within the context of on-demand supermarket consumption to provide smarter delivery services to merchant partners such as SEVEN FRESH, Sam’s Club, and Yonghui.
Based on Dada’s years of experience in delivery algorithms and operational experience, the unmanned delivery platform can provide its connected unmanned delivery partners with a large number of on-demand delivery orders and standardized operational tools, making efficient unmanned vehicle delivery a reality. As of March 2022, the platform had supported over 30,000 grocery delivery orders.
In practice, unmanned delivery is characterized by larger load capacity, stronger stability, and higher safety when applied on a wide scale, making it an excellent answer to the pain points of everyday products delivery. Using the on-demand retailing scenario of a supermarket as an example, unmanned delivery involves several phases such as picking, loading, driving, and fulfillment. Through Dada’s operating tools, a deep human-machine synergy can be developed, and orders can still be completed at a high level even in terrible weather, making the entire delivery process safer and more efficient, assisting merchants in cost reduction, and increasing customers’ shopping experience.
During the Spring Festival period (Jan 31 ~ Feb 6) this year, Dada’s unmanned delivery platform played an important role as a strong complementary work force – data shows the average fulfillment rate of the unmanned delivery platform is over 95 percent.
The on-demand delivery industry is becoming more open and collaborative as an ecosystem. Technology is playing a core role to help partners collaborate through digital platforms and to optimize operational efficiency. As part of its current efforts to empower retailers with smarter delivery solutions, Dada seeks to integrate its upstream and downstream partners, as well as ramp up R&D of the software and infrastructure for unmanned delivery services.
