On the 8th, we visited the CJ Logistics B2C cold center in Anseong, Gyeonggi. Even in the cool air of 6–7 degrees Celsius in the video, we stepped into a freezer that exuded an exceptionally strong chill. The pants we were wearing stiffened in an instant just after passing the entrance covered in white frost and ice. The indoor temperature shown on the digital thermometer next to the wall sensor was minus 18.8 degrees Celsius.
Anseong B2C cold center head Pyo Su-hyeon said, "The moment it deviates from the minus 18 degree standard, a warning alert arrives on a mobile phone," and noted, "How stably we maintain this temperature is the core competitiveness of cold chain logistics."
CJ Logistics is accelerating the advancement of "cold fulfillment (integrated logistics)" that concentrates artificial intelligence (AI) and automated equipment. It is boosting efficiency across logistics, from real-time temperature and humidity control using AI to box size optimization and shortening picking routes. Having cut the time from order receipt to shipment to within 30 minutes, CJ Logistics plans to achieve double-digit sales growth every year by offering customized cold fulfillment services that cover not only large customers but also small and midsize e-commerce operators.
◇ Maximizing efficiency with AI: from temperature and humidity control to optimal packing and route design
The CJ Logistics Anseong B2C cold center, which expanded and transfer in June, is a key hub that supports not only same-day delivery but also dawn delivery, as it is within 100 kilometers of major parcel hubs such as Daejeon (87 km), Gonjiam (49 km), Gunpo (72 km), and Yangji (31 km). It currently serves 112 e-commerce operators as customers, including major clients such as CJ CheilJedang and Starbucks, and ships an average of 19,000 orders per day. With Chuseok holiday deliveries in full swing on this day, volume surged 30% above normal, but thanks to the state-of-the-art system, operations were running smoothly.
The key to fresh food logistics is maintaining constant temperature and humidity. To that end, CJ Logistics developed the AI-based temperature and humidity control system "LOIS Temperature." In fact, palm-sized sensors could be seen throughout the center's warehouse. From the control room, staff can see the warehouse's status at a glance. If an anomaly occurs, the system detects it first and sends an alert. The partition walls of the freezer were also designed to be 60 centimeters thick, thicker than those of other companies' freezers (40–50 cm).
To deliver fresh food quickly and accurately, you have to start with the box size. If there is a lot of empty space inside the box, cooling efficiency drops and the contents are more likely to be damaged during transport. The large space also reduces delivery efficiency. To solve this, CJ Logistics adopted "LOIS OPAC," which uses AI to recommend the optimal box size for each order.
FT division head Yun Cheol-ju said, "We process up to 1,500 orders per minute, and the average packing void ratio per box has decreased by 36%, while the average loading rate has improved by more than 10%," adding, "As early as the second half of this year, we plan to introduce a system that allows consumers to directly check the size of the box they receive and the void ratio."
AI also designs workers' movement routes. Because customers often buy several fresh items together, a method called "mixed packing," which puts them into a single Styrofoam box, is mainly used. Pyo said, "The mixed packing rate here exceeds 80% (of total volume)." That makes it inherently complex. But workers here move along optimized routes guided by monitors on "digital picking carts." When a barcode attached to each Styrofoam box on the cart is entered, the monitor tells the worker which product to pick and from where.
Yun said, "In a typical B2C logistics center, if you work eight hours a day with a picking cart, the worker's travel distance is 16–18 km," adding, "CJ Logistics introduced algorithms to reduce it to 12–13 km, and with AI it has been cut to under 10 km."
◇ Within 30 minutes from order receipt to shipment… "Double-digit sales growth every year"
Advanced technology is also deployed in the inspection process to verify that items are packed exactly according to the actual order details. We placed a 167-gram smartphone into a Styrofoam box moving along a conveyor belt. As soon as it passed the weight checker, a red alarm lit up and it was sorted to the side line. Pyo said, "Depending on product properties, we can set a fine error range from 0.05% to 3% of the reference weight, which completely prevents mis-shipments."
Boxes that have passed inspection are packed with a calculated amount of dry ice or ice packs and head to the shipping area in an instant. A CJ Logistics official said, "In cold chain logistics, reducing the lead time of shipping operations is key to competitiveness," adding, "At the Anseong B2C cold center, automation has enabled us to process everything from order receipt to product picking, packing, and shipping within 30 minutes to prevent product loss, and we are shipping boxes at a rate of one every three seconds."
CJ Logistics plans to further expand its customer base by leveraging its cold fulfillment competitiveness. As of the end of last month, CJ Logistics had about 2,200 B2B and B2C fulfillment customers, an increase of nearly 400 just this year. Yun said, "We will achieve double-digit annual sales growth in the fulfillment sector," adding, "Based on our operational know-how accumulated across diverse industries and our nationwide infrastructure, we will provide optimal fulfillment services that enhance customers' logistics efficiency and business competitiveness."