The Postal Service has successfully completed testing a prototype package sorter that will enable the organization to increase its processing capacity and retire some of its older machines.
The parallel induction linear sorter, or PILS, has been used for 10 months at the Dulles, VA, Processing and Distribution Center, where it has processed 12 million packages.
This machine can process 7,000 packages an hour, an increase from the 3,500 packages an hour the currently used single induction package sorters are capable of.
The new sorter picks up containers of parcels and unloads them onto a conveyor belt, which then feeds them onto a conveyor system. A six-sided camera system allows it to read addresses.
Dulles was chosen as the PILS test site because it handles a large volume of packages. The machine was built from the ground up inside the facility, in less than seven months.
“Through the dedication and feedback of our employees, we were able to successfully construct and operate a superior sorter in a shorter timeframe,” said Linda Malone, acting applied engineering vice president.
The new sorters will soon be added at other processing centers.
“PILS is a really good piece of technology for the Postal Service,” said Amit Cholkar, acting engineering systems vice president. “We’re looking at our next-generation package sorter fleet.”
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