The future is here: a delivery robot courier started delivering goods from the store to private customers in Viljandi

On Thursday, the delivery robot delivered the first package to Aage Õunap, a Viljandi resident who this year was awarded the title of the mother of the year and who is the president of the Estonian Association of Large Families. This is the first time that the delivery robots created by Clevon (formerly Cleveron Mobility) are used in the retail trade and for the delivery of packages to private individuals. What makes Clevon's delivery courier CLEVON 1 unique is the fact that it is a vehicle resembling a smaller car which takes the goods to the customer while driving on a roadway. This is why Clevon's robots are able to deliver goods quickly, and the robot can pick up medium-sized domestic appliances and electronics. The project was realized in cooperation between Euronics, the largest electronics retailer in Estonia, international courier company DPD, and Clevon, a manufacturer of autonomous robots.

The delivery robot will work for Euronics customers in Viljandi until 23 September, and during that time every customer will be able to order delivery of the goods purchased from the Euronics store within the city limits of Viljandi with a self-driving autonomous robot, which will take the goods to the customer’s doorstep. The service can be used for smaller and medium-sized home electronics, the outer dimensions of the package of which are up to 140x65x85cm and the weight of which does not exceed 100kg – for example, vacuum cleaners, microwave ovens and the like. However, to deliver large household appliances such as washing machines or refrigerators, the customer will need to order a standard transport service. The time required for one delivery is estimated to take about half an hour – 15 minutes to pick up the package and 15 minutes to deliver it to the customer.

Automation of the journey of the goods is one of the long-term goals of Euronics, Estonia's largest seller of home appliances and electronics. “The robot warehouse that opened in the spring, in the light of ever-increasing sales volumes has made it possible to save a significant amount of electricity and time, while simultaneously speeding up the order picking and shipping process many times over,” said Kaidi Kelt, retail sales manager of Euronics. “While today the first mile in our central warehouse is already covered by robots, with the Viljandi pilot project we are also automating the so-called last mile, i.e. the transport of goods to the end customer, in order to further speed up delivery of goods to customers.”

DPD Estonia, which already today delivers all parcels in a carbon-neutral manner, sees delivery robots as an opportunity to further reduce the environmental footprint and to encourage consumers to choose package transport options that are less burdensome to the environment. “The decision about the last mile of package transport, or how the package reaches the customer, is usually up to the customer. The test period allows consumers to get to know the new innovative solutions more closely, while we can collect feedback necessary for the development of the service,” added Remo Kirss, CEO of DPD Estonia.

Clevon delivery robots that will be driving on the streets of Viljandi are street legal and 100 percent electric, traveling up to 100 kilometres on a single charge. Electric autonomous vehicles of the last mile make it possible to reduce the noise and pollution level of the urban environment in a modern and sustainable way, without forcing the customers to abandon the already common comforts of ordering packages and food to their home or office. “Estonia is an ideal country for the development and testing of unique new technology solutions, and so far, our delivery robots have integrated into everyday traffic very well,” added Arno Kütt, chairman of the board of Clevon. “Today we are starting a test period on the streets of Viljandi, but the ultimate goal is to make our technology available to the entire society and for it to be used as a preferred delivery solution.”

All Euronics customers within the city of Viljandi can order a delivery robot on weekdays from 12:30 to 15:30. The last shipment will reach the customer no later than at 16:30. The autonomous robot sends an SMS notification to the customer when the robot starts moving, and when it arrives at the customer’s address. Then it waits for 10 minutes after reaching the customer, following which the customer receives a call. If nobody can be reached, the robot returns to the store, and the package will have to be picked up from there.