Drone-assisted stock count: a contactless solution from Kuehne+Nagel Russia

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected and transformed consumer requirements for logistics services. In the present situation, where minimisation of potential risk of exposure and infection is a priority task, the concept of business process automation has come to the fore. And market participants who began to introduce the latest technology before quarantine have turned to be in the most favorable position. Kuehne+Nagel – one of the world's largest logistics providers and one of the major players in the Russian market with almost 30 year experience – is among them.

The company offers a‘contactless inventory count using drones. The use of these unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) makes the warehouse stock count process much safer as it excludes any human factor, thus reduces the risk of Covid-19 spread. Moreover, drones provide an opportunity to save time (the duration of works is reduced by an average of 40%). At the same time, the speed of counting storage compartments increases fivefold, while the number of calculation errors is reduced by almost 3.5 times.

Kuehne+Nagel Russia has already managed to prove the practical effectiveness of using drones. This method was first tested at the end of 2019 on the warehouse premises of Castorama, the largest DIY retailer in Russia. As part of its partnership with Castorama, Kuehne+Nagel manages the retailer’s warehouse logistics, housing more than 106,000 Euro-pallets with goods intended for home improvement, gardening and repair work. With the help of drones, an inventory count of 5,700 racks and shelves was carried out at a warehouse in Chekhov. Eight drones made it possible to inspect 35,000 storage spaces, while the process took only 36 hours instead of usual 60 hours.

“We are convinced that the latest robotics technologies can significantly increase the efficiency of warehouse management and also help reduce costs. Timely implementation of advanced solutions becomes not only a competitive advantage of the company, but also a guarantee of its sustainability and robustness against serious market challenges,” says Perry Neumann, President Cluster Russia + CIS and General Director of Kuehne+Nagel LLC.