Malaysia-Singapore drone delivery services to launch this year

Aerodyne Group, a drone-based enterprise solutions provider headquartered in Malaysia, and DroneDash Technologies, a Singapore-based air mobility company, have announced their cross-border drone delivery services between Malaysia and Singapore.

Designed for critical deliveries such as urgent documents, high-value electronics, medical supplies, and perishable foods, the service features a navigation system crafted from satellite communications with dual-city 5G roaming, real-time tracking and advanced security protocols.

The drones used for the service can carry up to 30 kg and achieve speeds of 150 km/h within a four-hour flight span. The initiative will initially focus on establishing delivery routes from Singapore to Johor Bahru and Iskandar Malaysia, with commercial operations starting in Q324.

“Organisations in the logistics, cargo delivery and freight services sector stand to gain a double-digit percentage improvement in overall productivity and cost. Drone deliveries are also beneficial for the environment with emissions and carbon footprint being reduced by up to 100% and 80% respectively,” said Paul Yam, CEO of DroneDash.

Source: Aerodyne Group and DroneDash Technologies. A DroneDash drone in action.

“Drone deliveries are transforming the speed and reach of logistics operations, and they can help reach remote areas where traditional air and sea freight are unable to access. They also add to the creation of a revitalised and vibrant logistic sector through job creation in operating and maintaining the drones.”

“With the formation of the recent Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ), we are proud to play a part in strengthening economic connectivity between the two regions,” said Mudzakkir Hatta, CEO of Aerodyne.

“We look forward to venturing beyond the state of Johor with increased shipments to other parts of Malaysia, forging a longstanding trade cooperation with the two partnering nations.”

Flora D'lite offers more ways to order flowers and gifts in Muscat, Oman

Flora D'Lite, a boutique floral retailer in Oman that opened early 2021, is now taking online orders for cakes, flowers and gifts for delivery in Muscat. Services for Sohar include cakes and flowers.

According to Flora D'lite, the company offers a wide range of flowers which are sourced and stored so that they have best-quality freshness. Same-day deliveries are possible.

The company has two physical boutiques in Qurum (next to Fun Zone) and Seeb (Links, Muscat Hills) respectively, and the company plans to expand delivery services to cover more of the country before end-2021.

Order food from KRUSH Brands companies in UAE using what3words

What3words, the location technology company that enables people around the world to identify and share any precise location using just three words, is teaming up with Freedom Pizza, a KRUSH Brands company, for its first UAE-based food delivery partnership. This allows customers to have Freedom Pizza delivered to a specific 3 m square without the need for additional directions.

Street addresses across the UAE can be inaccurate: pins can drop in the centre of the buildings, leaving riders struggling to find the correct door or access point and searching through large areas. The what3words addresses are more accurate than postal addresses, the company said. It is also the first addressing system entirely optimised for voice, and available in over 45 languages.

The what3words model is based on a grid of 3 m squares mapped onto the globe. Each one has a unique what3words address, made of three words from the dictionary. KRUSH Brands riders can then deliver anywhere across Dubai with the right words. For example, the front door to Freedom Pizza's Downtown location can be found at '///flicked.host.officers'.

KRUSH Brands has introduced the technology across their portfolio of locally-born companies, including Wildflower Poke & More, Coco Yogo Vegan Kitchen, Salad Jar along with foodpreneur partners Jet Lagged Chef and Viking Bageri.

To find the what3words address for a specific location, KRUSH Brands customers can visit what3words.com or download the free what3words app, then select where they would like to receive their delivery, after which they will see its easy-to-remember what3words address. They can then log in to any of the KRUSH Brands websites or applications to add their precise what3words address to their profile.

KRUSH Brands has a database of over 350,000 customers, with 60% of all orders coming directly on the brand platforms built by their in-house tech team. At least 95% of the orders received will be for delivery which equates to about 10,000+ deliveries per week for the KRUSH Brands delivery team to fulfil. Integrating what3words with their existing addressing system ensures speed, precision and reliability in a hyper-competitive market and allows KRUSH to maintain its 23 minutes average delivery time as demand increases.

