Parcel Sorting systems for e-commerce distribution centers

 During e-commerce holiday promotions, many packages are easily overstocked. International couriers or full-service providers carry out the entire order fulfillment process, that is, door-to-door delivery - door-to-door collection, sorting, customs declaration, customs clearance, and delivery. Otherwise, if the fulfillment is done through "independent first-leg", the merchant must first sort and distinguish the packages according to the destination, and then contact the service providers in each destination country for door-to-door collection (such as notifying US service providers for US orders and notifying Southeast Asian service providers for Singapore orders). Therefore, package sorting is an indispensable link in e-commerce fulfillment.

Why e-commerce sorting system?

When the number of order packages is small, hiring sorters to manually sort the destination and other information on the package label with the naked eye is a low-cost and efficient approach. However, during e-commerce holiday promotions, many e-commerce merchants will preheat some activities to promote a surge in orders. However, when the number of order packages is large, a large number of sorters will be needed to manually operate, which also results in high sorting labor costs. At this time, merchants with sufficient funds will turn their attention to fully automated parcel sorting equipment - parcel sorting machines.

Of course, parcel sorting equipment has high requirements for funds, sites, etc. When the cost of manual sorting exceeds the cost of sorting machine investment and the order growth is optimistic, setting up a special sorting center to deploy automated sorting equipment will become a means for many large companies to reduce costs and increase efficiency. Parcel sorting machine: It is a machine that uses computer management systems, automatic identification devices and other hardware and software settings to automatically "classify" parcels according to certain rules to designated locations and realize automatic sorting.

E-commerce sorting machine composition - narrow belt sorting machine composition

At present, the E-commerce sorting equipment used more frequently in e-commerce sorting centers is narrow-band sorting machines.

1. Package Loading Station

Composed of unpowered rollers, it primarily assists in the induction process to the sorter, reducing wear and tear on the outer packaging of consumables caused by manual pushing and excessive weight.

2. Induction Station

The induction station is responsible for placing and receiving packages awaiting sorting. Meanwhile, the "automatic identification camera" on top scans and interprets the package labels and shipping label barcodes.

3. DWS System

Automatically identifies and calculates package length, width, height, weight, and volume.

4. Narrow-Belt Transport Cart

The transport cart is the "grid" on the transport track. After a package is successfully scanned, it is transported to one of the carts by the track. The package's sorting status then changes to "Induction Successful."

5. Ports

Located at the end of the sorter, they function as the sorter's exit. They are typically connected to cage carts or sacks and are used to sort packages ejected by the sorter carts. Slot types include normal slots, abnormal slots, and disabled slots. Slot types can be maintained in the sorting management system. Abnormal slots are specially used to receive packages with abnormal weight, no slots, etc. Generally, such abnormal packages will be sorted by manual scanning.

Sorting construction principles

1. Sorting Flexibility

If a sorting center separates large-cargo sorting machines from small-cargo sorting machines, for sorting flexibility, support should be provided for small packages to be sorted by the large-cargo sorting machines. Furthermore, if there are multiple sorting centers located in close proximity, to ensure timely fulfillment, the system should support parcel transfer and sorting when a sorting machine at a sorting center experiences a malfunction that is difficult to repair in the short term.

2. Safety

A safety net should be installed around the sorting machine to prevent operators from accidentally touching a moving sorting cart or manually crossing or bending over to pass through the sorting equipment, thereby avoiding significant safety risks.
Safety nets should be installed along the sorting machine where there are no openings. The net should be designed to be sufficiently wide on both sides of the cart, and the outer edge of the net should fold upward on the operator side to prevent small items from falling. If budget permits, additional parcel delivery machines can be added. Parcels that land on the pallet net can be automatically delivered to sorters via conveyor belts. Without auxiliary equipment, sorters can pick up packages and place them directly into the material basket without bending down or touching the moving sorting carts.

3. Efficiency

The automatic identification equipment on the induction station should be adjusted to the optimal position through practical experience to reduce time delays caused by repeated manual adjustments to the induction position. The interfaces for transmitting sorting tasks and sorting results should consider the impact of abnormal interface blockage on sorting operations. Compensation and backup interfaces should be fully considered during product design.

In order to more efficiently cope with the challenges of fulfilling e-commerce promotional orders, many e-commerce sorting centers need to install narrow cross belt sorting machines to promote more accurate and efficient sorting of your packages. You will no longer have to worry about warehouse overflows during Black Friday and Christmas. If you have the same problem, gosunm provides you with a one-stop sorting solution.