Bol.com bets on packaging machines. The online giant wants to double the number of orders packed by customised machines. "It works so well because it serves a concrete business goal and we can combine that with a sustainability goal."
So says Wouter Barkman, manager of Logistics Strategy and Innovation at bol.com in an interview with Thuiswinkel.org. The online shopping giant is one of the pilot partners of the sustainability programme Consciously Delivered. In the interview, Barkman explains how bol.com is doing its bit to make e-commerce more sustainable.
Sustainable distribution
Barkman speaks of a number of fronts on which the online shop is making strides. Firstly, there is distribution, which bol.com wants to improve by reducing the number of returns, among other things. Barkman: "Sometimes a customer orders two or three items, of which one is in stock and the other two not yet. We can then send you that one product already and the other two will follow later. Now we ask the customer: we can wait a while with that first package until the rest also arrive and then we will send it to you as a whole."
Packaging machines
The second step bol.com wants to take is energy consumption in its warehouses. There, the online shop says it is increasingly switching to green energy. Finally, packaging is an important focus of bol.com "An increasing proportion of our orders are packed via packaging machines," the Logistics Strategy and Innovation Manager states. Now about a third of packaging is packed by machines. "We want to double that, and this technology is developing rapidly. Soon there will be machines that can pack an order with several items at once."
Energy consumption during packaging making
Packaging materials are also being looked at. "The boxes we use are all FSC labelled. But we also look further back in the chain. The moment we use the cardboard as a box, the impact of manufacturing the cardboard has already been made, which is why we also select our suppliers on energy consumption while making the cardboard."
