Project description
E-trailers to deliver bulkier items
In recent years, the growing urbanisation of cities along with the rapid growth of e-commerce have been pushing the last mile sector to change its mode of operation. Parcel delivery companies have had to find more mobile forms of delivery. However, at the moment, there is no 100% solution available on the market to meet the heavy-duty use and requirements of the parcel delivery. The EU-funded FUTrailer project aims to solve the challenge of the last-mile by developing and introducing electric trailers for bikes. These trailers can mimic the movement of the bike while also ensuring comfort and safety during transport and allowing the transportation of more and bulkier goods.
Objective
The boom of the e-commerce together with the growing urbanisation are forcing the last-mile sector to redesign its operations. Parcel delivery companies are searching for new mobility solutions that increase the efficiency and sustainability of their activity in urban areas. Bicycles and cargo bikes have been recognised as ideal for the transport of goods in urban areas. However, current solutions in the market either have a too small carrying capacity – which makes them inefficient for the last-mile sector – or are too bulky and cannot easily overcome traffic congestion as bicycles do. At Nüwiel we have seized this opportunity and are finishing the development of FUTrailer, the world’s first electric trailer for bicycles that provides to the last-mile sector the solution to increase the payload per vehicle without scarifying its urban mobility. Thanks to our patented Intelligent Riding System technology, the e-trailer accelerates and brakes automatically mimicking the movement of the bike accurately and instantly. This ensures comfort and safety during the ride, even when carrying heavy and bulky cargo on uneven roads such as cobblestones. The e-trailer can be connected to any bike, electric bike, and even cargo bike within a few seconds. When disconnected from the bike, it can be used as an electric handcart inside buildings and pedestrian-only areas. Our current market positioning in the last-mile sector with outstanding key accounts from several segments opens up a business opportunity of €210 million. FUTrailer represents the only market-viable solution that can be smoothly integrated into current delivery fleets, enabling an efficient and emission-free movement of goods in urban areas. By 2026, 5 years after market entry, we expect to have 35,600 trailers delivering over 7 million parcels every day in cities around the world. Annually, this will replace 1 billion Km of the van trips and save more than 175,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
Keywords
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
SME-2 - SME instrument phase 2Coordinator
20539 Hamburg
Germany
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.