VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

Synopsis: Thanks to e-commerce, parcel volumes have risen significantly in recent years, leading to increased loads in the network, in sorting and distribution centers, and in the last mile. The challenge of today’s operation is efficiency and maintaining service quality, particularly at peak times, while keeping costs down as much as possible to secure profitability and increase competitiveness. With today’s level of digitization, IoT connectivity is able to generate a huge amount of data – big data – which is the perfect basis for machine learning algorithms and AI to draw conclusions out of these big data sets more or less automatically. Use cases from different clients will be presented to demonstrate how machine learning and AI will lead to operational excellence in the parcel industry. Limitations of the technology will also be covered.

Synopsis: When it comes to planning and execution of shipment deliveries, the expectations of stakeholders have increased and requirements have become more complex. The rise of e-commerce drives the need to consider further parameters in the planning process, such as time windows for deliveries, congestion in urban areas and alternative deposit places. At the same time, logistics companies experience frequent changes in delivery staff, which leads to a loss of experience and knowledge regarding local specifics and delivery requirements. To address these challenges, a systematic, automated and digitized approach is required. New solutions need to model system-relevant variables as measurable parameters, such as handling time or vehicle capacities, to make planning more applicable. The consideration of relevant historical data, such as location specifics or exceptions, will make those solutions even more reliable and robust. This presentation will introduce available superior solutions, such as Greenplan, and how they help solve the challenges in delivery planning and execution.

Synopsis: Delivery anxiety holds back e-commerce growth. Human-to-human deliveries are expensive and uncertain. Uncertainty causes delivery anxiety, a major reason for not clicking the ‘buy now’ button. You can remove delivery anxiety by providing certainty and a ‘no action required’ delivery service at the customer’s doorstep.

Synopsis: The Cognitive Adviser tool enables logistics operators, retailers and other stakeholders to collaborate more effectively, improve response rates and increase assets utilization in order to provide the maximum benefit and quality of deliveries to the end consumers. In detail, the Cognitive Advisor (CA) guides a responsible multimodal freight transport system, which helps Cognitive Logistics Objects (logistics objects are physical objects such as cargo, vehicles, etc; systems; and humans that participate in a logistics process) decide about next actions, forming social networks, communicating, helping each other and solving local problems. The CA takes into account variables such as business, environment and society. The result are proposals from CLOs to the actors (drivers, managers, etc) for more efficient, environmentally friendly and multimodal transportation deliveries.

Synopsis: Arrival is pioneering integrated transportation solutions for cities, to help them meet net-zero emission targets. With none of the legacy issues associated with producing fossil fuel vehicles, this session is an under-the-hood look at the technology behind the Arrival van. From its unique approach to manufacturing in Microfactories, to the vertically integrated hardware and software across its vehicles, this session will provide an insight into why companies like UPS are purpose building the vehicles they need via Arrival's approach.

Synopsis: CRM teams are gradually taking over the responsibility in organizations for direct mail budgets from print purchasers, and CRM itself is becoming more connected and performance-driven through marketing automation. Integrating direct mail into this CRM setup (e.g. into customer journeys) will be the key to success. One too many mass mailings will be a thing of the past; the future of direct mail will be targeting and hyperpersonalization. Consequently, postal service providers face the same challenge as printers that are losing their old contacts in organizations and often do not speak the marketing language of CRM managers.

Synopsis: AI-based methods offer several advantages in improving prediction performance for variance detection and functional outcome prediction. This leads to automation that helps in the security risk assessment and clearance process. Automating threat object detection from x-ray scans of parcels leads to increased efficiency of the whole security procedure. There is a partnership in operation in which solutions are developed that are also learning in the workflow, bringing the deep expertise of an R&D organization into the field of post and logistics (reading CN22 content, sender receiver information, reading x-ray images for opioid detection) as well as traffic surveillance and document understanding.

Synopsis: Address capture and validation at checkout on e-commerce sites is vital to ensure a smooth customer experience, and to make sure that delivery operations can work efficiently and reach customers first time, at the correct location. Introducing trust into the transaction helps to reduce the instances of loss by performing real-time fraud checks at the address capture stage. Learn how Loqate is working with leading e-commerce businesses and carriers to manage risk, while making sure that address data is accurate and up-to-date – globally.