KRUSH Brands Founder & CEO, Ian Ohan said: "We are super excited to partner with what3words to provide our customers with easy to use and more accurate and fast delivery. Whether you are at home, the beach, in the desert or one of the UAE's amazing parks, we will find you with what3words. We love its simplicity and believe it is the future of global addressing in the region and internationally. Good ideas matter and what3words is a great one.

"The benefit of what3words for food deliveries are clear. Providing three simple words in your online checkout means no more lost or cold pizza," added Chris Sheldrick, CEO and co-founder of what3words.

"We are really excited to partner with KRUSH Brands in Dubai to give customers a more accurate and seamless delivery experience anywhere, anytime".

Singpost to work with Shippit on last-mile fulfilment

• Shippit has added SingPost’s delivery services on their platform, plus exclusively-negotiated delivery rates
  
  
• Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can leverage on the partnership to deliver parcels to all addresses in Singapore

SMEs now have more delivery options for e-commerce fulfilment through a partnership between logistics technology company Shippit and Singapore Post (SingPost), Singapore’s homegrown e-commerce courier.

SMEs on the Shippit platform will now be able to offer their customers in Singapore the option of parcel collection at any time by tapping into the island-wide POPStation self-collection network that SingPost currently operates. As part of the deal, Shippit will also offer SingPost’s Speedpost Express Service to SMEs, alongside discounted, pre-negotiated rates for next day and economy delivery services. Such services used to be reserved for larger companies.

The SingPost services are integrated directly into Shippit’s existing online platform, which enables SMEs to access data-driven delivery insights that can be used to optimise shipping costs and share better customer experiences.

Lavneesh Arora, Director of Market Development at Shippit said: “Shippit aims to disrupt the way legacy logistics firms operate. We are always looking for great partnerships to expand our capabilities and give clients a competitive edge. Through the latest partnership with Singapore’s largest and most prominent logistics company, SMEs can use Shippit to get direct access to SingPost’s premium, enterprise-grade delivery services at a fraction of the cost.”

Shippit’s tracking system offers proactive delay avoidance technology and accurate delivery estimates — SMEs can track exactly where the parcel is, ensuring delivery issues are resolved before customers find out. They can also send branded push emails and SMSes to keep their customers informed. On the receiver’s end, one-link tracking and smart notifications are automated, so customers can monitor their shipment, get real-time updates and access delivery support directly from the tracking page.

Sara Kalle, Senior VP of Group Sales at SingPost, said: “Customers can look forward to a hassle-free shipping experience from the moment they confirm their order on Shippit’s award-winning platform, to collecting their shipments from us at their doors or at a nearby POPStation.”

Australia-founded Shippit officially launched its regional headquarters in Singapore in mid-July. The company's clients include Sephora, UNIQLO, CottonOn, and Harvey Norman.

Zyllem introduces for next-day delivery services in Singapore

Source: Zyllem.

Singapore logistics company Zyllem, one of the few same-day delivery players in Southeast Asia, today launched a domestic Next-Day delivery service for the Singapore market, where it has a customer base of over 30,000.

The Next-Day service is an extension to Zyllem’s Same-Day and Express delivery services portfolio. Zyllem’s Next-Day services has the benefit of a single pick up by one delivery partner, with sorting done in a secure facility.

“We received tremendous customer feedback for our Next-Day Early Access campaign which we conducted in March and April this year. Due to the positive early response and overwhelming demand, we are pleased to make our Next-Day delivery service available to the general public,” said Eric Ong, Zyllem Singapore Managing Director.

“While we have always excelled at delighting our customers seeking speed and reliability with our premium Same-Day delivery services, we recognise that there is a segment of market who want other options for less urgent shipments. Even in this competitive landscape, we are confident we can take on the Next-Day delivery market segment and apply our Same-Day delivery expertise to exceed customers’ expectations. Since the pilot, we have delivered thousands of parcels on a daily basis for established and well-known brands in the market.”

Zyllem is constantly looking for ways to grow its delivery partner network and offer a more comprehensive service. "Strong relationships between retailers and logistics providers have never been more important in ensuring positive experiences for end consumers,” said Noam Berda, Zyllem CEO & Co-Founder. “We are constantly seeking collaborations with both local and regional partners who are aligned to our vision of creating a leading logistics platform to serve the rapidly growing e-commerce growth in the region.”

