First FAA-sanctioned use of a drone for routine revenue
flights involving the transport of a product under a contractual delivery
agreement
ATLANTA, MARCH 26, 2019 – UPS (NYSE:UPS) today announced a groundbreaking new logistics service to deliver medical samples via unmanned drones through a collaboration with Matternet, a leader in autonomous drone technology. The program is taking place at WakeMed’s flagship hospital and campus in the Raleigh, N.C., metropolitan area, with oversight by the Federal Aviation Administration and North Carolina Department of Transportation. Today’s flight marks the beginning of numerous planned daily revenue flights at the WakeMed Raleigh campus.
ATLANTA, MARCH 26, 2019 – UPS (NYSE:UPS) today announced a groundbreaking new logistics service to deliver medical samples via unmanned drones through a collaboration with Matternet, a leader in autonomous drone technology. The program is taking place at WakeMed’s flagship hospital and campus in the Raleigh, N.C., metropolitan area, with oversight by the Federal Aviation Administration and North Carolina Department of Transportation. Today’s flight marks the beginning of numerous planned daily revenue flights at the WakeMed Raleigh campus.
“UPS Healthcare and Life Sciences is
excited to expand on our current lab specimen logistics portfolio to drive step
change in today’s delivery models,” said Chris Cassidy, UPS President of Global
Healthcare and Life Science Strategy.
“Using drones to bring blood and other
diagnostic specimens from medical facilities to central labs will improve
transport efficiencies like never before. And with fewer vehicles on the road,
we’ll generate less environmental impact.”
The UPS and Matternet program represents a
major milestone for unmanned aviation in the United States. Currently, the
majority of medical samples and specimens are transported across WakeMed’s
expanding health system by courier cars. The addition of drone transport
provides an option for on-demand and same-day delivery, the ability to avoid
roadway delays, increase medical delivery efficiency, lower costs and improve
the patient experience with potentially life-saving benefits.
NCDOT, which is working
to leverage drones to expand healthcare access for the residents of North
Carolina, supported Matternet in conducting first-round test flights using
Matternet’s drone technology on WakeMed’s campus in August 2018 as part of the
FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft System Integration Pilot Program (IPP). The three-year FAA program aims to test
practical applications of drones by partnering local governments with private
sector companies to learn more about how this emerging technology can be safely
and usefully integrated into day-to-day activities. The five IPP partners
involved are the FAA, NCDOT, UPS, Matternet, and WakeMed.
The program will utilize Matternet’s M2
quadcopter, which is powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and can
carry medical payloads weighing up to about 5 lbs. over distances of up to 12.5
miles.
"Together with UPS, we aim to shift
the status quo for on-demand logistics for healthcare systems in the U.S.
through drone delivery networks,” said Matternet Founder & CEO, Andreas
Raptopolous.
“Our technology allows hospital systems to
transport medical items at an unprecedented level of speed and predictability,
resulting in improved patient care and operational savings. We are excited to
work with our partners to breathe new life into healthcare logistics, and help
establish a new layer of ultra-fast, predictable transportation.”
Throughout the WakeMed program, a medical
professional will load a secure drone container with a medical sample or
specimen – such as a blood sample – at one
of WakeMed’s nearby facilities. The drone will fly along a predetermined flight
path, monitored by a specially trained Remote Pilot-in-Command (RPIC), to a
fixed landing pad at WakeMed’s main hospital and central pathology lab. This
will be an ongoing program at WakeMed, and UPS and Matternet will use the
learnings to consider how drones can be applied to improve transport services
at other hospitals and medical facilities across the U.S.
Enhancing the UPS Global
Smart Logistics Network to support hospitals and other healthcare organizations
remains a key element of the company’s transformation strategy. Healthcare and
life science logistics is a priority segment for UPS, and the company is
building new relationships and technologies to deliver better patient care with
streamlined logistics and supply chain.
This collaboration is the latest UPS program to utilize
drone flights in support of healthcare logistics. UPS partnered with GAVI and
Zipline in 2016 to deliver blood products to remote locations in Rwanda. The
Matternet team has already completed more than 3,000 flights for healthcare
systems in Switzerland.