Synopsis: Through a global network of warehouses and innovative return logistics software, ZigZag is on a mission to solve customer pain points with e-commerce returns. The company connects retailers to more than 200 warehouses and uses predictive analytics to provide the most cost-effective and energy-efficient route, to advise whether a retailer should hold and resell returns locally or bring them back via consolidation. Al Gerrie will share how ZigZag will continue to delight retailers and shoppers following major investment from shipping giant Maersk.

Synopsis: Cross-border transactions are set to grow at a phenomenal pace. The target for 2020 (US$994bn) is 20% growth for the year. Globally there are 943,000,000 online cross-border shoppers. However, several challenges limit growth. One such challenge is the limited ability to checkout from global online stores with local addresses – less than 1% of e-commerce stores have options to do checkout for global locations. There are also challenges in addressing formats, with more than 150 countries with their own address and ZIP code formats making validation of international addresses impossible. Then there is the issue of maintaining compliance on tax, customs and insurance, as well as the supply chain integration issues. This presentation will review a solution allowing one unique login for all global e-commerce stores, enabling every online store to support global e-commerce. The system eliminates the need to key in mailing addresses, increasing accuracy, minimizing fraud and providing 100% privacy for consumers, and also offers real-time tracking of every transaction and promotes new revenue streams for national postal careers. The solution follows strict compliance with UPU guidelines for customs, taxes and insurance controls, eliminating fraud and malpractice.

Synopsis: In this presentation Bernhard Groiss and Cesar LaPuerta will review the challenges for parcel carriers in times of increasing parcel volumes – and the solution which can be provided by lockers.

Synopsis: Postal services face challenges at times of disaster. In 2020, the world had to face Covid-19. Post is essential, but why? How did postal operators adapt to this pandemic? Which policies or regulatory decisions were made? How did innovation boost operational and services development?

Synopsis: Decision making is the core of any parcel handling sortation system and in large volume parcel operations it takes a lot of manpower to identify the few parcels that need special attention. So how can a parcel hub maintain high capacity in its automated system when handling when also handling limited quantities labels, polybags, non-machinable parcels etc.? In this webinar, BEUMER Group will explain how easily intelligence can be applied to the sortation system to be able to automatically categorise parcels. The presentation will showcase how to minimise manual handling in an automated process and how to protect revenue.

Synopsis: Posts carry enormous fixed costs. At first glance, they seem unavoidable since Posts need a robust infrastructure to meet the Universal Service Obligation (USO). In reality, there’s a way for Posts to not only cut costs, but increase revenue at the same time, too. Wayne Haubner, Escher’s Chief Technology Officer explains how Posts can move from a fixed cost model to a variable cost model, and from dwindling customer numbers to new revenue streams by using the right technology.

Synopsis: The increasing demand for speed and flexibility is creating a potential to implement robotics, AGVs and IoT within parcel operations. The unexpected enabler for many of these future developments is the effective use of parcel load carriers. When implemented correctly, parcel load carriers can reduce (un)loading times and enable pre-sorting, which reduces overall sortation costs. Furthermore, the reality is that all national postal operators have a current fleet of roll cages that, when installed with IoT technology, can reduce manual scans and gather information about everything from routes to loop times and customer behavior. The development of new technologies, such as AGVs and robotics, make it possible to improve the logistics network, meet new market demands and reduce parcel sortation costs.

Synopsis: As more cities introduce inner-city access restrictions, ranging from physical restrictions to road signs, post networks can use these restrictions automatically in their daily tour planning process. With this step, NUNAV Courier ensures networks and their drivers 100% conform to inner-city restrictions while keeping their delivery promise. This real-world scenario is made possible by processing OpenStreetMap data – which makes it very easy for local operators to introduce local knowledge for the post network – during the daily planning process based on day-to-day objectives (least distance, fewest personnel, utmost punctuality, etc). This presentation will provide an in-depth look into the multicloud computing platform NUNAV and how Austrian Post is using NUNAV Courier in its day-to-day operations to ensure all its drivers are productive from day one, while abiding by city restrictions.

