Germany Odenwald B2C Medical and Grocery Delivery by drones for multiple merchants

On-Demand B2C Delivery

Germany: Improving access to medicines and daily goods in rural regions

24 km

average distance
(round trip)

7 min

average flight time
(till delivery)

2,3 kg

average payload

Impressionen Auswahl 1 für ProjektParcelcopter

Challenge

Even in a well-developed country like Germany, local supply in rural areas has steadily deteriorated in recent years.

Many retailers have closed their stores and delivery services that deliver orders within a few minutes have so far been limited to urban areas, forcing residents to drive to the next town to do their shopping or receive medicine.

The remote island of Pentecost is one of 83 islands in the South Pacific that make up the nation of Vanuatu. The 60 km long island is made up predominantly of mountainous terrain covered in dense jungle. In many cases, the islanders don’t have access to roads, electricity or permanent healthcare facilities.

Providing access to vaccines in the most remote communities involves nurses travelling from health centers, sometimes having to hike for several hours or days, or travel by boat around the island. Even short distances can take long and costly hours in which the heat-sensitive medical supplies are exposed to the tropical heat and arduous travel conditions.

In the landlocked country of Malawi, the provision of medical care is often reliant on a poor road infrastructure that is highly compromised by seasonal fluctuations and heavy rains.

This challenge contributes to high rates of maternal and child mortality, reduces patients’ ability to adhere to treatment, and slows improvements to the health system.

In rural areas in particular, where citizens rely on local health centers for primary care, healthcare provision is hampered by frequent stockouts of essential medicines and critical medical supplies

In the landlocked country of Malawi, the provision of medical care is often reliant on a poor road infrastructure that is highly compromised by seasonal fluctuations and heavy rains.

This challenge contributes to high rates of maternal and child mortality, reduces patients’ ability to adhere to treatment, and slows improvements to the health system.

In rural areas in particular, where citizens rely on local health centers for primary care, healthcare provision is hampered by frequent stockouts of essential medicines and critical medical supplies

Solution

Under the name "LieferMichel" (a pun on "delivery" and the name of the local town), a pilot project by Wingcopter and the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences offers residents of two remote districts in Michelstadt, Hesse, the opportunity to have medical supplies, groceries and consumer goods delivered to their homes quickly and emission-free by Wingcopter delivery drone and cargo bike.

Users can order via website from five different merchants: a supermarket, a pharmacy, a DIY store, a supplier of local produce, and even Bundesliga club. The orders are flown by Wingcopter to set landing points just outside of the villages, from where they are transported to the end customers by electric cargo bike at the desired time.

The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) as part of the "Innovative Air Mobility" funding directive. In addition to Wingcopter and the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences, the city of Michelstadt, REWE, Vodafone and Riese & Müller are also involved in the project.

An initiative was undertaken to establish a regular and emergency delivery service in the district of Kasungu in rural Malawi to replenish stockouts of essential medicines and other medical commodities in two health centers within the Humanitarian Drone Testing Corridor and one outside the Corridor.

The medical commodities transported from Kasungu Airport to the three health centers included essential medicines such as antimalarials, maternal health products and antibiotics, and general medical supplies such as viral load samples and masks, servicing a total population of over 115,000.

An initiative was undertaken to establish a regular and emergency delivery service in the district of Kasungu in rural Malawi to replenish stockouts of essential medicines and other medical commodities in two health centers within the Humanitarian Drone Testing Corridor and one outside the Corridor.

The medical commodities transported from Kasungu Airport to the three health centers included essential medicines such as antimalarials, maternal health products and antibiotics, and general medical supplies such as viral load samples and masks, servicing a total population of over 115,000.

Outcome

The drone delivery service offers residents of the remote districts a convenient, fast and sustainable alternative to running errands, especially smaller ones up to 4 kg.

For Wingcopter, the research project allows to test the use of delivery drones in regular operations and to gain important insights for the future commercialization of such a delivery service.

A big role played community sensitization with regular exchanges and surveys with residents and local industry on their needs and experiences to deliver the best service and goods.

The deliveries by Wingcopter helped reduce the overall number of stockout days in the health centers during the implementation period. The project will therefore be continued and expanded in scope.

"Being the first on implementing regular drone operations in Germany for daily goods makes us proud.

Delivering medicines is part of our DNA at Wingcopter. In many projects to date, we have flown to hospitals, delivered medicine and collected laboratory samples from there. Now, for the first time, we are delivering medicines directly to the end customer. This is an important milestone and we're gaining profound knowledge."

Ansgar Kadura Chief Services Officer Wingcopter

Impressions