As we welcome 2017, let’s look at the Logistic Technology Trends that are going to be big. Logistics is the backbone of most industries all over the world. Technological development in logistics has been phenomenal in recent times. And with this new year, there are several important trends identified in the sector.

Last mile delivery 

Technology is developing by leaps and bounds. Amazon has tested its drone service for deliveries. We will be looking at research in driverless vehicles and drones and a lot more entrants into the last mile delivery industry. They will be consolidated with big players. But we are still in the nascent stage of such major technologies. While we are not expecting drones to deliver that pair of ear pods you purchased, drones could foray into emergency delivery situations.

Local supply chains

Focus will be on products made in the USA, locally sourced, locally made, locally produced products that are made for specific cities and regions. Today, customers are specific about what they want to the minute detail. And the need it delivered the same day. So, there is a lot of thought on logistics when it comes to hyper-local and getting products closer to customers and cheaper delivery times. With the world waking up to green, organic and local goods, this could be a huge impact on logistics.

Customer loyalty rewards

Retailers will reward customers who purchase from their own sites rather than from Amazon. Incentives will be in the form of free shipping, reward programs, loyalty discounts etc. This is an attempt to build the site’s image and slowly make people buy directly from the site. When a reputation is built over the years, the seller can do away with Amazon and sell from his site alone.

Wider adoption of on-demand technology in the supply chain

In weak links of the supply chain, typically where technology is not used, we can expect major changes. The buzz words here are real time, GPS and dynamic. Wherever we have no GPS in truck fleets and warehouses, we will see adoption of such technologies so that the entire system is transparent. Systems become fast and efficient. Deliveries cannot be manipulated manually. 

Automation

The modern warehouse will have minimal human intervention and supervision. Robotic help will be expanded in loading and unloading. Giants like Amazon are already using robots to carry shelves of products to human workers. The next goal would be to automate worldwide warehousing. This would be fast, error free and would also help bring down warehouse accidents and injuries. The need for human workers would also go down. Companies are looking to invest in technology in the coming years, starting with year 2017.

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