How to Expand Cold Early Morning Delivery Beyond the Metro Area

In the first half of the 30th, Market Curly announced that it will expand the early morning delivery area, which was limited to the existing metropolitan area (Seoul, Gyeonggi and Incheon), outside the metropolitan area. Seul-ah Kim, CEO of Curley, said: “In the first half of this year, the service area will be much larger compared to the existing morning delivery area.” He said this.

Curly uses the Gimpo Distribution Center, which opened on February 17, as a base for the expansion of the early morning delivery area. According to Curley, the Gimpo distribution center is expected to handle orders of up to 220,000 boxes per day with a total size of 25,539 pyeong. Gimpo Logistics Center when I saw that Jangji Cluster (Jangji-15494 pyeong, Hwado-7280 pyeong, Jukjeon-1443 pyeong), which used to be in charge of logistics in the southeast region, currently handles 90,000 orders per day (220,000 according to the number of boxes) Curley believes he will play a similar role.

20% increase in labor efficiency with automated installations

If there is a difference in the Gimpo distribution center compared to the existing Curly distribution center located in Jangji-dong, it is an investment in automation equipment. According to Kim, approximately 30 billion won in investment in facilities went to the Gimpo Logistics Center.

Representatively, Curley introduced LG CNS ‘QPS (Quick Picking System) Goods to People (GTP) support system at the Gimpo distribution center. Compared to the DAS (Digital Assorting System) introduced in Jangji-dong, the biggest difference is that the number of traffic lines that workers at the logistics site continually travel short distances to pick up goods is reduced. A classifier has also been incorporated into QPS, which automatically classifies by product destination. According to Curley, with the introduction of automated facilities, it is possible to process the same number of orders even with 20% less labor than before.

QPS installation introduced in Curly Gimpo Distribution Center

CEO Kim said: “The Gimpo Logistics Center is a place that handles fresh food with the greatest difficulty among e-commerce logistics.” Curly believes that full automation is not the answer. Several variables such as the diversification of the driving categories and the buying patterns of the customers “We think of the appropriate automation that can respond flexibly to the situation.”

As an example of a fully automated installation, CEO Kim cited as examples the Norwegian network-based logistics robot automation solutions company ‘AutoStore’ and Amazon’s AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle) solution ‘KIVA’, which they are not suitable for the Curly logistic method. With a story that I didn’t do

CEO Kim said: “One of the drawbacks of Auto Store is that it takes a long time to receive and release to load all the products on the network or pick up the loaded products with robots. “It’s fine for a grocery company that mainly sells it (using automated warehousing), but we have products in stock every day, and most of them rotate daily.”

“Kiba seems very efficient, but it can be difficult to apply in countries where the land area is small like Korea, and the distribution center has to be elevated on a high floor.” It has designed a QPS system that can be operated in three temperatures, refrigeration and room temperature. Curly always explosively increases customer orders between 3 and 4 hours just before the order deadline, but QPS is flexible enough to respond to this, and the cost to build the system was good. ” Logistics with a very high profitability optimized for fresh food QPS was introduced as a system.

How to expand the morning delivery area?

Curly is expanding the early morning delivery area based out of the Gimpo Logistics Center. If there is a task assigned, it is the physical distance to the client. Physical travel time can be lengthened by unloading a vehicle from the Gimpo Distribution Center and delivering it to customers outside of Gyeonggi-do. Consequently, it is noted that there is a need for an operational council to devise some way for Curley to handle local volume while maintaining quality of service.

A logistics industry official said: “In order for Curly to deliver to customers outside the Gyeonggi area based on the existing distribution center, it will eventually have to make a decision to shorten the order lead time compared to the previous one.” I think it is necessary to expand it. “

Another representative from the logistics industry said: “I am not sure if there will be a density of advance delivery orders that create sufficient logistics efficiency in the provinces.” “From Curly’s point of view, we will have to overcome the challenge of competing with Coupang, which has already expanded the national early delivery network.”

On one side of the industry, Curley has also been heard looking to expand early-morning delivery in the country by consulting with CJ Logistics, a third-party logistics company that offers early-morning delivery. Before the opening of the Gimpo Logistics Center, Curley used a pre-processing and order picking method from the western part of Seoul in the Jangji-dong group in charge of the southeast area of ​​Seoul, transferring the arterial vehicle to the western area, and deliver it to the customer. Curley is using a similar method to combine the CJ Logistics network to discuss the expansion of the early morning delivery area, which is the vein of history circulating in the industry.

Curley was saved from the specific methodology and expansion area for early morning delivery. It also delayed the clear answer to the question of whether it is preparing to expand early morning delivery in cooperation with a third-party logistics company. A Curley official said: “It’s still being debated and it’s hard to tell because we haven’t reached an open deal,” Curley said, when asked if Curley would keep direct delivery for expansion of early morning delivery or if you would choose to partner with a logistics company. partner. I will tell you with the region that has been created ”.

Meanwhile, the courage Curley emphasized in not giving up is “completely cold.” Unlike Coupang, another rival that aggressively expands early morning delivery, delivery via room temperature courier cars or private cars (Coupang Flex), Curley handled all areas of early morning delivery with conventional refrigerated vehicles. Curly’s emphasis is on maintaining freshness from source to distribution center to the consumer, and this is Curly’s emphasis that you won’t give up even if you extend delivery early in the morning in cooperation with a logistics company from third parties.

CEO Kim said: “We will never give up, whether we do it ourselves or with a partner (to expand the delivery area in the morning). To take a simple example, if full cold is not available, it is a major problem that cannot be sent to consumers using abalone. “In the past, if Curley had given up total cold, faster growth would have been possible. Because I thought ”, he stressed. A Curley official added: “Curly is a company that cannot tolerate the transportation of fresh food by car.”

Written. Byline Network

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