DPD, GLS and Hermes will be trialling provider-neutral residential parcel delivery boxes indoors in Germany with two ‘ParcelLock’ self-service machines to be installed in apartment blocks in Hamburg in July this year for delivering B2C parcels to consumer homes when the recipient is absent.
In cooperation with the metal working factory RENZ, ParcelLock GmbH is working on a lockbox system that will be accessible to all parcel operators as well as local courier and delivery providers, as opposed to DHL’s exclusive parcel boxes that no other parcel operator is allowed to use.
The two pilot self-service machines that will be installed in Hamburg in July will be tested thoroughly with plans to put the RENZ parcel box machines, equipped with the ParcelLock system, on the market already in September this year.
Parcel box machines with the ParcelLock system enable delivery and pick-up of parcels when the recipient is not at home. The system especially targets residents of privately owned homes or apartment houses who are often on the move and appreciate the fact that the parcel is already waiting for them when they are back home.
Under the ParcelLock system, the delivery courier uses a unique code to open the box, inserts the parcel and then locks it again. The recipient uses a personal key to open the box and retrieve the parcels. The same system can be used for returns.
The universal locking system is not only accessible to all parcel and courier providers but also to supermarkets and pharmacies after being granted access by the user who can also give access to it to friends and neighbours. ParcelLock said that it is “setting a new standard on the German parcels market” with such an open system.
ParcelLock GmbH managing director Dirk Reiche said: “We are very pleased about the cooperation with RENZ that has taken a particularly innovative approach with its platform-neutral parcel box systems and therefore is an ideal partner for ParcelLock. Together we share the vision of a maximum user-friendly solution. As a counter-model to closed solutions, ParcelLock can be used in various ways and integrated into existing delivery processes, which sets, for the first time, a manufacturer-independent standard with a high degree of system security, available to parcel and delivery operators.”
Armin Renz, managing partner at RENZ, commented: “With our new RENZ parcel box machines, we offer a completely open and independent solution thus responding to the growing e-commerce. It enables our customers to receive parcels round the clock without being physically present. What is also interesting is that returns can be handled this way. The monitoring functions via an integrated touch screen. Via our internet portal, the system can be configured and administrated in a user-oriented way. Our innovative solutions are ideal both for new constructions and renovations as well as for retrofitting. I am glad that ParcelLock is also part of our open system.”
In October last year, DPD, GLS and Hermes officially presented their joint ParcelLock-branded neutral parcel boxes, describing them as “a new industrial standard” for consumer parcel deliveries in Germany and open to all carriers, including rival DHL.
The standalone boxes, together with a ‘parcel bag’ model that can be attached to doors, were undergoing initial tests last autumn and have been tested in a pilot phase with several hundred boxes in the Rhine-Main region from January this year to be rolled out in a full commercial launch across Germany this summer.
These initial letterbox-style metal parcel boxes and hard textile bags, with codepads powered by batteries, were manufactured by Burg-Wächter, a leading maker of letterboxes and security boxes.
ParcelLock GmbH has developed a neutral IT system to connect with the in-house systems of the three companies in order to provide information for tracking and tracing purposes, including notification of delivery to the parcel-box instead of a delivery signature.
Founded in 1925, RENZ is a leading manufacturer of mail and parcel self-service machines in Europe. The company is based in Kirchberg an der Murr, in the south of Germany. It has five subsidiaries in Germany, France, the UK, Denmark and Poland employing 700 staff across Europe.