Interested?

For a limited time period, Zyllem is offering introductory fixed rates that are as low as S$4 per parcel for high volume bookings. Book a delivery (an account is required)

Akamai's tips on maximising app engagement

An advisory from Akamai notes that 95% of players abandon games within a month*. According to the company, four in 10 abandon games due to long load times**, and one in five gamers expect pages to load instantly***.

Akamai offers some tips to keep gamers interested that apply quite well to retaining users for any app in general:

1. Prepare to be overwhelmed

You can never predict where in the world your new players will live and how successful your buzz building will be. Be ready to host a global audience at a global scale. Rely on a company invested in a flexible content delivery network infrastructure to deal with the crowd.

2. Give your best fans a front-row seat

Prioritise your visitors and give your rabid fans a great Web experience while managing expectations properly for everyone else – especially during a midnight launch or a beta code release.

3. Deliver landing pages quickly

Half of visitors abandon websites after just 4 seconds*** of waiting for a page to load. Use the best infrastructure possible to make the very first experience with your brand as good as the game itself.

4. Track download success rates

If you’re seeing low conversion rates, one issue might be large files. Make sure your content delivery network performs consistently and provides in-depth actionable data.

5. Optimise for the device

Develop app containers that fit under the iOS and Android over-the-air file-size capacities.

6. Accelerate every touchpoint

Nobody likes a loading screen. Speed up loading time by offloading to a cloud platform so it can do the heavy lifting.

7. Keep servers online

If your fans can’t play, they won’t stay. Take cloud security measures to protect yourself from cyberattacks that can drive high player churn and disrupt your revenue stream.

1 Chinese Gamers: In-game behavior of players from China
2 Cooper Waddell, Deconstructing Mobile & Tablet Gaming (EEDAR, 2014)
3 The Akamai Performance Matters: 9 Key Consumer Insights Research Report

posted from Bloggeroid

Deliveroo privileges for Visa cardholders' first order

Visa has announced a partnership with Deliveroo, the on-demand premium food delivery service, to offer Singapore Visa cardholders exclusive benefits on their first purchase till 31 December, 2016*.

The entire food ordering process, from selecting items to payment with Visa will make the process more hassle-free.

Tristan Torres, General Manager, Deliveroo Singapore said, “The partnership with Visa is a game-changer for us as we expand our footprint and offerings in Singapore. At Deliveroo, we are always thinking of ways to continuously deliver quality service and convenience to our customers, and that includes payment.”

Singapore remains a regional leader in terms of adoption of cashless payment options, including Visa payWave transactions, in-app purchases and adoption of Visa Checkout. “We are constantly looking out for opportunities for Visa cardholders to enjoy the benefits of cashless transactions. Deliveroo challenges the traditional convention of having to pay cash-on-delivery for food deliveries and allows consumers a variety of choices from participating restaurants that never conducted food deliveries in the past.

“Our partnership with an innovative company like Deliveroo is a natural extension of our goal to provide greater convenience and also transforming experiences for our cardholders in the eCommerce space,“ said Ooi Huey Tyng, Country Manager for Visa Singapore and Brunei.

Interested?

The deal will allow Visa cardholders to enjoy S$22 off on their first Deliveroo order until 31 December, 2016.

Deliveroo is an on-demand premium food delivery service that brings meals from restaurants to homes or offices, in an average time of 32 minutes. It has had more than 750 restaurants join the family in Singapore.

https://deliveroo.com.sg/
www.visa.com.sg

*Terms and conditions apply

posted from Bloggeroid

Guaranteed couriered deliveries with Zap Delivery in Singapore

Source: Zap Delivery.

Zap Delivery, an on-demand express courier service, has rolled out a mobile app that guarantees the fast, secure and reliable deliveries of documents and parcels in Singapore in under two hours. The app, which features advanced authentication technology and real-time tracking, aims to offer greater peace of mind to users in Singapore expecting deliveries.

“We’ve personally gone through numerous delivery misfortunes, so we decided to develop an app that is easy to use and one that will garner user confidence,” said Michael Tan, Zap Delivery Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer. “With this app, we hope to transform and disrupt the way the traditional logistics industry works.”

