A world premiere for last mile logistics: Smarcel, the mobile and fully automated parcel locker, moves to wherever it is needed most. This pioneering parcel robot on wheels was developed by the German startup Innovative Robot Delivery. DHL Freight Sweden is testing the practicality of Smarcel in a one-month trial in Stockholm.
Innovative Option for the Swedish Out-of-Home Delivery Network
In addition to classic road freight tasks such as LTL, PTL, and FTL, DHL Freight Sweden is responsible for nationwide B2B and B2C parcel services, as well as DHL’s entire e-commerce business in Sweden. This includes delivering parcels the last mile.
Out-of-Home Is Extremely Popular in Sweden
To meet the growing demands of the Swedish e-commerce market, DHL Freight is continuously expanding its delivery options while also exploring innovative concepts to improve the customer experience and sustainability of last mile logistics. This is especially important in Sweden, where out-of-home delivery accounts for 64% of the market. Accordingly, DHL Freight has established a robust network of pickup locations and parcel lockers.
World Premiere of the Mobile Parcel Locker
With Smarcel, DHL Freight Sweden is piloting a concept that is unique on a global scale. Smarcel, developed by the German startup Innovative Robot Delivery, is a mobile mini high-rack storage facility designed for the delivery and pickup of parcels by B2C customers.
Smarcel can be driven to its location like a trailer. Unlike conventional parcel lockers, it is not restricted to one location but can be set up wherever it is needed most. DHL Freight Sweden’s one-month pilot operation in northern Stockholm is demonstrating how practical such a mobile out-of-home solution can be.
This Is Smarcel
The mobile and fully automated Smarcel parcel locker was created by the German startup Innovative Robot Delivery. This closes the circle, as the company’s CEO, Boris Mayer, and some of his team invented the DHL Packstation 20 years ago. With Smarcel, the Packstation is now being reinvented.
Smarcel is loaded and unloaded overnight at logistics service provider depots and driven to designated locations in the morning. There, it delivers parcels to customers and receives consignments for 14 hours. In the evening, it returns to the depot, and the cycle begins again.
Speaking of cycles: Smarcel can operate as a closed-loop system for reusable parcel packaging. In this mode, it dispenses goods in the manufacturer’s packaging without a shipping carton, and the reusable outer packaging remains in the locker.
Smarcel at a Glance:
- Mobile parcel system in the form of a vehicle trailer that can process up to 200 parcels per day automatically
- Flexible shelving system inside to automatically reconfigure the shelf space depending on the size of each parcel
- A central transfer gate identifies, photographs, and weighs each shipment upon inbound or outbound delivery, transmitting the corresponding data in real time.
- AI-supported software adjusts the locations of the mobile parcel lockers daily.
- Management via an app that can easily integrate with existing logistics company customer apps
How Smarcel Works
Not only are conventional parcel lockers static in terms of location, they are also often static inside. They have predefined compartment sizes for different parcel sizes. The Smarcel, on the other hand, has a flexible shelving system that adapts to the parcels actually delivered, making optimal use of the available space. Since mobile systems naturally have limited space, it is important to make full use of it. The fully automated storage system uses shelving robots to place consignments and hand them out.
Via an app, the management system informs customers about the Smarcel location, delivery status, or the option to accept a shipment. Using their smartphone, consignors or recipients can log in directly at the Smarcel to deliver or collect their consignment.
This is not fundamentally different from a conventional parcel locker. The advantage, however, is that Smarcel uses AI-powered IT systems to identify suboptimal locations. Provided there is a place to park it, it can be moved the next day to a location closer to most customers, making picking up or delivering shipments even more convenient.
Innovative thinking and smart ideas are essential to meeting today’s logistics challenges. DHL’s collaboration with Innovative Robot Delivery is an excellent example of our commitment to fostering innovation on a large scale.
Johan Widman, Director E-Commerce at DHL Freight Sweden
Even the Best Idea Is Ineffective if not Tested in Practice
DHL and DHL Freight are always looking for new, smart logistics solutions to increase efficiency, sustainability, and customer experience. We are happy to contribute our expertise and infrastructure to bring ideas to life. After all, successful innovations require practical testing. We offer innovative companies the opportunity to test and develop their logistics concepts further in our transport network alongside us, with real transports and real customers. This is how we advance the logistics of the future together.
In collaboration with DHL Freight Sweden, Innovative Robot Delivery now has the opportunity to assess Smarcel’s performance in everyday use for the first time. The Swedish e-commerce market is already highly innovative, making it an ideal test environment. Smarcel will undergo testing in May and June of 2025 in northern Stockholm, evaluating both operational aspects and the consumer experience.
Adapting to Market Conditions and Improving Customer Experience
DHL Freight recognizes clear added value in the Smarcel concept. A mobile parcel locker system can be used in various ways. For example, it can serve as a flexible solution to compensate for market volume fluctuations or to provide temporary delivery options in certain areas. It can also improve the customer experience by allowing recipients to conveniently pick up their parcels throughout the day from mobile parcel machines in their area.
Reducing Delivery Routes Improves the Eco-Balance
Moreover, Smarcel has enormous environmental potential. Mobile parcel lockers can reduce urban traffic volume. They only travel between the depot and delivery locations early in the morning and late in the evening, unlike delivery vehicles with long routes from door to door throughout the day. Given a high level of customer acceptance, Smarcel can significantly reduce delivery routes and, consequently, the ecological footprint of the last mile.
We’re proud to launch the first field test of a mobile parcel locker, and this in partnership with DHL. Smarcel opens up entirely new possibilities for dynamic and customer-focused delivery.
Boris Mayer, CEO Innovative Robot Delivery
Improving Service Quality and Sustainability with Innovative Strategies
At DHL and DHL Freight, we leave no stone unturned when it comes to offering our customers an even better service and improving our environmental performance at the same time. This includes intelligent route and load planning, low- or zero-emission vehicle technologies, automated warehouse systems, sustainable building technology, environmentally friendly packaging, or concepts for the last mile. There are so many ways to further develop logistics.
The world’s first mobile parcel locker is another logical step we are taking with Innovative Robot Delivery. If we succeed in improving both the customer experience and our ecological footprint, we will have found another way to make our services more customer-friendly and sustainable.
