Drones in supply chain management

Drones in supply chain management

Drones are categorized as the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAVs) this refers to a pilotless aircraft that operates in a blend of technologies which involves artificial intelligence, computer vision, body avoidance technologies, among others.    The flexibility of drones to collect data, inspect and virtually do the reporting has allowed the drones to be recognized as an asset that has a lot of value. Drones were commonly applied in the military field and recreational use; in the most recent days’ drones are finding their way into multiple industries like the supply chain.

In supply chain management, the drones have gained numerous functions that include speeding up the process of delivery of the packages that are small in size in certain places. Drones are vented in a variety of sizes and shapes, and they possess a variety of features ranging from the Global Positioning System (GPS), navigator systems, cameras, sensors, and many other features. Numerous drones sold are small in size, which allows them to be launce by the use of hands and controlled with the use of a remote. The commercial drones that are used in the supply chain are limited to the distance they can cover and battery life.

The progressive process in use and drone development has resulted in their productive implementation in the supply chain process from the warehouses to roads. Drones are being useful in the increasing of the speed and effectiveness and combat the 40 percent rate of turnover being incurred in the warehouse operations. Drones are performing tasks that include product delivery from one place to another in the distribution center, warehouse, or yard — transporting products from a densely packed area of storage to a proper storage place.

Final-mile operation is rapidly becoming one of the uses of the drone. In the future, supply chain management will be profoundly be affected by the use of drones since the product will be delivered to a final customer within the shortest time possible. A company like Amazon has stated that they are developing a project that they will be able to apply small drones that are capable of carrying up to cargo that is worth five pounds to deliver the product to the end-user in only 30 minutes. At this moment, there are government restrictions on the application and the use of drones, this is because of safety, and they are only used in a contained place like a warehouse. The future delivery technique famously known as the Drone Delivery System (DDS) that is being tested with mega-companies such as Amazon, it is probable that drone technology is going to become a common phenomenon across America in few years to come. The Drone Delivery System is expected to have a tremendous impact and drastically alter the face in the future of the supply chain. Also, this will add already to the rising expectation of the customer around the delivery speed.

Although the drone technologies unlock a world which is filled with numerous possibility to aid the supply chain companies, there are a lot of challenges and problems faced by the drone operators before the drone operation can be fully functional in the supply chain. Most of the challenges are as a result of the drawbacks of technology of the drone and the interventions from the government side. Some of the future negative impacts of drone technologies include.

Drone Cost and Insurance

The cost of a drone is very high since it is still in its introductory phase. The idea of the unmanned vehicle carrying valuable goods while flying hundreds of feet from the ground does not sound well to the insurance companies. Also, the element in the drone technologies is yet to be widely tested and applied makes it very difficult for the insurance companies to consider the cover for the drones. Also, in a situation where a drone causes personal injury, then the repayment will be in a million dollars. This makes the calculations of premiums to be very high. This will result in the cost of using drones to be very high than traditional deliveries.