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This drone wants your dirty laundry

UK company believes drones are a natural progression for picking up and dropping off dirty clothes

A U.K. laundry services company that already utilizes an app for on-demand pickup and delivery of dirty laundry has now launched Laundry Drone to make that same pickup or drop-off via drone. (Photo: Shutterstock)

There are plenty of use cases for drones, and many companies are working to find them. A University of Maryland Medical Center team used a drone to deliver a human organ for transplant. Flytrex is delivering Starbucks and Dairy Queen products in North Carolina; Wingcopter is delivering COVID-related medical supplies; and even golf courses are getting in on the action. In Arizona, AgEagle and Valqari have teamed up to test the on-demand delivery of beverages to holes on a course.

But in the U.K., a laundry app service, Laundrapp, wants to start picking up consumers’ dirty clothes with a drone.

“Laundrapp has always been at the forefront of innovative technology, and the launch of ‘Laundry Drone’ is just another way we’re working with our customers and partners to find ways to innovatively serve our growing customer base,” said Allan Warburton, managing director of Laundrapp.

The Laundry Drone doesn’t exist yet, but the company said it will work with suppliers to build the framework for drone laundry delivery.


Laundrapp, which is owned by Inc. & Co., enables consumers to schedule laundry pickup and delivery. The company will send a courier to collect the laundry and after cleaning, return it to the consumer within 48 hours.

“We’re committed to investing into the future of our services and our customers, and we’re looking to open up the discussion with drone suppliers, safety experts and customers, the latter who will be able to trial the service when we launch,” Warburton added.

The company said it will set up a focus group with customers, suppliers and the country’s Civil Aviation Authority to “determine the safest way to operate the service before launch. No timetable for that launch was provided.

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Brian Straight

Brian Straight leads FreightWaves' Modern Shipper brand as Managing Editor. A journalism graduate of the University of Rhode Island, he has covered everything from a presidential election, to professional sports and Little League baseball, and for more than 10 years has covered trucking and logistics. Before joining FreightWaves, he was previously responsible for the editorial quality and production of Fleet Owner magazine and fleetowner.com. Brian lives in Connecticut with his wife and two kids and spends his time coaching his son’s baseball team, golfing with his daughter, and pursuing his never-ending quest to become a professional bowler. You can reach him at [email protected].