Synopsis: Some activities require the implementation of a territory sectorization before tour optimization can take place. Working with a sectorization enables tasks to be balanced between teams and improves productivity, in particular through the specialization of drivers in a given area. In a last-mile parcel delivery warehouse, sectoring is necessary in order to organize picking within the warehouse. For each organization, it is a question of finding the right balance between performance (opex costs) and robustness (tour stability, which is reflected in the number of manual rebalancing operations). Kardinal’s Sekto model is the only tool on the market capable of jointly optimizing these two dimensions, enabling users to control the impact of strategic decisions. Its core mechanic is based on historical data in a machine learning logic, allowing users to size their fleet while taking into account the seasonality of the activity, its evolution and its geographical distribution.

Synopsis: The world-wide explosive growth of e-commerce is causing a real stir within the logistic chain. The entire chain of delivery, storage, single-item order picking and overnight-express delivery is leading to a considerable upscaling of capacity. E-commerce is characterized by a huge product variety, short lead time and high speeds. The AmbaFlex SpiralVeyor has been a huge success within the distribution branch for more than 20 years, for example, in package-delivery hubs. With band widths of up to 1200 mm and a completely sealed conveyor belt surface, it is suitable for almost any item imaginable.

Synopsis: In this session, Paul Needham of CEP Research will interview Bishar A. Hussein, the Director General of the Universal Postal Union.

Synopsis: Today’s growing e-commerce business calls for changes in sorting equipment and processes economically. A growing number of parcels In all shapes and sizes, as well as varying volumes on a daily basis, are adding more and more complexity to sorting processes. Often therefore conventional processes are stretched to their limits. Innovative technologies are required to help disrupting operational norms and standards, making challenging concepts like ‘same-day delivery’ and ‘touchless processing’ the new reality and helping to redefine—and build—tomorrow’s logistics infrastructure. How can innovative hardware and software solutions help to provide more predictability, transparency and efficiency from end to end to meet these challenges?

Synopsis: The Cognitive Adviser tool enables logistics operators, retailers and other stakeholders to collaborate more effectively, improve response rates and increase assets utilization in order to provide the maximum benefit and quality of deliveries to the end consumers. In detail, the Cognitive Advisor (CA) guides a responsible multimodal freight transport system, which helps Cognitive Logistics Objects (logistics objects are physical objects such as cargo, vehicles, etc; systems; and humans that participate in a logistics process) decide about next actions, forming social networks, communicating, helping each other and solving local problems. The CA takes into account variables such as business, environment and society. The result are proposals from CLOs to the actors (drivers, managers, etc) for more efficient, environmentally friendly and multimodal transportation deliveries.

Synopsis: Is post COVID capacity keeping you up at night? Are you worried that your business is not keeping up with the latest last mile trends? Does uncertainty about the new last mile give you the jitters? Marek Różycki and Ian Kerr (aka the Last Mile Prophets) draw upon their worldwide experience to share what ius arguably the fdefinitive view on the new, post COVID last mile. This will be an interactive seminar, and we will cover key last mile issues including: Latest last mile trends How COVID is accelerating last mile change Who is influencing customer behaviour and how Future consumer needs and expectations What the new last mile will be like?

Synopsis: Covid-19 has altered how the entire world transacts and trades. This presentation will touch on and present case studies on: how the adoption of modern software usage has accelerated tremendously during the pandemic, enabling retailers that were forced to shut down store fronts to sell online and over the phone; companies that shifted their entire business line; B2B shifts to B2C; and the elder population being forced to stay indoors yet still stay connected with their social groups and families.

Synopsis: Urban last-mile delivery is becoming increasingly challenging due to space, energy and environmental constraints. This presentation will describe how the new generation of Kyburz electric transport vehicles assist global customers in optimizing their last-mile delivery systems. We will outline the energy, total cost and efficiency implications of deploying our vehicles across a broad range of diverse geographic areas. The focus of the discussion will be on the real data collected by our fleet management system during the vehicle’s lifetime, as well as the potential benefits of refurbishing vehicles for their ‘second life’ after their initial service period.

Synopsis: A study based on data available in open-source had already predicted the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic by February 15. What lessons can be learned so that strategic decision making and crisis management integrate both these predictions and the innovations that were implemented in Asia very early?

