Mumbai, Apr 5 (PTI) Drone delivery logistics firm Skye Air Mobility has inked a long-term pact with SRL Diagnostics for faster transportation of pathology samples in Gurugram and Mumbai.
As part of this collaboration, the two companies will conduct Beyond Visual Line of Sight Operations-based drone delivery trial flights in designated green zones in the two cities, Skye Air Mobility said in a statement.
It also said around 60 test flights would be undertaken from Fortis Hospitals/collection centres to SRL labs in both the cities from April 8 onwards.
SRL Diagnostics operates over 425 laboratories across India.
Stating that the move is expected to revolutionize logistics in the diagnostics industry, it said the partnership will leverage drone delivery technology to create a faster supply chain for collecting samples and transporting to labs in Gurugram and Mumbai.
“Skye Air DaaS (drone as-a-service) platform is bound to replace the mid-mile and prove to be advantageous in reducing time taken for sample transfer, thereby also aiding in improving patient outcomes,” said Ankit Kumar, CEO, Skye Air Mobility.
SRL has been a pioneer in building an integrated logistics system that covers over 40,000 km every day and enables over 10,000 pickups from 150 plus dry ice locations and manages over 7,750 flights, according to Anand K, CEO, SRL Diagnostics.
“With this partnership, we are looking at reducing the logistics time and enabling an even faster turnaround time for reports. In addition, this will also help us cut down our carbon footprint. We are shortly beginning our 8-day trial in Mumbai and Gurugram,” he said.
He further said that post the successful trial, long range deliveries will also begin which will be particularly useful in congested locations, hilly regions and mountainous terrain.
This will help SRL Diagnostics build efficiencies for specialized and super specialized tests that are typically performed only at the company’s Global Reference Laboratories, he stated, adding, “since the time taken for sample transfer is cut down, we will have a better temperature control for samples, especially during the summer months.” PTI IAS ANU ANU
