Unmanned technology widely applied in China's express delivery sector: report

(ECNS) — Unmanned technology has been widely adopted across China's express delivery sector, according to a report released at the 11th Last Mile Delivery Conference held in Beijing on Thursday.

The report highlighted that major logistics companies, including SF Express, the "Tongda" network, J&T Express and JD Logistics, are accelerating the deployment of unmanned delivery vehicles. As technology matures, the cost-effectiveness of such vehicles continues to improve. A survey of service outlets showed that 1,535 outlets, accounting for 20.7 percent of respondents, plan to adopt unmanned vehicles to enhance delivery efficiency and reduce operating costs.

The report also noted that drones have shown particular potential in rural areas where they used to produce specialty agricultural products such as tea leaves and matsutake mushrooms, which require rapid transportation after harvest. However, compared with ground vehicles, drone operations face higher technical requirements and demand greater resource support.

In addition, smart parcel lockers and unmanned service stations are playing a growing role in last-mile delivery. Among surveyed outlets, 1,538 were equipped with smart lockers (20.74 percent), and 570 operated unmanned delivery stations (7.69 percent).

Liao Jinrong, deputy head of the State Post Bureau, said that China's postal and delivery enterprises have made steady progress in digitalization and smart logistics. He added that pilot programs for drone delivery are expanding, unmanned vehicle delivery is becoming more large-scale, and smart terminal facilities are helping improve last-mile service efficiency.

（By Evelyn）