I worked for the Canadian Federal Government in logistics for 36 years. I dealt with every courier company, Canada Post and the U.S. postal service and other postal and courier companies around the world. Planes, trains, trucks and ships. I also worked with Customs agencies of a lot of countries. I have had many long private meetings with Senators that were conducting regular Senate reviews of the industry, that wanted my opinion on many issues. Though I was a blue collar guy, I worked on many projects in a managerial position. The formulas used in the pick up and delivery end of the business are complex to say the least. I could write hundreds if not thousands of pages on it, if ask to do a full report.
To over simplifly the equation, any area where a driver can not deliver at least 20 items an hour is likely a money loser and would be a candidate for drone delivery. Of course not every item would be light or small enough for drone delivery and there are multitudes of other factors to consider in the equation. However if the formula is right, a drone should work. Why would the courier industry spend millions on drone developement if it didnât think it would work.
Once refined, the number of drones launched per worker will be quite high. One system I read about, had the drones going along a conveyor belt being packed by an employee and then launched after it would egress the building. It would go to target and return without further interface with a person. At least I think that is what it said.[(-D]
As far as air regâs go. As long as a drone stayed below 600 feet, it should not be an issue with ATC. And of course it would have to stay away from any controlled airspace below 600 feet around airports.
Canada Post just opened the most advanced automated proccessing plant in the world this year. It is at Vancouver International Airport. I am hoping to get an invite for a tour as I am always fascinated by automation. Having spent lots of time in Fedex, UPS and other courier
Then you are going to have a bunch of people protesting (probably wearing mask) against your drones. Too many people will object to cameras that can recognize faces. As technology like this increases, it seems more and more like the story 1984
My wifeâs cell phone has the tracker app thingy on. I borrowed her phone a while back and while I was out it rang. When I answered she said âI see you are at Pacific Western Rail, can you go back to Safeway and get a bag of potatoes?â.
The statement was meant in a light hearted way and was not meant to start a peeing match. Since I am Canadian you can take the word âusâ as me referring to Canada if that will get your back down.[;)]
Obviously, your familiarity to this weapon is only through the mass media. There is a very active debate as to whether the acronym CWIS (spoken âSee-whizâ) stands for âChrist, It Wonât Shootâ or âCasualty-Intensive Weapons Systemâ.
As an American, I always get annoyed when my fellow citizens canât take some good natured ribbing. Iâm proud to be American, but not so proud that it makes me blind. We have our failings, not the least of which is not to give credit where credit is due.
We invented neither the automobile nor the assembly line. They were invented by a German and an Englishman.
The Wright Brothers did indeed make the first powered, heavier than air flight. But they didnât invent the airplane, and in fact were a couple of johhny come latelies to the race to make the first powered flight.
Since the 747 is about 10 times as lage as the Concorde and not supersonic, this is an apples and oranges comparison.
Yes, we were the first to produce a fifth generation fighter⌠at a cost so high tbat we can only afford about 100 of them, and have already ceased production. Yeah, letâs pat ourselves on the back for that one.
And there are good examples out there. But to insist on primacy in everything is ridiculous.
Oh dear. Contrary to your perception of what I wrote, BATMAN, I was in fact having a little fun with you - that was my intention anyway.
Iâm pretty sure that Iâm not so overly sensitive an individual - certainly not so much as to be agreived by the word, âalwaysâ Maybe I should have used a smiley face like this one[:)] to show that I was not spitting venom.
Man, I really need to watch what I say around here, eh.
I would be very dissapointed if what I posted was the cause of a cross border fracas. Btw, what is a âpeeing contestâ? A new Olympic demonstration sport perhaps?[[:-^]
CTValley - just to stand correct - the first powered flight was done in 1901 by a man called Gustav Weisskopf, who only now finds recognition for that. A month before Wilbur and Orville Wright took to the skies, a man called Karl Jatho made the second powered flight near Hannover Germany.
You know what! I really donât want something flying over my back yard taking pictures! When my wife and I are getting into the hot tub sans bathing suits I suspect that you really donât want to see that either![swg][(-D][(-D][:$]
OK, deliver to the front door - no problem, but if you miss your target then I might have to borrow Jabearâs shotgun.
Why do I feel more like a fossil every day? Donât answer - stupid question. Being senile and unaware of my surroundings seems to get more attractive every day![(-D][(-D][(-D]
Where is your friendly bank teller, with whom you used to chat while getting your cash? Where is the nice mailman, delivering your mail while exchanging a little neighborhood gossip? Where is your friendly gas station attendant, cleaning the windshield of your car while filling `er up?. Where is your friendly streetcar conductor, telling you in time when to leave the train?
The list will get endless. What I don´t understand is, that it seems to be better for our society to have millions of unemployed, but that´s getting into politics, so I better keep my mouth shut!
Just a friendly non threatening or a controversial observation meant in good humor, but because both Germany & Canada use the metric system, the heading should perhaps have included kilometers rather than miles?[:D]
No worries Dusty. My concerns were directed more towards Mr. Kyle who seemed to get a bit defensive at my attempt to have some fun. Maybe he thought the word âusâ meant the U.S. instead of âusâ (as in you and me). Another failure of the our youth to understand the job of punctuation in writing?
As far as a peeing contest goes, it was decided not to include it in the Olympicâs as it was determined that the same country would win the gold every year. To avoid anymore trouble I wonât name the country, but anyone that has been to Oktoberfest knows the inâs and outâs of what Iâm talking about.[B][B][B][B][B]
Dusty, people that use the metric system (at least in my experience) can use the imperial system just as easily. Besides there are all those great old songs that have the word âmilesâ in them. Can you imagine Cat using the word kilometreâs in this song.[(-D]
Miles is the one that works for me, BATMAN. Imagine the song by the 60âs group, The Byrds, âEight Miles Highâ In metric that would be, â12.8748km Highâ - itâs just not the same really.
Well, your probably already getting your photo taken, at stop lights, by satellite, google⌠A bit disturbing perhaps.
The issue of automation and the elimination of labor continues (remember when looms were threatening the weavers?). I think in the future there is going to need to be a universal dividend paid to everyone because robots will be doing more and more of the work. Otherwise nobody will be able to buy the products the robots make (and deliver LOL).
I wonder, maybe a person would opt in for drone delivery? Set up a little drop zone area with a readable bar code targetâŚ
I also wonder, how much wind or weather would be ground the drones. Drone crashes due to bad weatherâŚ