S-Group expands eco-friendly robot delivery offering in Finland via Starship Technologies partnership
In December last year, Suur-Seudun Osuuskauppa SSO started robot food delivery in Lohja at Sale Hiidensalmi.
Now the service is expanding, as S-market Karkkila, S-market Somero, S-market Tupuri and Sale Hermanni in the Salo region, and Sale Perttilä and S-market Tynninharju in Lohja get their own delivery robots from this week.
“We are delighted to be able to expand our range of robotic delivery services. After all, it’s an environmentally friendly and innovative new service. Many people already recognise robots from social media, for example, and they are quite sympathetic and fun to see on the streets,” says Heikki Vottonen, Division Director.
“It’s always exciting each time we launch service in a new town, introducing even more customers to our little robots and the convenience of on-demand autonomous delivery,” says Sandra Beaumont, Business Development Manager at Starship Technologies.
Customers will be able to choose this option when ordering from the S-kaupat mobile app.
The robots have a range of up to three kilometres from the location, and orders are delivered to the customer within an hour. Store staff pack the customer’s purchases and lift them onboard the robot.
The customer can follow the robot’s progress in real-time via the app. When it arrives, the customer receives a notification on their phone. The lid of the delivery robot opens with the app and when the lid opens, a familiar song or melody starts playing.
Designed by Starship Technologies, the robots use artificial intelligence and GPS positioning to plan routes.
They mostly follow sidewalks and are agile enough to cross streets and climb curbs. They travel autonomously, but are always monitored by a human and any disruptions are handled by a human. The robots are equipped with 12 cameras and ultrasonic sensors and radar.
During the winter, they can also cope well in the snow, although sometimes they may need outside help to continue their journey if the snow is very deep.
“It’s great to be able to offer our customers a new kind of service in the form of robotic transport. The robots will certainly attract attention when they move and will bring a smile to many peoples’ faces,” says Jorma Mynttinen, Store Manager at Sale Hermann.
Starship was founded by Janus Friis (Co-founder of Skype) and Ahti Heinla (Chief Architect at Skype), who is also the company’s CEO.
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