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March 8, 2017

Allen Lund Company Newsle tter

Emergent Issues in Distribution and Transportation

In This Issue
Drones

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Jenn Cole, Editor  
Allen Lund Company
Grand Rapids Office
(800) 641-5863 

Drones

It's 2017, and you can practically  order anything at the touch of a button. In logistics technology, we've seen plans for a number of creative outside the box ideas to get people what they want faster. Out of these ideas, the drone has been seen as the most ambitious.

Amazon is the name most heavily linked with drone deliveries but other companies like tech giant Google are investing heavily in Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in an effort to control more of their own supply chain. On the flip side, logistics provider UPS recently began testing its own drone delivery system that partners with the company's existing fleet of trucks.

The idea behind drone delivery is that it's faster and cheaper than delivering parcels via truck, but there are still significant hurdles to jump before it makes actual sense to consumers. For one thing, the Federal Aviation Administration has yet to release regulations on logistic drone use and may not do so until 2018 . The FAA is tasked with finding a way for aircraft and drones to coexist, which is easier said than done.

Air safety is only one possible speed bump. Some logistic experts say that drone delivery, at least as it stands with today's technology, is still not cost effective . The problem is simple: drones don't yet have the range or the capacity to offset their cost. The more range and carrying capacity a drone has, the more prohibitive its price tag.

This isn't to say that drones don't have a place in the future of logistics. Expediting shipments to hard to reach areas is an area where UAVs have already proven their worth. Just don't expect to see one darkening your door any time soon.


Sean Asip
Transportation Broker, Atlanta

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Sean Asip   has been with the Allen Lund Company since 2004. Asip started as an intern and became a full-time transportation broker in 2009. He attended Southern Polytechnic State University and earned a degree in History.


About Allen Lund Company: Specializing as a national third-party transportation broker with nationwide offices and over 450 employees, the Allen Lund Company works with shippers and carriers across the nation to arrange dry, refrigerated (specializing in produce), and flatbed freight; additionally, the Allen Lund Company has an international division, which is licensed by the FMC as an OTI-NVOCC #019872NF, and a logistics and software division, ALC Logistics.  

 

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