Synopsis: In this presentation Bernhard Groiss and Cesar LaPuerta will review the challenges for parcel carriers in times of increasing parcel volumes – and the solution which can be provided by lockers.

Synopsis: Mobile devices in the hands of your workers have become critical to the success of your business. Whether they are used to scan packages, receive customers’ signatures, or process payments, ensuring each mobile device and app is always up and operational is critical. Yet today, the sad state of the industry is that mobile devices often fail, resulting in huge, sometimes hidden costs to the business. This presentation will cover the latest research findings on problems and solutions to ensure mobility is able to deliver on its promises for business. It will also use case studies to highlight solutions.

Synopsis: Kern not only manufacturers the latest locker technology (including hardware and software), but has combined this with experience in developing locker networks. Experience of choosing the most suitable locations to install a locker has enabled Kern to assist other companies create locker networks and to optimize their efficiency. In this presentation, Juan Lozano will explain the key factors for creating a profitable and sustainable locker network and how these have been adapted during the COVID 19 pandemic.

Synopsis: The increasing demand for digital services has given rise to enhanced online banking options, innovative solutions from fintech’s, digital government services, the advancement of smart cities around the world and more. At the same time, the need for a coordinated global effort to expand financial inclusion has never been greater. The desire by customers for vendors to provide quick and simple, anywhere, always-on service is clearly accelerating. What’s common about these trends is that postal operators around the world are uniquely positioned to take a leading role in areas such as these, benefiting customers, society, governments, and themselves. Join us for this enlightening presentation, as Escher CEO, Nick Manolis, lays out a compelling case for how Posts can position themselves as leaders in these areas. Through the transformative process of becoming a digital aggregator of services, Posts will discover how they can expand services, reach more customers, boost profitability, and improve customer experience in the process.

Synopsis: A dive into the role of technology in the development of the UPU’s postal network and a view into the innovation and partnership agenda of the UPU’s Postal Technology Centre to support the complete digitization of the global postal supply chain.

Synopsis: In this session, Paul Needham of CEP Research will interview Bishar A. Hussein, the Director General of the Universal Postal Union.

Synopsis: Software for letters and flats processing has evolved to a point of extreme sophistication. Gone are the days of simple barcodes. In today’s interconnected world, postal and mail processing organizations deploy intelligent sorting algorithms to handle complex data streams and get the mail delivered. As the global parcel market continues to grow, the amount and complexity of data is snowballing. Now is the time to evaluate what we have learned from lettermail and flats processing and apply the lessons learned to the rising challenges in parcel sortation.

Synopsis: How can a last-mile crowdsourced delivery solution offer flexibility and growth and become a new trend in delivery? In the Netherlands, parties such as ViaTim already represent up to 15% of the service points for major carriers in the Netherlands. These networks grow at a rate of 15-30 new locations per week, allowing them to become the largest service point network in the Netherlands with less than two years. These locations are private households that act as traditional service points where you can ship and pick up parcels. They even act as microhubs from which parcels are delivered within the neighborhood. This reduces CO2 within urban areas by 74% and offers unique propositions like ‘Your parcel at your time’ at competitive market pricing. How can you set up such a social network? How can it affect your business if you don’t? What elements of your operation will benefit or need to be adjusted to adapt to a new reality that is coming? ViaTim will answer these questions and more.

Synopsis: Recent research shows that under certain circumstances Out-of-Home solutions are quite the opposite and are not only among the most polluting forms of delivery but will in addition increase the congestion of cities. Jesper Okkels will deliver a thorough analysis and the facts how to assess and compare delivery options. In addition consumers are, even in countries where the Out-of-Home was dominant as delivery form, switching towards 2Door delivery (FDIH DK). One should also ask whether Out-of-Home delivery can absorb the parcel volumes of the future and if so, what are the consequences?

Synopsis: This presentation will share how logistics players reacted to challenges of the global pandemic: services launched; cargo cross-border solutions built at the times of air capacity constraints; new last-mile partnerships with retailers; solutions to help offline businesses to go online; and experimenting with startups, such as grocery and medicine delivery, within established businesses. Which of these innovations are going to stay beyond quarantine times? Are established logistics incumbents capable of competing with new entrants?

