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Walmart will now start sending goods to people’s homes by drone in Arkansas
If you live close to Walmart Inc.’s store in Farmington, Arkansas, you may soon receive your first delivery via drone.
The retail giant announced today that it has teamed up with DroneUp LLC, a Virginia-based startup that focuses on drone technology. The partnership will mean its drone engineers will ensure the packages arrive at the right spot, although that spot must be located within a 1.15-mile radius of the store.
“When we invested in DroneUp earlier this year, we envisioned a drone delivery operation that could be quickly executed and replicated across multiple stores,” Tom Ward, senior vice president of last mile at Walmart U.S., said in a press release. “Opening our first hub within months of our initial concept showcases DroneUp’s ability to safely execute drone delivery operations with speed.”
The drones will not drop items from the sky but lower them down on cables. Although this might sound exciting, it means there’s a limit to what one of DroneUp’s vehicles can carry. For now, the weight limit is four pounds, and there’s a delivery fee of $10.
Coming soon will be two other locations: Walmart Neighborhood Market in Rogers, Arkansas, and Walmart Supercenter in Bentonville, Arkansas. Walmart says that with its 4,700 stores sitting within 10 miles of 90% of the U.S., drone delivery is the way to go.
“Drones are uniquely valuable due to their flexibility, speed and low cost,” the company said. “Drones also require fewer fossil fuel-powered vehicles for short delivery trips. DroneUp has worked closely and continuously with the FAA to ensure the safe operation of drones in the National Airspace and has more than 190 active waivers and authorizations with the FAA to support DroneUp flights across the U.S.”
Commercial delivery via drone has been on Walmart’s radar for some time now. In September, it announced it was teaming up with Zipline Inc., a drone company that specializes in delivering emergency health products. In November, the first medical and health items were delivered to people in Arkansas as a result of the partnership.
The drone delivery business looks certain to take off soon, with Amazon.com Inc. and Google LLC already making headway as well.
Photo: Walmart
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