Digitalization, a driving force for an efficient and sustainable Urban Distribution of Goods (UDG)

Urban Distribution of Goods (UDG) is a key factor in the economic development, quality of life and sustainability of cities.

However, despite its steady and unstoppable growth, the UDG faces structural challenges that threaten its future viability: regulatory frameworks that are poorly aligned with operational realities, unequal access to technology, lack of infrastructure, and growing social pressure for cleaner mobility.

This reality was addressed at the 6th AECOC Smart Distribution Congress, where a clear conclusion was evident: digitalization is the most powerful tool to transform Urban Freight Distribution into a more efficient, sustainable and resilient activity.

FIELDEAS, as a sponsor of the meeting, was present at a forum that highlighted the need to legislate with knowledge, collaborate with all stakeholders and take advantage of the technological potential to anticipate, manage and improve urban logistics.

UDG grows, but with obstacles

At the Congress, the “Prospects and Trends Study 2025: Challenges for companies in urban distribution of goods” was presented , where the main barriers to the development of UDG were analyzed, as well as its future prospects.

Seventy-one percent of companies claim to have increased their urban transportation needs due to increased consumer demand and immediacy.

However, this growth is constrained by an increasingly complex environment:

• Changes in consumer habits: more demand, greater immediacy and proximity.
• Increasingly difficult access to cities. Restrictions and regulatory diversity complicate operations and generate uncertainty.
• Cost increases due to restrictions and fleet renewal.
• Tightening of the air quality directive in 2030, which will reduce ambient quality limits by half.
• Shortage or poor location of loading and unloading spaces.
• Unavailability of transportation.

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Boosting collaboration for an efficient Urban Freight Distribution

One of the main weaknesses identified in the study is the relationship between the private sector and the public administration.

Only 8% of companies rate their relationship with public administrations positively. However, the success of the DUM depends on strengthening this relationship in three areas:

• Public-private collaboration: necessary to develop realistic regulations, data sharing and infrastructure planning.
• Private-private collaboration: to move towards collaborative sharing models, consolidation of loads, microhubs or shared lockers.
• Collaboration between administrations: to avoid a regulatory jungle that hinders scalability and technological investment.

E-commerce and convenience points

In the current urban scenario, the home delivery model shows signs of exhaustion: traffic saturation, rising costs and high environmental impact.

During the Congress it became evident that Out of Home (OOH) models, such as collection points or lockers, are not only more efficient and sustainable, but also better valued by consumers:

• CO2 reduction by avoiding failed delivery attempts.
• Higher delivery success rate.
• Improved customer experience, provided that technology is available to manage changes, incidents and traceability.

DUM digitization underway, but uneven

In short, the sustainable growth of the DUM requires the application of digitization solutions that make it possible to obtain data that can be used to provide a realistic analysis of the situation in each city.

The aim is to be able to implement actions that boost urban distribution of goods while protecting the environment and reducing congestion in cities.

However, the study conducted by AECOC highlights the lack of digital maturity of companies and municipalities around DUM.

• 80% of companies engaged in urban distribution of goods are already committed to digitalization, with solutions such as transport management systems (TMS), and are evaluating the implementation of solutions such as route optimization or modular TMS.
• However, only 23% of companies believe that their level of digital maturity is advanced and 77% believe that they have room for improvement in this area.
• In addition, the main barriers reported by companies are the cost of implementation (43%) and staff training (33%).

Diagnose before regulating

One of the most repeated ideas at the Congress was the need to diagnose before regulating in cities.

However, the municipalities themselves recognize that reliable information and adequate decision-making tools are not always available.

Digitization, in this context, is the way to:

• To provide municipalities with accurate information that will enable them to regulate more efficiently and with a vision of the future.
• Apply flexible solutions that adapt to the reality of each city and do not impose a single universal model.
• To turn regulation into a lever for transformation, and not a brake on business development.

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Data generation and management: the future of Urban Freight Distribution

The proper management and development of Urban Freight Distribution is one of the main challenges for cities.

As cities grow, so do logistical needs and, consequently, regulations and social demands.

The way to balance all these factors is to bet on an intelligent, adapted and transversal digitalization.

Thus, the FIELDEAS Track and Trace Supply Chain Visibility platform provides urban freight distribution companies with complete visibility and traceability of the entire transport process, both inside and outside cities.

The FIELDEAS Track and Trace route management and optimization module is presented as a key tool to improve operational efficiency in UGD.

Thanks to its ability to generate intelligent routes in real time, adapted to access restrictions, time windows and traffic conditions in each city, it allows companies to reduce delivery times, minimize kilometers traveled and optimize the use of resources.

This optimization not only increases productivity and reduces logistics costs, but also contributes to reducing environmental impact, making it a strategic ally in moving towards a more sustainable and efficient DUM that is aligned with new regulatory requirements.