Drawing inspiration from the public’s familiarity with the one-time password (OTP) used in secure banking transactions, Zap Delivery features a similar patent-pending, authentication technology, which replaces the arbitrary signatures that traditional couriers usually use to confirm delivery receipts. This process ensures that items arrive not only safely, but also to the rightful recipients. Additionally, the app features real-time tracking that allows senders to know the exact location of their items, every step of the way.

With a transparent and attractive pricing structure, and a cashless payment system in place, Zap Delivery seeks to keep express delivery costs affordable for users, from as low as S$5.

Anyone who is eligible and looking for additional income can partner Zap Delivery to provide a courier service. The app matches courier partners with the nearest customers who need immediate service within their vicinity. Zap Delivery’s courier partners can act upon delivery requests immediately, without having to go through a hub-and-spoke network used by traditional courier services. With this system, they will be empowered to complete more deliveries and earn a higher supplementary or main income, as compared to being traditional couriers. They are also free to choose their preferred modes of transportation – from driving, cycling, to hopping onto the public transportation network or even a hoverboard.

Interested?

Zap Delivery currently has a network of more than 500 courier partners, all of whom have passed stringent qualification and background checks. The app is available on iOS and Android. Download the app or apply to be a courier

Ninja Van launches self collection service

A Ninja Van delivery van.

Southeast Asian logistics provider Ninja Van has launched Ninja Collect for self-service delivery.

Lai Chang Wen, CEO, Ninja Van, said: "Young Singaporeans nowadays live very busy lives. They work, hang out with friends.. There's no time to waste during the day. I understand the frustrations of having to put aside a few hours on any given day just to wait for my e-commerce purchase, which is why I felt the need to expand our range of services to include Ninja Collect. We want to give young Singaporeans the autonomy and flexibility to pick up their parcels at a time and place that is most convenient for them.”

With Ninja Collect, customers can collect their parcels from either Ninja Boxes or Ninja Points. Ninja Boxes are automated parcel lockers strategically located in accessible and urban sites including universities and business parks. Ninja Points are partner retail shops also located in urban areas with high footfall. Customers can currently collect parcels from retail, pharmaceutical, hardware and grocery outlets.

Customers of a participating e-commerce vendor can select convenient Ninja Collect venues online, then specify the Ninja Point as the shipping address when they checkout. Once the parcel has been delivered to a Ninja Collect location, the customer is notified via email or SMS and given a verification code. The code must be verified, either with the cashier at a Ninja Point or scanned at a Ninja Box, before collection.

Ninja Van says it currently runs the largest network of collection points across Singapore, and is looking to expand. The company welcomes all retail establishments, regardless of size, to become Ninja Point partners, and e-commerce businesses to integrate Ninja Collect services with their e-commerce websites.

posted from Bloggeroid

Foodpanda launches premium delivery service in Singapore CBD

Source: foodpanda website.

Celebrating its 3rd anniversary in Singapore this year, foodpanda Singapore has launched a premium delivery service with nearly 50 outlets covering the central business district. The service is targeted at busy working professionals who are looking to enjoy a variety of food without having to leave the comfort of their desks.

The new service comes a month after a recent funding round of US$110 million, and is part of the company's promise to optimise the user experience and improve customer service. Customers selecting the service receive their food within 60 minutes of placing their orders while paying up to 50% less in delivery charges.

“Foodpanda understands the dynamics of a fast-paced working environment, where we see a rising trend of people opting for convenient solutions of having takeout meals while at work without compromising choice or quality. As the leading platform in offering the widest selection of deliverable food options, we strive to ease the lives of our customers by simply delivering the food you love to wherever you are,” explains Cassandra Ong, Marketing Director of foodpanda Singapore.

“We constantly listen to the feedback of our customers as well as delivery riders. So besides welcoming additional restaurant partners to the foodpanda family to give our customers an even greater choice, we followed the call for shorter delivery time at a lower price tag. This is an initiative we have been working on since late last year and we are really excited to finally roll it out now as a gift to our treasured customers.”

Since foodpanda started in Singapore three years ago, it has signed up over 400 restaurants. Its latest additions are Burger King, Chicken Up, Hardrock Café, Manhattan’s Fish Market, Nando’s, Shihlin Taiwan Street Snacks, Shin-Sapporo Ramen and Timbre.

