by Walther Ploos van Amstel
Crowd logistics is an opportunity for logistics service providers intending to improve customer service, reduce costs, and satisfy their customers. Companies should be asking themselves, “how else can the consumer acquire and use the types of goods or services I currently provide and how might I innovate to capitalize on these possibilities?”.
Crowd logistics is an alternative to traditional home deliveries by parcel companies and is believed to be more sustainable. The idea of crowd logistics is that parcels and passengers are co-transported along a passenger trip that was intended to be made for another purpose.
A new publication presents the results of the LEFV-LOGIC project: a two-year research into the use of light electric freight vehicles for city logistics. In this project Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences and HAN University of Applied Sciences, together with logistics service providers, shippers, vehicle suppliers, network organizations, knowledge institutions, …
The growth in urban population and economic upturn is leading to higher demand for construction, repair and renovation works in cities. Houses, public utilities, retail spaces, offices and infrastructure need to adapt to cope with the increasing number of residents and visitors, urban functions and changing standards.
A new report presents the results of the Amsterdam AMS Stimulus Project ‘Green Junkie: Plant-powered air cleaning’. In this project, the authors tested the idea that a specially developed plant named Green Junkie could increase air quality along roads intensively used for car traffic.
The increasing number of online purchases also causes an increase in deliveries, delivery options, and higher consumer expectations. Extra pressure is being put on the already complex last mile. To overcome this pressure, new initiatives are being developed, including the concept of Green and Social Delivery.
The infrastructure in cities is falling apart under the weight of heavy vehicles. Cities, therefore, are putting more weight restrictions on urban freight. Monitoring, and enforcing these restrictions are not only a technical challenge for local authorities but also for transport companies that have to plan their trips taking into account the restrictions and the actual weight …
The DenCity project has taken on the urbanization challenge to develop transport and mobility solutions for future dense urban areas in Scandinavia. Urbanization implies an increased competition for the attractive urban space as well as increased impacts on the environment and human health as more people and goods must be transported using the same urban infrastructure.
The widespread adoption of e-commerce is impacting a range of stakeholders. Retailers are expected to sell online, logistics operators and parcel companies are required to reconfigure their supply chain and public authorities try to keep local retail competitive while simultaneously attempt to manage the increase in freight transport.
A TU Delft student wrote a thesis exploring how reinterpretate and revitalise underused areas in the modernist urban fabric of Rotterdam. Since Rotterdam was bombed during the Second World War, a whole new modernist city could arise. The Reconstruction plan can still be seen as a manifesto of modern architecture and urbanism.