Logistics is the only industry that has no option for work from home. If something is to be packed and parceled to the desired destination within a span of time, how can it be done sitting at home? It can be either delayed but doing so might decay or degrade the quality of the product. Keep reading to find where the Digitization of the Logistics industry has reached today.
It is not that the logistics industry has not suffered meanwhile pandemic, but if anyone has continued at its best possible ways, it was logistics. Thanks to technology because what could have supported the logistics industry meanwhile such pandemic up to some extent is technology only. That too had its limitations of support as some steps like picking up the ferry from the warehouse must require manual effort, and similarly, not every single step can be digitized or automated with the help of technology.
We are here to see the extent of Digitization of the Logistics industry which may include some intelligent and smart shipping logistics software along with some alternatives that industry personnel has found to accomplish their tasks.
Table of Contents
Last-mile delivery robots
Protocols for a pandemic were to be followed by everyone and as we have said earlier that the logistics industry also had to go through the same but less than the others. Thus, last-mile delivery robots proved helpful here. As they reduced the necessity of a human to reach the destination. Humanoid robots, drones, automated self-driven vehicles have done this and made it possible to cover even the most stringent streets as well.
Warehouse picking notification
Usually, the panic does not alleviate because of any other factor but the customers eagerly waiting for their parcel to arrive keep on trying to connect with the delivery agent, which created more panic and stressful job for the one who has to manage not one but many customers and parcels at a time single-handedly.
A few of them also have to cover with a 2-wheeler along with the heavy bad which is not an easy task to manage along with the door-step delivery protocol of almost every e-commerce company.
Here, the digital platform helped in keeping down the excitement level of customers by sending them notifications and keeping them updated with the complete itinerary of their product through mobile applications.
Customers check the status of their parcel and at least do not tend to ping the delivery person as much as they used to. It has helped a lot in reducing the panic of the entire industry and delivery workforce.
Cloud-based logistics- coordination is not just one to one but it has become global.
Cloud services and cloud-based solutions have been the savior to the entire global industry that runs with the help of the internet. The logistics industry has significant use of cloud-based services as it requires one-to-one coordination between the logistics workforce on the field.
Cloud provided them with not just one-to-one coordination but now they could communicate with any other logistics personnel across the globe with even better efficiency as it also reduced the documentation carrying responsibility by allowing them to upload over the logistics solution software itself.
Real-time tracking
Warehouse notifications were the smaller ones but this facility has turned the page completely to the other side. A real-time tracking feature in a customized logistics solution software is desirable. It allows the customer to track the entire span from dispatching to the delivery along with a dedicated notification at every stage of the delivery process.
That not only helps the customer and the delivery personnel but also helps in keeping the supply chain transparent and keeps it safe from hovering at the undesirable destination by mistake. Such cases occur with the least probability of occurrence that the parcel reaches a different destination but with the same name. It happens mostly with those goods that have manually written delivery addresses. But the tracking is made possible with the code pasted by the logistics company. Thus, once it starts moving towards the wrong destination, the real-time tracking feature allows the customer to see it.
A customer post to this immediately takes desirable action and saves time from both ends.
Blockchain helps in reducing time by reducing everyday difficulties
Blockchain technology has solved many issues especially related to encryption and securities. It helped in turning such impossibilities into a reality that was not expected some decades before.
Blockchain actually is a decentralized data storage system that works on nodes and requires a significantly stronger decryption method to decode and access. The data can be checked but not be stolen as the encryption has moved far ahead of the traditional ones.
How does Blockchain help in the logistics industry?
Well, the blockchain technology stores the data once entered and passes it on to another node if it asks for verification. The same algorithm makes it helpful in the case of logistics and the delivery process. Once the shipping is made to a particular destination (a node). Its data and every single obstacle or difficulties that were faced by the concerned person have been stored.
It helps the next concerned personnel in facing the same obstacles and difficulties by pre-notifying and makes the delivery faster and efficient every next time.
Conclusively, digitization not only has this much attributes involved in the logistics industry but has many more that are supportive at internal operations like tighter integration of warehouse management, inbound and outbound transportation management, inventory control with the help of ERP solutions, management of third-party logistics service providers with the help of cloud-communication, and dispatch software that helped a lot in the service end post delivering the product.
Planning and supply chain management is the most vital part of logistics planning administration that got completely pushed into the door of digitization this year. The best part of Digitization of the Logistics we can observe is that during the digitization of any sector, there is more than one sector that rises with the one required. Thus, collaborative development is witnessed which is a desirable aspect for overall development across the world.
