Royal Mail has announced the installation of its latest high-speed parcel sorting machine in Manchester, which it claims is capable of processing 157,000 parcels per day.
The postal services company hopes this machine will help it to meet the surge in consumer demand for parcels and next-day delivery, especially in the run-up to the holiday period.
Royal Mail says parcel deliveries represent almost 60% (£6 in £10) of its total revenue, with the hope that the new machine will support its transformation into a parcels-led business.
Read more: Royal Mail installs high-speed parcel sorting machine at Birmingham site
The new machine consists of an ‘intelligent system’ of conveyor belts and scanning technology, which enable it to support parcels of a range of shapes and sizes, with weights of up to 3kg (6.6lbs).
The postage company claims claims to sort more than 22 million parcels on average each week through automated systems, with a total of 36 parcel sorting machines operating across the UK network.
Grant McPherson, COO at 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 Manchester will help drive growth as we transform into an even more parcels-focused business.”
Royal Mail has said it hopes to reach 70% parcel automation by 2022-23 and the industry standard of 90% parcel automation by 2023-24.
