Royal Mail will install another three new high-speed Parcel Sortation Machines (PSMs) in its mail centres this year, as it works to meet growing demand for next day deliveries.
A PSM is an intelligent system of conveyor belts and scanning technology that automatically sorts parcels more quickly than manual sorting.
The latest PSMs will be installed in Royal Mail’s Leeds, Plymouth and Exeter mail centres, each one increasing processing capabilities by 21,000 parcels per hour. Leeds’ second PSM will go live in August, followed by the first PSMs for Plymouth in September and Exeter in October.
Over the last eight years, Royal Mail has rolled out 36 PSMs in 28 mail centres across the UK.
Neil Chaplain, engineering and process design director, Royal Mail, said: “Royal Mail’s ongoing investment in automation is helping us to modernise and significantly improve efficiency.
“The rollout of these new PSMs will help us to meet the increasing consumer demand for next-day parcel delivery and will help contribute to our efforts to provide a consistently reliable service.”
The delivery firm has also recently looked to automate part of its parcel offering by introducing a locker collection service. For the first time, Royal Mail customers will be able to drop off parcels and returns at automated lockers, following a partnership with Parcel Pending by Quadient.
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