Sector logistics

Logistics consists of carrying goods to the right destination at the right time, and at the lowest possible cost. There are three types of logistics:

• Supply logistics which consists of transporting the raw materials needed for production and/or processing;
• Production logistics which consists of managing production lines and components;
• Distribution logistics which consists of making finished goods available to the end consumer by means of an interface (super/hypermarkets, click & collect) or directly to their home (home delivery);

Every year in France, 100 million tonnes of temperature-sensitive goods are transported in temperature-controlled vehicles. They represent 10% of road traffic. All of these flows are involved in maintaining the cold chain to guarantee the safety and quality of temperature-sensitive foodstuffs.

Temperature-controlled overland transport mainly centres on three different segments:

• First mile: from the point of production to the point of distribution;
• Middle mile: between two distribution points;
• Last mile: from the point of distribution to the point of consumption.

The different actors in logistics, logistics providers, shippers and hauliers, practise two different distribution models. In both cases operational efficiency and energy costs are variable.

Consolidation

This involves grouping deliveries in the same vehicle to optimise the load. The handling aid used is the pallet. This flow strategy limits the number of vehicles on the road whilst guaranteeing the continuity of the multi-temperature supply of temperature-sensitive goods. The technology mix, that is to say the combination of active and passive cold chain systems, then represents an opportunity to optimise loads.

Nevertheless, consolidated logistics is a system that is difficult to implement for transporting chilled goods with short shelf lives.

Parcellisation

This consists of fragmenting deliveries. It is favoured by the last mile logistics operators for the distribution of packs of chilled goods using LCVs or bikes.

• Logistics formats

The variety of modes of consumption, the rapid changes in mobility and the structuring of the regulatory framework means that there is now a pressing need to rethink cold chain logistics, by facilitating the universal logistics compatibility of the solutions implemented. By adopting logistics standards it becomes possible to optimise vehicle loads and product packaging: an optimum fill rate and packaging compatibility avoiding dead space and the related overcosts.

In addition to the optimisation of the load, logistics standards make it possible to maintain organisational agility for any vehicle loaded anywhere in the world.

Loading and optimisation plan for Olivo containers:

Last mile logistics refers to the last link in the delivery chain, which makes the connection with the end customer. This segment is often used in e-commerce logistics which rests on the goods-to-person method of order fulfilment. It is a way of providing an additional service and creating true proximity with the customer. Today last mile logistics represents a major challenge in urban policies aimed at reducing CO₂ emissions, noise nuisance and flow congestion.

How to improve last mile logistics?

As the last link in the delivery chain, the last mile can be complicated to manage. Three factors play a decisive role in the success of delivery operations:

1. Delivery reliability: delivering on time to keep the promise made to the customers and provide good quality of service. This factor is all the more important when it is perishable goods which require a steady temperature over a given period that are being delivered.
2. Controlling delivery costs: a complex link in the supply chain, the last mile is often splintered and multimodal. Transporting small packages therefore requires serious thought on how to optimise loads and plan and organise delivery rounds.
3. Promptness of deliveries: the time between the taking of the order, often online, and the end customer receiving the order is getting shorter and shorter. As with the quick commerce sector which promises the customer a delivery within 10 minutes of confirming the order. These sorts of timings therefore demand an ultra-efficient and effective infrastructure and organisation. Identifying your needs and making sure you have the right equipment is therefore crucial to the success of a last mile project.

Urban deliveries

With the new Mobility Orientation Law applicable in France since 1 January 2022, cold chain logistics operators find themselves confronted with three operational realities connected to deliveries in urban areas:

• The need to reduce atmospheric pollution and GHG emissions (target of -37.5% by 2030);
• The aim of reducing noise nuisance;
• The determination to reduce congestion in urban centres;

With a transition plan that aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and thanks to the rolling out of cleaner, more environmentally friendly mobility solutions.

The objective pursued by everyone being: to reconcile profitability, independence of supply and the regulations by achieving compliance in the most consensual way possible.

The challenges that temperature-controlled technology must meet:

• Guarantee tri-temperature deliveries that are clean, safe and silent when carried out out-of-hours (8 pm-2 am/5-7 am) with no need for the presence of a person to receive the goods;

• Allow vehicles to enter LEZs thanks to ecological and economical traction and refrigeration technologies by adopting a solution with the Certibruit label for “silent night-time deliveries that respect local residents” and certified PIEK;

This is why the delivery of perishable goods in passively cooled insulated containers still remains the most sustainable, stable and flexible organisational option.

Supplying points of sale in urban areas, logistics warehouses or delivering to private individuals requires the implementation of different logistics models.

The traditional tri-temperature logistics scheme which no longer meets environmental requirements:

A standard lorry can carry temperature-sensitive goods, whether they are chilled, frozen or ambient as part of the same load, with:

• A drastic reduction in the carbon footprint of the fleet (up to 60 times less polluting*);
• Agility in the organisation of collection and delivery rounds;
• Better control of costs than can be achieved by renting and maintaining a fleet of temperature-controlled lorries;
• Simplified management of the vehicle fleet;
• Continuity and security of the cold chain by limiting the risks of cold chain breaks and/or thermal fluctuation due to frequent opening of doors and/or vehicle stoppages;

*According to the study Les solutions cryogéniques : alternatives pour le transport sous température dirigée en réponse aux défis environnementaux (Cryogenic solutions: alternatives for temperature-controlled transport in response to environmental challenges) published for the ICR 2023 congress.

Concentrating multi-temperature deliveries in the same vehicle is a guarantee of autonomy, independence and safety. A winning trio as we are confronted with the energy transition of the transport-cold chain logistics sector.