In the second week of August, I was privileged to visit the Zipline drone facility in Pambegua, Kaduna State (Nigeria) for an open day tour.
I had earlier heard about the technology and was eager to learn more about the technology. But what fascinated me about the whole experience was the delivery process, especially the autonomous drones.
Among the other revelations, the drones were designed to travel to towns which would have taken several hours to reach. It was my first time experiencing the magnitude of such cutting-edge technology.
Zipline was founded in 2014 as a tech disruptor in the logistics ecosystem. The startup designs, manufactures and operates the world’s largest instant logistics and delivery system that is used by businesses, governments and consumers.
Today, Zipline operates on three continents (North America, Africa and Asia) and in seven countries – Rwanda, Ghana, the U.S., Nigeria, Japan, Kenya and Côte D’Ivoire. Since inception, Zipline has made more than 700,000 deliveries to real customers, and currently completes one every 90 seconds.
The company has flown 50 million autonomous commercial miles, delivered almost 7 million products (including more than 11 million vaccine doses).
Zipline’s Technology
The technology is apparently complex, but the idea is simple. It includes autonomous, electric drones, a teleportation service that delivers what you need, when you need it.
By transitioning to clean, electric, instant logistics, we can decarbonize delivery, decrease road congestion, and reduce fossil fuel consumption and air pollution, while providing equitable access for billions of people.
Zipline’s instant logistics system is a trusted partner for businesses, governments and consumers, and currently supports the medical, health and retail sectors, delivering blood, vaccines, COVID supplies, prescriptions, e-commerce items, products that support human and animal health, and food.
Zipline in Africa
From the hinterlands of Muhanga (Rwanda); the coastal lands of Bayelsa State, Ojoga in Cross River State, to Pambegua in Kaduna State (Nigeria), and the Goldcoast of Ghana, Zipline has been transforming healthcare delivery since it made the first delivery in Rwanda in 2016.
The company did wonders in Ghana during the peak of COVID-19 pandemic, distributing vaccines and enabling healthcare providers to bring care directly to the citizens at homes.
Nigeria
The commencement of Zipline delivery in Kaduna State:
In 2019 Zipline signed a partnership with the Kaduna State Government to create access to medical logistics. From there it expanded to Cross River and Bayelsa States. They are currently serving more than two million people presently in Nigeria in partnership with governments of the States.
Behind each delivery is a complex network of airspace deconfliction tools, inventory management, fulfillment software, warehousing, performance management, cold chain storage, and more.
Catherine Odiase (Mrs.), the General Manager of Zipline Nigeria, told Techeconomy they serve different health facilities in communities, delivering essential medicines and vaccines.
“Our coverage in Kaduna now is over 500 health facilities. In Cross River State that is in Ogoja, we are currently serving over 350 health facilities, while in Bayelsa State we are serving over 200 health facilities. We have the responsibility of ensuring product availability. We also serve our customers by taking orders and ensuring their needs are met”, she said.
To deliver an order actually involves different teams across the different facilities the community lead said;
“The first thing we have to do is to onboard the different facilities within the region we are covering; get them to know how to order from Zipline and how to receive the commodities when they are delivered.
The fulfillment operators facilitate the orders while the flight operators send out the commodities to different locations. A journey that will take seven hours by road, traditionally, will take Zipline just about 45 minutes using the drone” Odiase expatiated.
Endurance Emma, a worker at a primary healthcare centre at Pambegua in Kaduna State, has this to say about how Zipline’s operations have assisted in facilitating emergency operations and generally healthcare delivery:
“Zipline has been efficient with their deliveries within the shortest time. We had an issue here where a woman was brought in with a history of Haemorrhoissa. At that time, we were short of medications. Because of Zipline we were able to get the medication delivered and that woman’s life was saved”, Endurance said.
Testimonies from the community dwellers are that they are now confident of getting treated whenever they visit the health facility as Zipline is always ready to deliver the medications as soon as orders are placed.
A report by The Lancet, showed that Zipline’s service resulted in a 67% reduction in blood wastage across Rwanda.
The second, which was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, found that vaccine stockouts are 60% shorter at Zipline-served facilities than non-Zipline facilities.
A third study, published by researchers at Wharton, found an 88% reduction in Rwanda of in-hospital maternal deaths due to postpartum hemorrhage as a result of Zipline’s logistics and delivery system.
Job Creation
Zipline has also lived up to its promise to recruit indigenes of the various States they have facilities. By doing so the community feels Zipline’s presence.
Fast Facts about Zipline
- Zipline serves more than 4,000 health centers, and more than 45 million people.
- It delivers 75% of Rwanda’s blood supply outside the country’s capital city.
- Zipline has completed more than 700,000 commercial deliveries — more than most other companies in the sector combined.
- Zipline completed more deliveries in 2022 than in all previous years combined and is planning to complete about 1 million deliveries by the end of 2023.
- By 2025, Zipline expects to operate more flights annually than almost all major U.S. airlines.
- Zipline flights reduce the carbon emissions of deliveries by 97% compared to gas cars and are also far more efficient than electric vehicles.
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