Synopsis: This presentation will demonstrate how to use consumer apps to enhance delivery service and experience by letting the receiver choose where and when to receive their parcels or pick them up, or have a PUDO parcel delivered home. Let the consumer also have an uplifting live tracking experience.

Synopsis: This presentation will review the latest findings on the true cost of switching delivery vans to electric. It will outline the current electric van landscape, reveal the most common mistakes to avoid in the process, and provide invaluable tips for fleet managers.

Synopsis: To sort growing flows of small e-commerce parcels to the finest level, SOLYSTIC designs ‘sorting factories’ that combine robotic induction, mobile robots and a new sorting equipment.

Synopsis: Carriers look at all sorts of metrics to examine performance, but what is the most important metric of them all? This presentation by Doddle examines how e-commerce is changing the way parcel carriers and postal organizations think about their delivery propositions and make suggestions about the defining metric of delivery over the next decade.

Synopsis: A growing number of businesses are adopting ambitious electrification strategies as part of future-proofing their strategies. The Climate Group’s international corporate leadership initiative EV100 brings together over 70 global brands publicly committed to make the transition to electric fleets by 2030, including postal, logistics and retail leaders such as Austrian Post, Deutsche Post DHL, Inga Group (IKEA) and Swiss Post. This presentation provides insights into their experiences and the key drivers and barriers they encounter, and highlights the role ambitious corporate leaders can play in accelerating the necessary market transitions.

Synopsis: Is post COVID capacity keeping you up at night? Are you worried that your business is not keeping up with the latest last mile trends? Does uncertainty about the new last mile give you the jitters? Marek Różycki and Ian Kerr (aka the Last Mile Prophets) draw upon their worldwide experience to share what ius arguably the fdefinitive view on the new, post COVID last mile. This will be an interactive seminar, and we will cover key last mile issues including: Latest last mile trends How COVID is accelerating last mile change Who is influencing customer behaviour and how Future consumer needs and expectations What the new last mile will be like?

Synopsis: Arrival is pioneering integrated transportation solutions for cities, to help them meet net-zero emission targets. With none of the legacy issues associated with producing fossil fuel vehicles, this session is an under-the-hood look at the technology behind the Arrival van. From its unique approach to manufacturing in Microfactories, to the vertically integrated hardware and software across its vehicles, this session will provide an insight into why companies like UPS are purpose building the vehicles they need via Arrival's approach.

Synopsis: “We can work with €100 smartphones…” Is that really so easy? Do we no longer need rugged enterprise devices? What about security? The European Union has strict GDPR regulations. NFC, beacons, IoT and other technologies help us protect our data and our customers’ data. How do we deal with battery life nowadays? In terms of software options, iOS offers only one operating system. With Android, however, we can choose an operating system with or without Google services. What are the pros and cons, and what activity tracking options do we have here? A higher fluctuation of the users is a reality. So let’s see how we can shorten user training time and achieve a better user experience with the device by using route visualization on their device, Wear OS, virtual reality, industrial wearables and other equipment in their immediate environment using Bluetooth or wi-fi technology. The last mile has never been easier, with keyless trunk technology, contactless delivery via a user’s smartphone, and many other ideas on how quickly the last mile can be completed. The use of devices in vehicle diagnostics reports on time without additional hardware using OBD2 or VCDS. It is a great way to get a simple overview of your vehicle fleet.

Synopsis: Today’s consumers are spoiled for options. They can easily jump to another brand after one poor experience. This makes earning and maintaining customer trust essential. But what is really driving this behaviour and what can Posts do about it. Join us for this presentation as Kevin Seller, VP, Sales at Escher helps Posts envision a dramatically enhanced customer experience of the very near future. A model where the entire customer journey is seamlessly connected, including physical and digital channels and it is customer behavior that is driving this change. Customer interactions with Posts at all touch points are quick, convenient, and intuitive. Kevin will also detail steps to make this vision a reality and help Posts turn this new approach into a sustainable competitive advantage.

