W If it has to be, the yellow parcel transporters can also be sporty. Round by round Jürgen Gerdes beats the street scooter with squealing tires through the roundabout on a test site near Aachen, where the German postal service tested their prototypes and new developments. His driving style does not necessarily match the ecological standards, but the man just has too much fun with it, as he could be slowed down by his slightly distressed press spokesman. The summer 2016 episode is typical of Gerdes. If he has something in mind, it is pulled through. And if something supposedly does not work, it only spurs him on. Often, the car enthusiastic Westphalian dickskull has succeeded.
When he gave the test driver in Aachen, the Swiss Post had just inaugurated the thousandth electric van from their car manufacturer, meanwhile nearly 6,000 street scooters are on the road alone for parcel delivery. And because the car industry is not yet able to build a similar practical vehicle at acceptable prices, knocking more and more customers who want to order the van for their own purposes.
32,000 euros per vehicle
Responsible for post letters, e-commerce and packages (PeP) until a few days ago, the technology-savvy Gerdes can now focus on his favorite project. Swiss Post has set up a new Executive Board division named “Corporate Incubations”, an incubator for innovation in mobility solutions, digital platforms and automation. The announced on Wednesday evening staff admittedly allows different interpretations.
Evil-minded contemporaries could understand it as degradation or disempowerment. The boss of the still most important and most profitable branch of the group is transferred to hitherto not precisely defined hodgepodge of tasks. Everywhere in the post office, work is underway on new technical developments and new business fields: parcel drones and robots, data glasses for warehouse employees, self-driving vehicles or digital platforms for the freight business. The list is long. In Troisdorf near Bonn, Swiss Post operates an innovation center where new things are developed and tried out.
The focus of Gerdes’ department will be the street scooter. According to his new job description, the 53-year-old manager is supposed to drive forward his “technological development and worldwide marketing out of the group and in cooperation with partners”. Anything else that lands on Gerdes in terms of technological innovations and already existing new business areas will only be decided in the coming weeks. Not least, this raises the question of what role Gerdes will play in the executive committee over the self-confident bosses of the individual divisions.