Here are the answers to the
questions asked by viewers during our Q&A sessions that we didn’t manage
to discuss during the live stream.
Discussion with Indrek Oolup and Dr
Ramesh Ratan
Answers to the viewers’ questions
are provided by Indrek and Ramesh.
How can Cleveron solutions be
beneficial for large e-commerce players like Amazon or provide a competitive service?
Ramesh: Cleveron solutions
(Pickup-Towers, Lockers, and parcel robots) have already proved beneficial for
larger omni-commerce players (online as well as brick-and-mortar stores) like
Walmart. Amazon is also becoming omni-commerce by building out physical stores’
capabilities (Whole Foods, Kohl’s partnership, etc.). Any “pure-play” e-commerce
players still have to use physical facilities for pick-pack-distribute-retrieve
– and Cleveron solutions can be very helpful there.
Indrek: Cleveron solutions could
benefit Amazon and similar players the same way as other retailers – better
control of delivery quality, better brand recognition, better handling of peak
hours, lower operational costs.
Ramesh, you have cooperated with Cleveron and Walmart for
years, what do you see to be Cleveron’s biggest competitive advantage?
Ramesh: People! As
I said in our discussion, Nara Abbaszade who created the locker business for
Bell & Howell, evaluated all potential partners and chose Cleveron because
of 1) best quality (consumer furniture look and feel – not stamped metal like
others), 2) best aesthetics and design, 3) Best innovation (e.g. dynamic volume
optimization for variable size packages in parcel robots), but most importantly
4) best People – 1 to 3 all depend on 4, and that was what I valued most.
Indrek: End-user
driven product design and hands-on operational experience of the core team. We
do not only know how to make great rally cars. We also know how to drive them.
Why only BOPIS? BOPOS » Buy Online Pickup OutSide?
Ramesh: At Walmart, we did both BOPIS and BOPOS.
We had to build a special outdoor version of the pickup tower. I believe true
omnichannel consumers will drive a rich mix of applications for BOPIS, BOPOS,
buy-anywhere-have-it-delivered-anywhere, etc.
Indrek: As I stated during the panel
as well, we believe that at the end of the day, the landscape of the last mile
will become end-user driven. Consumers will be able to direct the parcels moving
towards them according to their daily routes and how it suits them. E.g. today
I prefer to pick up my online orders from the local retailer while doing my
grocery shopping; the day after tomorrow I order all my orders (grocery and
general merchandise) to my home address. Depending on what I’ll be doing, and
what type of shipment I’ll be receiving, I will ask it to be left at my home
locker or agree to a fixed time slot (max 15-minute window) to accept it
personally. Based on this, we are also developing our product portfolio.
Do you see robotics being affordable for medium-sized
companies?
Ramesh: Yes, like most technologies,
robotics technology will find its own “Moore’s Law” like in semiconductors
(performance/price doubles every 2 to 3 years), and this will drive wider and
wider adoption till it becomes necessary to exist (not just competitive
advantage). Key elements include standardized components and materials,
interoperability between different suppliers, localized manufacturing/integration
to eliminate shipping costs, etc.
Indrek: I agree with Ramesh, but
additionally, it all depends on the parcel volume that is being handled. And
while people get more and more used to robotics servicing them, plus people
value their time more and more, I believe robotics will be used in other
service transactions than just parcel delivery. Examples from practice are –
vending, C2C parcel sending, collecting recyclable products (clothes, shoes,
electronics), exchange point between auction site traders,
merchandising. We believe that the only non-recoverable resource is time.
People start to appreciate it more and more, especially when they are able to
save minutes every day while doing auxiliary activities like picking up an item
from somewhere.
Cleveron 501 demo
Viewers’ questions are answered by
501 product owner Tanel Aruoja.
How does the machine know that I’ve
ordered ice cream and that it has to be put in the freezer?
The machine doesn't know that. Either
the operator’s system via IT integration or operator’s associate or a courier
has to tell that to the machine that this crate with this order consists of
frozen goods, i.e. ice cream, and this has to be stored in the freezer
section.
How do you implement AI technologies
in these machines?
Probably the most significant and
best example is the automatic calibration which we are about to release with
the next upcoming version. The solution uses cameras and specific control
points to calibrate the whole machine automatically. This decreases time and
effort in the installation of the grocery robot.
What's the minimum capacity for the
frozen zone?
Currently, the standard and only
option with the M size model is that 25% of crates (30–32 pcs) are in the
frozen zone, and the temperature holding has been tested in accordance with specific
standards. We have also tested 12,5% frozen zone capacity (14–16 crates) temperature
holding, but don't have the official report for that. We'll do the same with
37,5%. Everything else is based on request, and we will first test in-house to
see if the temperature holding system works as it should.
Can the 501 be configured to be
loaded from one end while customers can pick up from the opposite?
Unfortunately, this is not possible
with the current Cleveron 501 as that would need a significant redesign. But
that would be our next step. Not that it will necessarily be a designated
loading area for the couriers, but something to double the insertion
speed.
