ParcelHome launches three-month trial for intelligent letterbox
ParcelHome is running a three-month trial for its “intelligent letterboxes” in the Belgian city of Mechelen. The carriers DHL Parcel, GLS and DPD are taking part in the trial – and ParcelHome reports that this makes it “a world first collaboration in the field smart package boxes shared amongst multiple carriers”.
The ParcelHome letterbox offers a secure means of delivering to properties when the recipients are unavailable – whether it be because they not on the premises or because they are busy and cannot come to the door. Given that at present 15% of packages cannot be delivered on the first attempt, and in some residential areas up to 50% of deliveries fail, this makes the letterbox an attractive proposition for both carriers and customers.
The system uses a dropbox – but with an important difference. The couriers and the homeowner access the ParcelHome unit using a smartphone app. The technology employs the same sort of dynamic codes that are used in online banking, ensuring that the access system is both universal and secure. The box can be used by delivery staff from any courier company, and indeed staff from local shops, provided that they are registered users of the ParcelHome app.
ParcelHome CEO Gregory Mackin explained to Post&Parcel today that each registered user of the system has a unique identity. It is therefore possible to track, and record, when and where they opened any of the intelligent letterboxes.
The ParcelHome unit incorporates a system which automatically weighs the contents of the letterbox – so it can tell whether a package has been delivered or collected, and how heavy it is.
This means that customers know exactly when a package has arrived or been picked up and what each carrier has done. They also receive a notification when a parcel has been delivered. Thanks to the scale, it is easy both to send and return parcels. The parcelhome.com unit calculates the delivery fee and franks the package, a carrier then comes and picks it up.
If a courier is delivering to a box at an unusual time, or outside their usual area, the system will immediate flag up the discrepancy. The system will flag up “inappropriate” behaviours, such as opening a box and then not depositing or collecting a parcel.
The system can also track and record when the home owner opens the letterbox, and if they remove or deposit a package.
ParcelHome is running the trial in Belgium in partnership with the City of Mechelen, and with the support of the courier companies DHL, DPD and GLS. About 100 boxes have been installed at properties across the city – mostly in private homes, although there are some small offices taking part in the trial.
The trial began on 3 May and will run for about three months. Mackin explained that a range of new technologies and test parameters will be introduced as the trial continues. For example, all the letterboxes currently being trialled are solar-powered units that are installed outside the premises; later in the trial, however, the company plans to add some indoor boxes. The indoor boxes will be battery-powered – but these will be “very long life” batteries that will keep running for five years or more.
Mackin added that, through the partnership with the City of Mechelen, they will also be trialling deliveries from local shops and businesses.
As the trial continues, the homeowners will start to use the ParcelHome units as a means of sending, as well as receiving, packages. “It will be a very simple process,” said Mackin, “you will put a bar code on the item, scan the bar code and put the item in the box. The unit will automatically weight the item and you then just have to confirm you want to send the item.”
With the ParcelHome unit, said Mackin, customers will have a means of receiving and sending parcels at any time of day, whether they are at home or not. And they will know exactly when a parcel has been delivered or picked up – and by whom. For the delivery companies, the system will be able to provide proof of delivery, a secure supply – and much happier customers.
The courier firms taking part in the trial will be watching the results carefully.
Luc De Schrijver, General Manager at GLS Belgium, believed that: “People don’t want to organise solutions, work around time slots, take half a day off or ask neighbours or friends to wait around. Thanks to parcelhome.com, they no longer have to.”
Jan Van Roey, CEO of DHL Parcel Belgium, agreed: “Customer convenience is central to this project. We see the parcelhome.com concept as an ideal supplement to our extensive Parcelshop network in Belgium. Both initiatives provide maximum accessibility and efficiency for customers, suppliers and parcel services.”
And DPD’s Belgian CEO Marc Morioux commented: “Alongside our existing delivery services for the B2C market, such as the European Parcelshop Network, DPD sees parcelhome.com as an interesting option for expanding our existing B2C delivery services.”
Mackin said that if the trial in Mechelen goes well, the company hopes to expand rapidly. “We want to cover Benelux by the end of this year,” said Mackin, “then move into France and the UK.”