Synopsis: The postal renaissance is underway globally and the key to survival is taking operations digital. The transformation was further accelerated by the pandemic when on-time deliveries became almost necessary. In such a scenario, postal companies have found a new but highly significant stature as nobody aces last mile connectivity as they do. However, to pivot into more profitable ventures such as home deliveries, it requires cutting edge technology capabilities. Attend the session to learn how FarEye enabled leading postal companies like Posti and Emirates Post venture into e-commerce and parcel delivery which has helped them get back their profitability track record.

Synopsis: This presentation will review the customer experience of carriers and consumers and discuss how the two can be reconciled whilst also providing added benefits to retailers and the environment.

Synopsis: During this panel discussion, Scandit will highlight how scanning-enabled apps on smartphones add value, flexibility and efficiency to existing last mile workflows. We’ll show how you can seamlessly integrate smartphones into your processes today or transform them with innovative new capabilities.

Synopsis: Globalization means a torrent of international postal data. Postal organizations are faced with the challenge of managing these new data streams and harnessing the knowledge within them. To remain competitive, the ability to manage and analyze data across multiple applications, directories and interfaces is essential for compliance with cross-border shipping. In this presentation, experts from BlueCrest will discuss these issues and provide useful insights and takeaway ideas to exploit the value of data and expand your reach.

Synopsis: Based on experience with Kyrgyz Post Office, Etronika is looking into digitization of post offices and addressing the demands for essential services beyond traditional roles of postal operators. Let’s see how the modern approach can transform the post office into digital services hubs and even digital marketplaces with physical presence and offerings in three essential areas: financial services, e-commerce facilitation and public services.

Synopsis: CRM teams are gradually taking over the responsibility in organizations for direct mail budgets from print purchasers, and CRM itself is becoming more connected and performance-driven through marketing automation. Integrating direct mail into this CRM setup (e.g. into customer journeys) will be the key to success. One too many mass mailings will be a thing of the past; the future of direct mail will be targeting and hyperpersonalization. Consequently, postal service providers face the same challenge as printers that are losing their old contacts in organizations and often do not speak the marketing language of CRM managers.

Synopsis: With increasing stress on logistics operations to deliver more small and non-conveyable packages and parcels more quickly, there is a need to increase throughput and efficiencies. This can be achieved by using the right sorter in your process, but also by making use of smart design in the exits of the sorter. With smart design, the number of exits could be doubled without the need to double the footprint of the sorter. This could not only decrease the amount of handling, but also enables much deeper sorting (for example, to postal code instead of regions). The right combination of sorter and exits can help any logistics operation to increase efficiency and ultimately reduce costs.

Synopsis: This presentation will review some of the lessons learned by posts and parcel companies during the Covid-19 crisis and the responses to it. In particular, the speaker will discuss how flexibility and adaptability in sortation processes can be achieved and how this provides the capacity to respond to crises and demand peaks.

Synopsis: As the logistics industry continues to grow along with e-commerce, more radical growth can be found in another domain: data. In fact, 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are generated each day and 90% of the world’s data was generated in just the last two years. The power of data will reshape the logistics and e-commerce industry. Parcel Perform will talk about how logistics data can enable smarter decisions with full visibility across all touchpoints in a supply chain, and how machine learning can transform the customer experience, empower predictive planning and drive greater efficiencies. Find out how you can ride the growth of big data and make full use of these opportunities for e-commerce logistics.

Synopsis: Covid-19 has accelerated the decline of letters and growth of e-commerce parcels, representing both a challenge and opportunity for postal businesses around the world. Operators must ramp-up their transformation timelines to successfully realize these opportunities, improve customer experience and lock in profitability. Postal operators can seize this unique opportunity to address complex legacy structural issues in order to transform their business and emerge from the pandemic with an optimized cost base and more efficient operations. Frank Yu will share frameworks and methodologies for approaching large-scale transformations, shaped by experience working with national postal operators and freight and logistics businesses.

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Synopsis: With the rise of e-commerce and the demand for a faster and more flexible movement of goods, warehouse and manufacturing operators are facing increasingly complex production and logistics challenges today. Speed, product diversification, same-day delivery, volume, safety… these concerns are affecting a wide range of industries, from apparel, retail and automotive to electronics, energy and pharmaceutical industries. This presentation will discuss how the Geek+ vision of a fully automated and intelligent global supply chain can make logistics affordable, efficient, flexible, safe and agile.