UPS Expands Smart Delivery Technology To Atlanta

SANDY SPRINGS, GA — Sandy Springs-based UPS said Tuesday that it would add Atlanta and nine other cities to its program allowing delivery drivers to enter multi-unit buildings to drop off packages.

The service, available through a partnership with Latch, would be available to residents who are unable to receive packages at home. UPS said the service will start in mid-2019 for owners and property managers of buildings in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Boston, Miami and Seattle.

Buildings that are equipped with Latch devices can allow UPS drivers to enter buildings — not individual units — to make deliveries. A pilot program was launched last year in New York and San Francisco.

Jerome Roberts, UPS vice president of global product innovation, said more residents will benefit from the company's expansion. Existing customers who use the Latch system have said "it's safe and easy for them," Roberts states. For UPS, this new system boosts the efficiency of its operations by ensuring drivers will have more opportunities to make delivers on their first attempts, the vice president added.

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The "smart access system" allows residents and others who use smartphones to unlock doors throughout a building, including at the main entrance, UPS said. An embedded wide-angle camera within each device captures a visual record of every interaction by a non-resident that authorized users can monitor from the Latch mobile app.

UPS, however, is using Latch systems only to enter building common areas, not individual apartments. Residents and property managers can use Latch to enter the building and to manage guest access.

Smart-lock-enabled UPS deliveries will be available to both new and existing Latch customers in qualifying buildings. A building’s qualification depends on several factors such as size and location. Prospective customers and residents can register their building at Latch.com, and Latch can direct qualifying customers to certified installers in each market.

“UPS has been innovating the package delivery industry for more than a century,” Roberts said. “Today, Internet of Things technology like smart access products play a pivotal role in the UPS global smart logistics network and our ongoing mission to improve the customer experience.”

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