Siemens Healthineers Middle East, Southern & Eastern Africa and Wingcopter GmbH have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to develop and roll out an integrated drone delivery solution to transport various laboratory diagnostics materials as well as other medical supplies in Africa. The combination of Siemens Healthineers’ Laboratory Diagnostics testing capabilities and Wingcopter’s drone delivery services will provide improved diagnostics and faster treatment. The solution will adopt the latest in digital technology provided by Siemens Healthineers and Wingcopter from highly automated drone delivery to Laboratory Information Systems which will accurately track and report results directly to the patients.

Ole Maloy, Managing Director of Siemens Healthineers Middle East, Southern & Eastern Africa, said, “At Siemens Healthineers, we are committed to providing access to care for everyone. Our partnership with Wingcopter will look to bridge the existing gaps in healthcare infrastructure, providing equitable and affordable access to diagnostic testing and medical supplies.”

The utilization of Wingcopter’s delivery drones interconnected with Siemens Healthineers’ laboratory diagnostics facilities will allow for quick and automated 2-way delivery of samples, medicine and other medical products. The battery-powered drones will be operated by Wingcopter, covering a range of 75 kilometers while maintaining the cold chain at all times. These sustainable and efficient drone delivery networks will allow for the centralization of sample testing and medical consumables distribution, resulting in improved access to diagnosis, faster turnaround time, increased efficiency and reduction in costs.

Tom Plümmer, CEO and Co-founder of Wingcopter GmbH, comments, “We are convinced that we have found the perfect partner for our bold ambitions to improve and save the lives of millions of people on the African continent and beyond. Partnering with Siemens Healthineers will bring us a big step closer to the goal we are working tirelessly towards: to make a real social impact worldwide for those who need it most through fast, reliable and sustainable drone delivery networks in the sky.”

Roughly half of the world’s population still lack access to essential health services such as timely diagnostic services, according to a report from the World Bank and WHO. While accessibility for diagnostic testing will increase, the drone delivery solution will also have a positive impact on the UN Sustainable Development Goals, from access to health, to potential reductions in carbon footprint and the risk of road accidents, to capacity building on drone operations. Wingcopter intends to train and upskill local young people, creating jobs and perspectives in the fast-growing drone industry. In doing so, Wingcopter is following the company’s approach in Malawi, where operations are run by an all-local, majority-female crew.

The exact time and place of the first deployment of drone-based lab sample deliveries will be announced in due time.

IAG Cargo, the cargo division of International Airlines Group celebrates the official opening of its new cargo handling facility, New Premia at key international hub, London Heathrow.

New Premia will serve as IAG Cargo’s new home for handling premium loose shipments, enabling double the amount of cargo to be managed daily. To accommodate this increase in cargo handling capacity, significant focus has been given to designing bespoke IT systems and systems integration to regulate freight movements and allocations inside the facility.

The facility has been designed to handle more cargo for customers as efficiently as possible, with 11 new landside doors, meaning even faster engagement for drivers to collect or drop off cargo. The temperature-controlled building includes a state-of-the-art Constant Climate Quality Centre (CCQC) for pharmaceuticals, with 29 dedicated cool cells and temperature facilities available from +2°C to +8°C (COL), +15°C to +25°C (CRT) and -20°C (FRO) ensuring sensitive shipments are held in a temperature-controlled environment at all times. Additionally, the +15°C to +25°C (CRT) chamber includes two dedicated break and build workstations. The new facility is certified under IAG Cargo’s Good Distribution Practice (GDP) WDA licence issued by the UK Medicines & Healthcare Regulatory Agency.

Operationally, four large ‘transfer vehicles’ have been introduced which service the 20 new workstations. These vehicles pass through rapid-rise doors allowing cargo to be moved autonomously through the facility and into storage in advance of collection and delivery to the aircraft for exports and similarly the process works in reverse for imports. This process uses ground-breaking technology as the system is fully integrated with IAG Cargo’s existing Warehouse Management System – which is the first time globally that this integration has been delivered.

David Shepherd, Chief Executive Officer at IAG Cargo said: “The opening of New Premia is a pivotal milestone for IAG Cargo – the benefits it will bring both to our customers and our operational teams is huge. We strive to provide the best service for our customers and the investment into our IT systems will improve our operational performance, optimising the movement of cargo to support global trade.

“I’m proud of the entire team that have made it possible to officially launch today – it represents a truly exciting time for us as a business. I look forward to seeing New Premia now run at its full potential.”

Investment into learning and development remains key at IAG Cargo and to prepare for New Premia opening and the transition to the new model, IAG Cargo staff have received targeted training over the last 18 months and this training continues as normal operations takes place at the facility. New roles have also been created such as six new Planning Managers, who work closely with the Operations Duty Manager and are fundamental in delivering the day-to-day operations.

