APRIL 20, 2022 — The Urban Freight Lab today announced the addition of W/:RP to its public-academic-private research consortium.
Headquartered in Los Angeles, W/:RP focuses on digitizing the old school trucking model to create the most efficient routes for middle-mile freight. W/:RP emerged from stealth mode earlier this year in February, raising $2.4 million in a seed round with ambitious sustainability goals like working to electrify the middle-mile. As ecommerce brands continue to pop-up and grow, along with retailers who are looking to compete by offering online shopping options, LTL shipping options will be critical to companies looking to meet consumer’s expectations of same-/next-day delivery.
With the mindset that there is no such thing as an efficient, cost-effective and sustainable last-mile without the middle-mile, W/:RP uses proprietary technology to dynamically move freight by weaving together digital pooling and physical consolidation points. This offers shippers tailored solutions based on what their priorities are (time or cost).
“WARP brings a fierce appetite for innovation; bringing high-impact low-cost solutions to goods delivery in urban settings and cities,” said Anne Goodchild, founding director of the Supply Chain Transportation & Logistics Center, which houses the UFL. “Having worked together previously on the Seattle Neighborhood Delivery Hub with great success, we are looking forward to seeing what we can do next.”
W/:RP is the first UFL member focused exclusively on solutions for the middle-mile of delivery — the middle part of the supply chain where goods are moved from a factory or port to a local distribution fulfillment center or warehouse, including warehouse transfers, direct store distribution and direct carrier injections. With more distribution points than ever before, shippers are under pressure to provide faster and fresher inventory replenishments for their customers while navigating the challenges of urban delivery.
“UFL is doing some really innovative work when it comes to creating smarter, more sustainable cities and we had a great experience working with them last year on their Seattle Neighborhood Delivery Hub pilot project,” said W/:RP Co-founder and CEO Daniel Sokolovsky. “But, there has already been so much innovation when it comes to sustainability in the last mile space. As a middle-mile service provider we’re trying to do things a little differently. We have plans to collaborate with other UFL members to create a fully linked sustainable supply chain from start to finish.”
W/:RP joins some of the largest players and innovative startups in transportation and logistics—carriers and shippers Amazon, Cornucopia Logistics, PepsiCo, and UPS; infrastructure and operations technology provider REEF; real estate corporation Terreno Realty; compact container and e-bike delivery network URB-E; and vehicle and vehicle part manufacturers Coaster Cycles, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Michelin. The UFL is focused on finding solutions to urban goods delivery problems through collaboration between the public and private sectors, in the strategic research areas of the Final 50 Feet, Sustainable Freight, Curbspace Management, Zero Emissions Freight, and Modeling Freight Activity.
MORE:
About the Seattle Neighborhood Delivery Hub:
- Seattle Neighborhood Delivery Hub Project Overview
- Common MicroHub Research Project: Research Scan
- Seattle Neighborhood Delivery Hub Pilot: Evaluation of Operational Impacts of a Delivery Hub on Last-Mile Delivery
- Urban Freight Innovation: Leading-Edge Strategies for Smart Cities (Coast Guard Proceedings)
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About the Urban Freight Lab (UFL): The Urban Freight Lab is a structured partnership of academic researchers, public sector agencies, and private sector firms — shippers, retailers, tech providers, property owners, and manufacturers — working collaboratively to identify complex urban freight management problems and design solutions to make industry more efficient and cities more sustainable and livable.
About W/:RP: W/:RP connects shippers, carriers, and facilities to digitize the old school trucking model and create the most efficient routes for middle-mile freight. The first freight network of its kind, W/:RP weaves together digital pooling and physical consolidation points (W/:RP Stations TM), to provide shippers a cost structure and flexibility previously unthinkable with outdated trucking companies. W/:RP is currently moving freight in California, the New York Tri-State Area and Texas. More: www.wearewarp.com.