LogTech News 06/2025

Dear Reader

At MotionTools and in the logistics world, a lot has happened this month. We have compiled the most interesting topics for you in this July edition of our LogTech News.

We look forward to feedback or references to articles and topics that should not be missed in our next issue. Just write us an email at news@motiontools.com

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In this issue (6 min reading time)

📢 Industry news

The parcel industry is growing!
Picnic's Mega Logistics Center Opens
Will packages soon be delivered by robots?

✅ Best practices

Decarbonization in Logistics: From Vehicles to Packaging

🤝 Community updates

How a small UX widget helps local logistics providers like NOW.delivery turn more prospects into customers.

🦾 Release notes

June 2024

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📢 Industry news

The parcel industry is growing! 🎉

The German CEP market (courier, express, and parcel services) remains on a growth trajectory: According to the latest BPEX CEP study, shipping volume increased by 2.8% to around 4.29 billion shipments in 2024. Industry revenue rose by 4.1% to €27.6 billion. E-commerce continues to be the growth driver – B2C shipments grew by 5.5%, while B2B declined slightly by -1.6%. However, the end of growth is nowhere in sight, as a volume of 5.19 billion shipments is expected by 2030! Key trends include out-of-home delivery, e-commerce, international logistics, and new requirements for the delivery personnel profile. However, BPEX Chairman Bosselmann also cautions: sustainable growth requires less bureaucracy and better framework conditions.

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Fulfillment of the Future: Picnic's Mega Logistics Center Opens

With the opening of a fully automated fulfillment center in Oberhausen, Picnic is setting a new standard in European food logistics. The 150-million-euro investment encompasses 50,000 m² of state-of-the-art warehouse technology, where 1,500 robots move products through three climate zones – from -18°C to +20°C – via 21 kilometers of conveyor systems. The system is controlled by a proprietary software platform, which 100 engineers spent over two years developing. The center will supply more than 150,000 families in the Ruhr region weekly and create up to 1,000 new jobs. For Picnic, the new logistics center represents a decisive step toward further enhancing quality, efficiency, and sustainability while consistently driving growth in Germany and Europe.

While some complain about skilled labor shortages, Amazon is creating facts. Will packages soon be delivered by robots?

Amazon is planning the next step in logistics automation: According to the latest reports, humanoid robots will likely deliver packages directly to the front door in the future. To achieve this, the company is currently developing AI-supported systems that can understand language and act independently. Initial tests are planned in an indoor training facility in San Francisco, where robots will "jump" out of Rivian delivery vans and deliver packages. Amazon aims to create flexible, versatile delivery personnel – another building block on the path to a completely automated supply chain.

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✅ Best practices

Decarbonization in Logistics: From Vehicles to Packaging

In our April newsletter, we highlighted four challenges for logistics in 2025: decarbonization, digitalization, demographic change, and de-risking. If you missed that issue, you can take another look here. After recently exploring digitalization strategies in depth, this time we're focusing on decarbonization, as climate change together with increasing shipment volumes are forcing the industry to make their supply chains consistently more sustainable.

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Electric Fleets: Cargo Bikes, E-Vans, and 40-Ton Trucks

In city logistics, cargo bikes and e-vans now dominate. Projects like Hermes – Green Delivery Berlin show where things are heading: The entire inner S-Bahn ring of Berlin is now served exclusively by electric delivery – around 680,000 households receive their packages locally CO₂-free.

On first and middle-mile routes, electric trucks are catching up. While acquisition costs are still high, a recent study with 1.3 million real-world cost scenarios predicts cost parity between electric and diesel semi-trucks by 2030 in many European markets – in some cases even potential savings.

Repack, Reuse, Repeat: Circular Packaging in Action

There's also a lot happening with packaging. While significantly less plastic is already being used, there is still plenty of potential with recyclability and reusable concepts. This is exactly where German companies like hey circle come in: Their shipping bags and boxes survive up to 60 cycles and leave the classic single-use carton behind in terms of both CO₂ footprint and packaging costs. So those with high return rates or closed B2B cycles can achieve both CO₂ and cost benefits with reusable systems.

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Paper instead of plastic: Monomaterial simplifies recycling

Paper is also gradually replacing plastic in protective packaging. A prime example is PapairWrap: The innovative bubble wrap made of paper is completely free of plastics and adhesives, can be recycled through the waste paper bin, and is equally suitable for industrial applications and e-commerce.

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Keeping cool without styrofoam: Bio-boxes for cold chain logistics

And what about cold chain logistics? Here, sustainability has long worked without styrofoam. Companies like Landpack offer several bio-based cooling box alternatives with straw or hemp fleece that reach the insulation level of classic EPS containers. They are compostable or recyclable and reduce the CO₂ footprint by up to 95%. Together with reusable cooling pads and a "Dry-Ice-Booster," shippers can obtain a completely fossil-free cold chain from a single source.

Customer Story: How LEAFR shapes sustainable city logistics

Our customers also care deeply about sustainability. This includes Nagel-Group with their corporate venture LEAFR. Since 2023, LEAFR has been delivering refrigerated food in Hamburg completely emission-free and has expanded the service to other metropolitan regions such as Cologne and Düsseldorf. This is made possible by their own fleet of fully electric e-vans that deliver shipments of up to 100 kg CO₂-neutrally to restaurants, retailers, and hotels.

But that's not all: LEAFR takes a holistic approach to the cold chain. The e-vehicles are equipped with active cooling, eliminating the need for dry ice. For packaging, the team uses customized cooling boxes integrated into the electric vehicles to guarantee a continuous, regulated cold chain all the way to the recipient. This reduces not only energy consumption in the vehicle but also packaging waste – a prime example of how vehicles and packaging can work together to enable climate-friendly city logistics.

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🤝 Community updates

How a small UX widget helps local logistics providers like NOW.delivery turn more prospects into customers.

We recently introduced a delivery price calculation widget as part of our Webbooker guest mode.

Your potential customers can enter pickup and delivery locations directly on your website without having to register first, instantly see the estimated delivery costs, and then complete the booking with just a few clicks in the MotionTools Webbooker.

The benefits are clear:

Faster bookings – Immediate access to price estimates reduces friction.
Higher conversions – Fewer steps lead to more completed bookings.
More trust – Transparent pricing builds credibility.
Simple integration – Extends the Webbooker, no additional development needed.

Contact our Support team if you would like to use the Webbooker widget on your website.

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🦾 Release notes

Feature highlight: Managed Capabilities feature

We're introducing a "Managed capabilities" feature to give dispatchers control over driver capabilities. By default, drivers can manage their own capabilities as well as users with admin and org manager roles can set capabilities on behalf of drivers. This can now be configured to exclude org managers, as well as restrict drivers from overriding dispatchers' capability choices.