ROYAL Mail has revealed its latest high-speed parcel sorting machine in its Edinburgh centre, in an effort to meet the shift in consumer demand.
The company has installed the machine, which is capable of processing 157,000 parcels per day, as consumer demand rises for parcels and next-day delivery.
The new fully automated sorting machine at Edinburgh Mail Centre is its second one in Scotland.
And, with parcel deliveries now representing almost £6 in every £10 of Royal Mail’s revenue, its hoped these machines will support the company’s ongoing efforts to transform itself into even more of a parcels-led business.
An intelligent system of conveyor belts and scanning technology enables the machine to sort a variety of parcel shapes and sizes weighing up to 3kg for onward despatch to local delivery offices in Scotland and beyond.
Royal Mail currently sorts more than 22 million parcels on average each week by automated means, with a total of 35 parcel sorting machines operating across the UK network.
With domestic parcel volumes up more than 30% compared to pre-pandemic levels, Royal Mail says these machines strengthen its drive to increase automation and operational efficiency across its business.
Ricky McAulay, Operations Development Director, Royal Mail, said: “Customers want more parcels, delivered the next day – including Sundays.
“We are investing in the latest technology to ensure we can meet this demand as we modernise our business.
“Our new parcel sorting machine in Edinburgh will help drive growth as we transform into an even more parcels-focused business.”
Royal Mail is aiming to reach 70% parcel automation by 2022-23 and the industry standard of 90% parcel automation by 2023-24.
In June, Royal Mail opened its huge new North West Super Hub in Warrington which can process more than 800,000 parcels a day.
Its Midlands Super Hub, based in Northampton, is on track to open in Summer 2023 and when operational, will be able to process more than one million items per day.
Royal Mail’s first parcel sorting machine in Scotland was installed in its Glasgow Mail Centre in 2019.
