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The requirement to Automate Sorting in warehouse operations has increased dramatically because of the transition of consumers to online eCommerce shopping means and expanded offering of products have to be managed at an item level throughout the warehouse. Traditionally automated sorting was the domain of the shipping dock where products were sorted to various retail or shopping destinations in master packs containing multiple quantities of the same product.
Today warehouse automated sorting systems are required throughout the facility from receiving, to put away and replenishment to the innovative order fulfillment goods to operator systems that sort products using robotic sortation. Lastly, and certainly not least is the shipping area…Which has expanded exponentially in volume because of eCommerce.
Of existing technology, creating some robust semi-automated technology like Put Walls, that integrate with many automated conveyor systems and mechanical sorters while performing.
The current Semi-Automated Putwalls have replaced operators with robots for sorting and take away as the technology and capabilities of software and robots advance.
Smalls Sorters: Poly Bags, Envelopes, Jiffy Packs, Parcels & Boxes.
On average, there are 3 separate shipping sorts that occur with a package once an order has been packed in the eCommerce goods to consumer network. Previously, this was a single trip for a distribution center to a retail store.
The automated shipping sorters for today’s eCommerce must process high volume of smalls: Poly bags, envelopes, jiffy packs, parcels and boxes. These smalls are being generated at fulfillment centers that sort the product to gaylords or pallets which typically head to a secondary hub facility for another
bulk sort.
The NPI Xstream is best in class for high volume sortation requirements at 16,000 to 20,0000 PPH and sorts to divert windows with as small as 22” pitch (divert opening).
The destination from the secondary hub, is typically to a last mile facility where packages will be sorted to a truck route for delivery to the consumer. There can also be additional network sorts depending on the final destination of the package. These are finesse sorters that maximize variable window gapping and run at 400 FPM. There are multiple bi-directional shoe sorters and Intralox ARB sorter(s) that perform at rates in the 10,000 PPH.
The smalls sorter(s) distinction is sorting “smalls” down to 4”L x 4”W size range, including envelopes and poly bags with pharmacy fill, including pill bottles in poly bags.
The real challenge is induction and singulation into these smalls sortation systems. This can be performed with Semi-Automated Solutions like the NPI Bulk Singulator – Feed Table that can process an entire gaylord of smalls in 1-3 minutes (depending on contents).
The workers can achieve tremendous rates managing small packs & envelopes 5,000+ PPH per operator. Though on average package sizes (9”Long) 4,000 PPH is typical per operator.