Microscan helps Santa Claus to deliver on time
Christmas may come just once a year, but the challenge of delivering the extra parcels puts strain on the US Postal Service for weeks. While they may not have access to a team of flying reindeer, the Postal Service in Seattle has, for the past several years, steadily improved performance at its seasonal parcel handling operation with an automated sorting system. Using a combination of fixed-position bar code scanners, portable conveyor lines and electronic scales, the Postal Service has increased productivity and cut overtime at the sorting centre.
The Postal Service leases warehouse space during the run up to Christmas to cope with the extra parcels. Its temporary annexe handles hundreds of thousands of parcels a day. In 2003, the Postal Service approached Microscan looking for a bar code scanner that could handle the variation in bar code placement and package size at the temporary facility. A portable system was developed which combines scanning and weighing instrumentation. As parcels travel through the conveyor system, the bar codes on them are scanned and weighed and the data is uploaded to the Postal Service's software system. This identifies what transportation is available, assigns the package to a flight, produces a shipping label and then the parcel travels down a conveyor to be loaded onto a truck. Speed is critical - if parcels are not shipped out in time to meet the carrier deadlines, they have to be re-routed, which means the Postal Service pays twice to ship the same package.
When the system went live, productivity improved by 8% with fewer people, no overtime and every parcel made its dispatch deadline. The automated system is only in place in Seattle at present, but it has been submitted to be considered as best practice by the national Postal Service.