Distributing products by utilizing vehicles that were already scheduled to make the same journey using the Ecodeliver platform; distributing sanitary and biological material using AldoraTech drones; solving the final delivery of items with Smart Point City's smart lockers. These are some of the 28 initiatives that have participated in the Logistics 4.0 Incubator, led by the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB) and launched almost a year ago. Together, the startups that have participated in Logistics 4.0 have mobilized 13.6 million euros during the program, including funds raised in investment rounds and in the capture of public funds and aid.
The projects, focused on technologies and solutions for the logistics sector, have created 55 jobs this year, and have reached 324 new clients. In addition, their work has earned 45 recognitions, among which is the SIL 2023 Award for Best Logistics Initiative for the incubator itself.
The companies have participated in seven congresses and fairs through Logistics 4.0, and have received 1,000 visits from companies and entities. But what do these startups value most? The support and the network generated among them, in addition to "the contacts and mentoring", according to Jaume Boada, founder of one of the projects, Metrickal. And the mentors have dedicated more than 500 hours this year to advising these startups.
The consortium is committed to promoting Logistics 4.0, regardless of European funding, to promote innovative solutions linked to logisticsThe first incubator in Spain dedicated to logistics 4.0 has hosted these 28 projects —initially 30— after launching two calls international, to which 60 applications were submitted. Companies have received support through financing, mentoring, innovation processes and steps in internationalization. They have done so from the DFactory of the CZFB, where they seek to generate synergies and networking to develop new technologies with social and economic impact.
Precisely the CZFB has led the project, with the support of the European Feder Fund and the Cameral Institute Foundation for the Creation and Development of Companies (Incyde). The general director of the foundation, Javier Collado, has described the program's figures as a success. For his part, the special delegate of the State in the CZFB, Pere Navarro, has maintained that the data evidences the work being done "in all spheres to promote a logistics hub in Barcelona open to innovation, digitalization, digital talent, and sustainability."
With what objective? "To design innovative products and processes that transform the logistics industry towards a more digital, connected, and efficient sector," specified the general director of the CZFB, Blanca Sorigué, at a conference at DFactory. In this meeting with promoters of startups and representatives of the sector, projects that have been developed within the incubator were discussed.
Disruptive technologies
The program's initiatives use diverse emerging technologies linked to Logistics 4.0, such as 3D printing, robotics, the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, automated warehouses, Artificial Intelligence, and green logistics. And it goes further, with disruptive technologies such as artificial vision codes that allow overcoming the operational deficiencies of other technologies, such as bar codes and QR codes. This is the purpose of Bleecker Technologies, born from two university professors, as its founder Félix J. García explained.
It is one of many examples of initiatives that have been part of the program, and that will continue to participate in the incubator. Sources from the CZFB have told The New Barcelona Post that, despite the Feder funds' financing now ending, the consortium is determined to give continuity to the incubator and to the startups that want to continue growing through it. The format and details for carrying it out are being studied, but the CZFB is considering not only maintaining the initiative but also giving an extra boost to the incubator.
In this way, the CZFB is committed to strengthening Logistics 4.0 regardless of funding, in order to promote these technological and innovative solutions linked to the logistics field. Examples of these solutions also include the international commercial transaction system promoted by Usyncro using AI and blockchain, as well as a virtual assistant for truck drivers with AI powered by Gandolapp, among many other startups that make up the network generated by the incubator.
Thus, the companies propelled by Logistics 4.0 range from transport itself to delivery, including storage, tracking systems, and support for transporters. Startups that offer solutions for an essential sector, and that contribute to improving it globally when they undertake in community.
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