Bpost has opened a sorting centre that, with an area of 80,000 square metres, is the largest in the Benelux. In the brand new sorting centre, up to 300,000 parcels and 2.5 million letters can be processed every day.
The centre, christened 'New Brussels X' by bpost, features a Parcel Sorting Machine, which sorts parcels independently. Parcels on the belt are scanned by the PSM and sent to the right containers. Partly as a result, bpost can double daily sorting capacity.
Parcels directly on conveyor belt
Webshops can deliver parcels to bpost until two in the morning. They drop parcels directly onto a conveyor belt. In the sorting centre, the parcels travel a kilometre before they end up in one of the four hundred containers. After a good fifteen minutes, the parcels are out again.
Response to e-commerce
"This sorting centre is our response to the express train with which e-commerce is making its entry into our daily lives and how this is having an irreversible impact on the postal world," said ceo Koen van Gerven. Over the past four years, bpost has seen the number of parcels sent increase by almost 70 per cent. "The number of parcels we process continues to grow month after month, so it was necessary to also adapt our infrastructure and processes in an innovative way to continue to guarantee high quality and flexibility towards customers."
2.5 million letters a day
Van Gerven expects bpost to also continue to focus on letter mail. "Letters will always be there." The sorting centre therefore distributes 2.5 million letters. The more than 30 machines can classify letters down to 1 centimetre thick. The mail is taken to its destination by 117 trucks.
Employment
The new sorting centre is located in Neder-Over-Heembeek, in the north of Brussels. The building employs around 1,500 people.