Geopost and a group of strategic e-merchants have partnered for several months to test the transport company’s new Carbon Calculator, a digital tool that supports shippers’ carbon management and reduction strategies.

After an initial phase of collaborative in-house development, Geopost and selected key customers have successfully tested the new Geopost Carbon Calculator, to precisely measure the carbon emissions of their deliveries in real time.

Geopost’s Carbon Calculator is accredited by Smart Freight Centre, and pioneers carbon reporting by providing greater visibility to shippers so they can better understand, report and reduce their carbon emissions.

The tool will be available to all Geopost’s customers in 2023, across the company’s 20 largest European business units.

The Carbon Calculator: an accredited digital tool for strategic decision-making

Built for and with Geopost’s customers, this powerful technology supports shippers’ carbon reduction strategies by enabling customers to analyze, in real time, report and ultimately reduce emissions over the long term.

Geopost’s Carbon Calculator provides a unique service to shippers looking to accurately track their carbon emissions, by using scan events to track each parcel as it moves through the Geopost network. This allows Geopost to provide its customers with emissions data specific to their shipments and real-time visibility on their scope 3 emissions.

Geopost’s Carbon Calculator is in methodological conformance with robust, international carbon accounting standards, notably the Global Logistics Emissions Council Framework for Logistics Emissions Methodologies (GLEC Framework). The tool is officially accredited by Smart Freight Centre and is authorized to provide carrier greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data for freight and logistics.

The Carbon Calculator is already available in 10 business units (Chronopost, DPD France, DPD UK, DPD Belgium, DPD Poland, DPD Estonia, DPD Latvia, DPD Croatia, DPD Slovenia and DPD Switzerland) and Geopost will gradually roll it out to its shippers in the course of 2023, covering by the end of 2023 the company’s 20 largest business units in Europe[3]

Commenting on this key announcement for the company, Jean-Claude Sonet, Executive Vice President, in charge of Marketing, Communications and Sustainability at Geopost, says:

“At Geopost, we have proven since 2012 our expertise in innovating for sustainable outcomes by constantly improving how we quantify and report on carbon emissions to the benefit of our customers. I firmly believe that our Carbon Calculator is a perfect example of this. It is a pioneering tool, built in line with international carbon accounting standards, designed to help businesses meet the need for accurate, regular CO2 emissions reporting – all while helping them make more sustainable decision making in the long-term.”

Growing expectations from customers and consumers on sustainability

For both brands and final consumers, sustainability and transparency have become major expectations throughout the value chain. As Geopost’s “European e-shoppers” study shows, consumers are thinking more than ever about the impact of their purchases on their local communities and their social and environmental responsibility. 64% of regular e-shoppers are willing to go to a different website to find a more sustainable delivery option. Yet, the same study also reveals that e-shoppers largely feel that sustainability is the responsibility of brands and companies.

In this context, shippers need to measure carbon emissions across their transport networks so they can reduce emissions where it matters most. They require accurate scope 3 emissions data from their transport service providers to accurately consolidate, compare and reduce carbon emissions. In addition, they also need to provide reliable and transparent data to their consumers. Geopost, in line with its ambition to become the international reference in sustainable delivery, has developed, with the support of its Sustainability, Operations and IT teams, an industry-leading carbon quantification and reporting tool, the Carbon Calculator.

Sustainability at the core of Geopost strategy

As the largest parcel delivery network in Europe, the company has experienced strong and rapid growth in recent years. Since 2012, Geopost has been taking meaningful action to improve the environmental performance of its network:

The company has been carbon neutral since 2012 and compensates all its residual transport and buildings emissions.

The company is well on track to deliver to 350 cities in Europe (110 million Europeans) with 100% low-emission delivery means by 2025 – through 15,000 low-emission delivery vehicles, 6,700 charging points and 250 urban depots.

This will result in an 83% reduction of carbon emissions and a 95% reduction of air pollutants in targeted cities.

In addition, given the impact of air quality on people’s health, Geopost is partnering with Pollutrack to monitor air quality in 28 European cities.

In February 2023, the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) formally approved Geopost’s 2040 net zero targets. The company will contribute to limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C by accelerating its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction plan: drastically reduce its scope 1, 2, 3 GHG emissions by 43% by 2030 and by 90% by 2040 compared to 2020. The company will reach net zero in 2040 by neutralizing all residual emissions (around 10%) through robust carbon offset projects.

In September 2022, the company also announced it had joined the Climate Group’s EV100+ initiative as a founding member, committing to transition its fleet of vehicles over 7,5 tonnes to zero tailpipe emissions by 2040.