UAVs Impact on Air Cargo Operations, Essay Sample for Everyone

In the past years, we have witnessed how UAVs have been of great help in the military; for instance, the UAVs are being used in Pakistan by the US Army for developmental purposes in Africa specifically the Matternet. Well, not only have the UAVs been of positive impact on the military but also on the air cargo industry and its' operations.

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The industry at large has been making efforts to make sure that the UAVs are in good use. More recently, DHL Supply Chain has been in the spotlight due to their effort in making use of the UAVs especially in logistics. In this effort, DHL has opened up an innovation center in Germany that demonstrates the UAV technologies that have been already been proven. It has also established a new facility in Singapore where it features 130 robotic shuttles that are meant for picking and storing products. In December 2013, DHL also partnered with Microdrones- UAV manufacturers to do a delivery of pharmaceuticals to DHL Headquarters' employees in Germany. DHL has also put in much effort in their logistics operations by coming up with a UAV called the DHL Paketkopter which is also as 'parcel-copter'. In the initial stages this drone was manually controlled by an operator, but now it can be operated autonomously without the pilot on sight, where it can make deliveries to rural areas.

Additionally, Google unveiled its latest program known as Project Wing to come up with incredible delivery systems that have the capability of delivering parcels to almost every person within one or two minutes. Having worked on this project for almost two years, Google is currently testing UAVs for rural deliveries in Australia. Although the project is not complete, this is a step to ensuring that the industry is putting in an effort to make use of the UAVs in logistics.

Boeing recently unveiled a functional prototype cargo drone into the electric air cargo space. Although it is said that drones are changing the logistics sector, the invention of this aerospace is a major shakeup in the sector. To demonstrate its capability, the UAV is said to have the capacity to deliver up to two hundred and twenty-seven kilograms of the load within 15 to 30-kilometre radius. This implies that the industry is making much-needed effort to permanently shift to use of UAVs in the air cargo.

Even though the UAVs are making an impact in the air cargo industry, there are also impacts to the air cargo operators. In the recent news, the Managing Director of West Wales Airport, Ray Mann questioned inquired whether the UAVs were to allow shippers to be movers of cargo where they set up individual intercontinental distribution platform from production to the customers. This implies that most of the air cargo operators will lose their jobs as they will be replaced by UAVs. Although this may be a negative impact to some of the air cargo operators, most of them believe that the UAVs will bring a better impact on the industry. For example, urban first and last mile delivery is a problem that requires being curbed. Due to rapid growth, cities are becoming overcrowded and in return, infrastructure is worsening. To improve the situation, UAVs are put in place to make sure that deliveries are done without any congestion on the roads. For example Flirty; the aerial delivery company has the intention to introduce first commercial UAVs for delivery only. Companies will be able to deliver parcels directly to their customers without delay. This implies that there will be a significant reduction in waiting times as from three days to three minutes.

Most companies in the logistics industry need to monitor the infrastructure. To do this with ease, the UAVs are in a position to provide safety and security surveillance to large facilities like pipelines, docks, and yards. The UAVs can also track the movement of large trucks and know specifically where they are. This is the kind of security that the air cargo operators could not provide before the introduction of the UAVs. They can also be used to check the exact activities that are taking place on the roads such as maintenance.

In conclusion, most companies such as DHL, Google, Boeing, and Flirty have endorsed the use of UAVs. This is because of what the UAVs can offer and the positive transformation they can make in the current world. The Cargo industry at large understands how the logistics in their companies will be made easier. Similarly, the air cargo operators also appreciate the benefits that come with the UAVs and why they have to be used. Although most projects to launch the UAVs are still ongoing, they have been worldwide accepted as an improvement to technology.

References

WARF, B. (2017). Handbook on geographies of technology. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&A N=1483562.

http://www.totallyunmanned.com/2014/06/20/bp-uav-makes-oil-production-safer-profitable/

https://www.chapman-freeborn.com/en/autonomous-freight-drones-a-revolution-in-air-cargo/

https://aircargoworld.com/allposts/boeings-cargo-uav-a-shot-in-the-arm-for-drone-delivery- market-video/

http://www.dhl.com/en/about_us/logistics_insights/dhl_trend_research/uav.html#.WslFUflubip