The logistics industry also sees a significant boost with the current technology wave riding extremely high. The emerging trends in logistics technology are paving the way for the influx of higher efficiency and streamlined operations.

In fact, in its current state of technology, the logistics industry is supposed to grow with a CAGR of 6.5% and reach a projected market valuation of USD 12,975.64 billion by 2027.

The Technological Shift in the Logistics Industry

With the boom of e-commerce, online shopping has seen a staggering growth of 150% from 2014 to 2019; the logistics systems worldwide evolved to keep up with the increasing demand.

However, there are multiple loopholes in the current system that needs a technological makeover for higher efficiency. For instance, the International Road Transport Union (IRU) has over a million members.

These members are in constant competition with each other, and the technological gap and use of siloed technology bring up a lot of inefficiencies in the current system. Further, this leads to reduced transparency in the entire logistics system.

The mitigation of these issues can only be done by increasing digitization, better analytics, big data, etc. These changes can only be brought about by the onset of technological trends set to change the logistics industry.

Expected Trends in the Logistics Industry

The latest technology trends that are all set to pave the way for a much more efficient and streamlined logistical landscape globally are as follows:

Automation

The rise in online shopping saw a further boost during the pandemic as face-to-face operations had to be brought to a minimum. Therefore, the integration of autonomous functions in various facets of the logistics industry will significantly increase in coming years.

That can include digitizing manual processes, automating delivery, leveraging automated robots to take care of several tasks in the warehouse, etc.

For instance, Amazon has plans to deploy drones to solve all woes related to product delivery. Although a long shot, introducing self-driven vehicles will also significantly simplify logistical operations. The automation adopted by businesses will depend on the size of the distribution center or warehouse.

Blockchain

Initially implemented as a means to conduct secure and transparent transactions via cryptocurrency, this decentralized and distributed ledger can also be integrated into the logistics industry.

With inventory and product tracking simplified, blockchain technology allows access to information for everyone who is a part of the ledger. Moreover, tampering with the information on the ledger is next to impossible, especially with it being protected by a cryptographic algorithm.

Hence, the chances of fraud are also reduced significantly. For instance, transactions and various other logistical operations can be considerably simplified by introducing smart contracts. Complete automation of the transaction process, procurement process, and other such facets can reduce manual error by a significant margin.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

With these two core pieces of technology progressing in leaps and bounds, they also make notable headway in the logistics industry. Now that cloud integration is widespread across the industry, enormous amounts of data are collected every second.

This data can be analyzed and leveraged to power predictive analytics models, identify loopholes and shortcomings in the current system, etc.

The current logistical landscape and its complexities come with the need for a comprehensive analysis of company data. It paves the way for exciting pieces of technology like digital twins, which AI and Analytics essentially power.

With the ability to accurately project operational performance and influence business strategies with meaningful insights, digital twins can further enable virtual replica creation of warehouses and distribution centers, supply chains, packages, etc.

It can be leveraged to identify several bottlenecks in the current system, streamlining operations by a margin.

Internet of Things (IoT)

Internet of Things simplifies logistical operations, especially in warehouse and stock inventory management. Therefore, you don’t have to worry about manually stocking your warehouse, irrespective of its size. The system does a complete volume analysis and keeps inventory stocked accordingly.

To further simplify things, it offers insightful data about cargo handling, remote asset management, traffic congestion predictions, etc. Last but not least, its integration with blockchain technology will provide end-to-end package visibility, further streamlining package tracking.

Electric vehicles and sustainability-powered technology

Climate change and various other environmentally detrimental changes have shifted towards using Green-friendly technology, i.e., electric vehicles. The logistics industry has always placed transportation at its center, and with automobiles being the heart and soul of the industry, the use of non-renewable fuels had to be cut down.

With superior AI-based technology backing and reduced environmental impact, sustainable-powered technology can significantly dent global pollution numbers and statistics. Moreover, electric vehicles help you save a lot of money down the line.

An instance of electric-tech adoption in the logistical landscape is Amazon, which recently contacted Rivian and placed an order for 100,000 electric delivery vans.

Wrapping Up

The logistics industry is undergoing a significant trend shift, and the onset of technological changes will make way for an altered operational and functional approach for a lot of old-school logistics organizations.

With technology progressing in leaps and bounds, it is vital to hop on the latest technological trends in the industry to keep up with the demands.