Technical and legal critical success factors: Feasibility of drones & AGV in the last-mile-delivery

Abstract

This paper aims to provide a current status of the legal situation necessary due to the regular changes of the law of the EU and Germany, by identify technical and legal critical success factors of the feasibility of drones and AGVs in last-mile-delivery. Furthermore, the paper provides importance rankings for legal and technical critical success factors from the point of view of logistics and supply chain experts. A conceptual model was developed capturing main legal and technical critical success factors from literature finding and then providing basis to a survey-based study that have been captured online. Results from the survey were evaluated and compared against each other using the Analytical Hierarchy Process. The results are based on business-to-business relationships between logistics service and mobility providers, as well as technical developers. The results of this research can help managers of large providers, transport companies in general and governments as well as political decision-makers in the innovation field to understand the legal situation of the EU and Germany as well as the technical problems that have to be overcome to profit from future technology in the last-mile-delivery.