On a global level, foodpanda, together with its affiliated brands, focuses on emerging markets, operating in 40 countries across five continents. Foodpanda is active in over 580 cities around the world, operating in 12 of the largest 20 metropolises, and partnering with over 60,000 restaurants.

The company operates under the foodpanda brand in Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and the Philippines. The hellofood brand operates in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, and Qatar. In India, foodpanda serves companies with both the foodpanda and Tastykhana brands.

SingEx launches Last Mile Fulfilment Asia

Last Mile Fulfilment Asia (LMFAsia), an inaugural trade conference and exhibition named for its focus on the last-mile fulfilment aspects for the logistics and e-commerce industries, will take place in Singapore next year. 

This is the first event of its kind focussing on last-mile fulfilment issues and opportunities within Asia, with about 1,500 trade attendees, delegates and exhibitors from the Asian region expected at the first edition, SingEx said. LMFAsia will bring together four key sectors – e-commerce, retail, logistics and parcel delivery – on one platform to maximise the business opportunities for e-commerce in Asia.

According to eMarketer, Asia Pacific will overtake North America as the world’s largest e-commerce market this year, with B2C e-commerce sales forecast to grow from US$383.9 million in 2013 to US$855.7 million by 2016. China, Indonesia and India will be the top three drivers of e-commerce growth in this region, with Southeast Asia poised to register strong growth as well. But while consumers are buying, logistics players, brand owners and retailers are struggling with technological and infrastructural constraints in last-mile fulfilment, as well as the higher fulfilment costs within Asia.

SingEx Exhibitions, a wholly-owned entity of Singapore-based SingEx Holdings, has launched LMFAsia to address this specific gap in the market today, providing a platform for all players within the fulfilment ecosystem to address the opportunities and challenges. It will bring together fulfilment centres, logistics companies, postal agencies, parcel courier companies and technology solution providers to meet with e-commerce companies and retailers to discuss and find solutions to the last mile challenges, forge new partnerships and uncover business opportunities in Asia.

Aloysius Arlando, CEO of SingEx Holdings, says, “Current events in the marketplace are addressing broader issues in the general logistics sector, thereby limiting the sources and platforms that e-commerce companies and retailers can go to for last mile fulfilment issues. SingEx is well-attuned to the impetus and needs of the Asian markets, and we saw this gap as an excellent opportunity to create an event that will provide a dedicated platform for the fulfilment ecosystem.”

Supporting this event as a Strategic Partner is EDB Singapore. Says Lee Eng Keat, EDB’s Director of Logistics and Natural Resources, “Keeping in mind the growth of e-commerce and the complexity of Asia’s fragmented trade and regulatory landscape, we are building up Singapore’s capabilities in e-commerce ranging from consumer insights to last mile fulfilment. LMFAsia will bring together thought leaders to exchange ideas on the issues and possible solutions for last mile fulfilment in Asia. The event will also allow brand owners to get a better understanding of how Singapore can help them connect to key markets and enhance their competitive edge in the burgeoning Asian market, especially Southeast Asia.”

“All business partners we are talking to have e-commerce as a top priority on their agenda. And they are all situated in different stages of development with variety of challenges and hurdles. With our global supply chain network and e-commerce know-how, we support our clients to address and master these challenges, hence being equipped for growth in this exciting market,” says Mitat Aydindag, Head of arvato SCM/eCommerce Asia, arvato Bertelsmann, which will be exhibiting in the event.

Daniel Chen, Business Development Director of D’Trans, also looks forward to the opportunity to network with key representatives from the fulfilment ecosystem across Asia, and to leverage this event to develop robust e-commerce solutions that will enable D’Trans to fulfil its delivery promise to its customers. 

“D'Trans strives to deliver growth for all our clients through provision of a dedicated logistics services by offering reliable economical and safe transportation of our customers' documents or products to their desired destination right where they want. We look forward to engage with our clients and harness the logistics network which we will establish through LMFAsia's platform,” says Chen.

LMFAsia will be held on 19 and 20 March 2015 at MAX Atria @ Singapore EXPO. It will comprise a two-day conference and an exhibition, with business matching and networking sessions as key features of the event.