The head of a haulage and logistics company says artificial intelligence has sharply cut missed deliveries and boosted productivity — all without costing jobs.
Mobile People Powered Logistics handles around 1,500 shipments each day, ranging from single pallets to full lorry loads.
Managing Director Matthew Marriott said the company’s move into AI began with employees who “enjoy tinkering with this sort of stuff.” Since then, it has helped lift revenue from £5 million to £20 million.
Marriott said his team used AI to streamline communication between internal systems and also to automate phone calls to customers. As a lorry heads out, the AI system pulls the customer’s phone number from the delivery details and automatically places a call about an hour beforehand, reminding them their order is on the way and to be ready for delivery.
Around 400 calls are now handled automatically each day, freeing up staff to focus on higher-value work.
The system has also cut rescheduled deliveries due to customers being unavailable by 22%.
“So for us it’s been fantastic, but for other sectors it might not work, and it might be that you have to wait two, three or four more years for it to develop even more for it to impact other sectors,” Marriott said.
The company said its goal is to use AI to boost productivity and support business growth.
Marriott said that while artificial intelligence may not yet be suitable for every company, that is likely to change.