LOCALKOOL Digitises the UK High-Street: Supporting Local Retailers and the Environment

新冠肺炎疫情大大促进了电子商务和送货上门，为拥有先进数字能力的大型零售商和小型零售商带来了增长。然而，商业街的商家和当地的小零售商却遭受了巨大的损失，而且现在仍在遭受损失。考虑到这种行为转变将在新冠病毒疫苗发现后部分继续，中小企业零售商的前景黯淡。大规模送货上门会产生大量的碳足迹，尤其是在城市，因为最后一英里的送货车辆不仅会排放对气候有害的气体，还会对人类健康有害。根据几项研究，空气污染是促进COVID-19传播的一个因素。我们开发了一个SaaS平台，使零售商能够访问统一的超低排放（ULE）最后一英里物流服务供应。该平台自动为物流供应商匹配包裹递送工作，以优化每个地理区域、包裹类型、距离和递送工作偏好的速度和成本。利益相关者可以通过API、web和移动接口访问平台。期待快递的消费者可以通过交互式地图实时追踪司机的地理位置。

COVID-19 considerably boosted e-commerce and home deliveries of goods, bringing growth for large retailers and smaller retailers with advanced digital capabilities. High-street businesses and small local retailers however suffered and are still suffering huge losses. Given that this behavioural shift will partially carry on after a COVID-19 vaccine is found, the outlook for SME retailers is bleak. Mass-scale home deliveries come with a significant carbon footprint, particularly in cities due to last mile delivery vehicles emitting not only gases harmful to the climate, but also to human health. According to several studies, air pollution is a factor that favours the spread of COVID-19\. We develop a SaaS platform to enable retailers to access a consolidated Ultra Low Emissions (ULE) last-mile logistics services supply. The platform automatically matches logistics providers with parcel delivery jobs to optimize speed and cost per geographical region, parcel type, distance and delivery job preferences. Stakeholders can access the platform through API, web and mobile interface. Consumers expecting a delivery can track its drivers' geolocation in real-time through an interactive map.