How Russian Post is developing artificial intelligence in its processes

2023: How Russian Post develops artificial intelligence in its processes

In December 2023, Mikhail Volkov, General Director of Russian Post, spoke about the use of artificial intelligence in the company. One of these projects is associated with the development of a smart transport platform, which helps t predict how traffic flows will develop over different time periods.

We are already developing our own transport platform. The project was supported by the Skolkovo Foundation. Artificial intelligence plays an important role in the platform. With its help, we already predict how traffic flows will develop in a week, two, month. All this the human brain cannot master. I can't even imagine what geniuses our predecessors were in Soviet times that they built this system without computers, Volkov said in an interview with RIA Novosti (excerpts from it were published on December 18, 2023).

According to him, thanks to AI solutions, it is possible to optimize logistics routes and ensure high-quality and timely delivery of departures when using any transport (trains, cars, planes or steamships).

In each direction, there are many variations in route construction and load distribution between offices and logistics centers. We are ready to entrust this task to systems using artificial intelligence, - added Mikhail Volkov.

Russian Post uses artificial intelligence in other processes. Thus, the company launched its own voice AI assistant based on Yandex SpeechKit speech synthesis and recognition technology. The voice assistant is capable of recognizing client speech at 92-95%. As stated in the "Post of Russia," the introduction of a smart voice assistant allowed to increase the productivity of the hotline on the provision of postal services, removing part of the load from the operators of the contact center.^[1]

2022

Testing robots to speed up courier delivery

Russian Post has checked the effectiveness of robotization in sorting express shipments. This is part of a pilot project to assess the performance of robots in different areas of logistics, the Post reported on July 22, 2022.

The introduction of robots into the production process reduces the burden on employees and increases the speed of sorting. Traditionally, a person himself goes to the cell to place a departure in it. In this format, it can process an average of 2-3 shipments per minute. Thanks to robotization, an employee, standing or sitting in place, simply puts a parcel on the robot, the reader above it recognizes the barcode. It contains the address and index, which determine with which courier the departure will go further. After that, the system gives the command to unload the package to the desired cell. Next, departures go to courier delivery around the city.

According to Russian Post estimates, as a result of robotization, the processing speed of orders increases to 15-18 parcels per minute (up to 8 times), while the cost of processing orders is reduced to 4 times. In addition, robots move on a special surface on ramps, which eliminates the need for technological and expensive floor processing.

"Courier delivery is especially sensitive to speed, so optimizing time at each of its stages will increase customer satisfaction with our services. By testing and analyzing the various robotization tools in our logistics processes, we can understand where technology will help us build the most efficient and predictable logistics possible. We have already conducted a successful pilot for robotization of fulfillment, after which we choose a location where we will already deploy industrial operation, "said Sergey Sergushev, Deputy General Director for Logistics of the Russian Post.

Pilot project for the use of robotic racks in the fulfillment center in Vnukovo

On June 20, 2022, Russian Post announced a pilot project to use robotic racks in its fulfillment center in Vnukovo. The use of the technology allows you to reduce the cost of processing one order by up to two times.

The high growth rate of e-commerce leads to a shortage of both logistics capacity and warehouse space. The creation of the fulfillment center of the traditional mezzanine-shelving type takes from 8 to 16 months, depending on the area. This leads to the fact that in the high season, many retailers, marketplaces and sellers lack warehouse space.

Russian Post tested an alternative technology based on the concept of "product to person." In this version, the employee remains motionless, and robots move racks or containers with goods to his workplace. Robotization improves the performance of one person by 150% without increasing the load. This reduces the number of errors when picking orders. The speed of deployment of the necessary warehouse infrastructure using robots is reduced to 3 months with a comparable area. At the same time, the reduction in capital expenditures reaches 45%.

For June 2022, Russian Post specialists are conducting a financial and economic analysis to choose one of the fulfillment centers where the first full-fledged roboscade will be deployed.

To build effective, safe and predictable logistics, it is necessary to implement robotization and automation at each of its levels. We have already implemented the introduction of unmanned technologies at several stages: rovers deliver shipments on the last mile from October 2021, we will launch medium-haul delivery by the end of 2022. The next level is the robotization of in-house logistics. This technology will be a step towards the implementation of the concept of a "smart warehouse," in which digital platforms direct the movement of people and cars, optimizing each process, "said Sergey Sergushev, Deputy General Director for Logistics of the Russian Post.