Last Minute Orders: Scale Your Mail & Parcels Like a Seasoned Pro

There's nothing quite like waiting until the last minute to do your holiday shopping. For mail and parcel operations, the season is full of surprises. Unexpected orders, fluctuating demand, and last-minute rushes can strain even the most prepared warehouses and printshops.

Businesses need to be agile. They must be ready to scale up or down at a moment’s notice to handle these challenges while maintaining accuracy and speed. Read on to learn how BlueCrest’s scalable solutions empower mail production facilities and warehouses to adapt quickly and maintain smooth order fulfillment operations for satisfied customers, no matter the season’s surprises.

During peak holiday seasons, businesses can experience significant surges in mail and parcel volume. For example, the USPS anticipated delivering between 850 million and 950 million packages during the 2021 holiday season. That totals over 12 billion letters, cards, and packages processed from Thanksgiving through New Year's Day. This represents a substantial seasonal increase over regular volumes.

Scaling for Mail Production and Lettershops

In mail production, volume spikes and last-minute orders are inevitable. Whether it’s a sudden campaign launch or an influx of holiday greetings, the ability to handle fluctuating demand is paramount to meeting deadlines and maintaining customer satisfaction.

Modular inserting and sorting systems from BlueCrest are designed with flexibility in mind. These systems allow you to quickly scale up capacity by integrating additional modules or reconfiguring existing setups. For example:

• Adding inserting capacity for urgent marketing campaigns.
• Adjusting sortation settings to handle mixed mail types efficiently.
• Leveraging high-speed solutions to clear backlogs faster.
• Incorporating in-line card-attaching hardware.

Additionally, automation reduces the reliance on temporary staffing during busy periods, allowing lettershops to focus their efforts on complex or custom jobs. With the right tools in place, mail production facilities can handle unexpected volume surges smoothly, and nail timely delivery even under pressure.

Scaling for Parcel and Warehouse Automation

For warehouses and parcel operations, the challenge of last-minute order spikes is compounded by the complexity of e-commerce demands. Facilities need solutions that can flex with the flow of incoming orders so you can make sure every package is sorted, routed, and shipped on time. Santa has to work his miracles somehow, right?

BlueCrest’s modular automation systems enable facilities to adapt to fluctuating volumes with ease. Some strategies include:

• Adding extra sorting lines during peak periods to manage overflow efficiently.
• Integrating modular systems that expand capacity without requiring a complete overhaul of existing infrastructure.
• Leveraging robotic and automated picking solutions to speed up order fulfillment during high-demand times.
• Incorporating robust sorting software -- like SE360 -- to adapt on the fly to your business needs.

Real-time data management also plays a crucial role. It offers visibility into operations and helps managers make quick decisions about reallocating resources or shifting priorities. This flexibility can really lock down timely fulfillment, even when orders pour in unexpectedly.

Tips for Managing Order Fulfillment and Last-Minute Volume Surges 

1. Plan for Contingencies: Build capacity into your systems to handle an additional 20-30% surge during peak times. 
2. Leverage Modular Systems: Choose solutions that can grow with your needs, avoiding the downtime and costs of a full-scale replacement.
3. Stay Data-Driven: Use software that provides insights into workflow bottlenecks, allowing you to act before delays occur.

Stay Agile, Stay Ahead

Organizations like USPS and private carriers often invest in seasonal hiring and technology upgrades to handle these spikes. For instance, USPS implemented high-speed sorting equipment. This increased daily processing capacity by 4.5 million packages and added 13 million square feet of space.

This required significant planning and scaling. Scaling effectively during the holiday rush requires flexibility, foresight, and the right technology. BlueCrest’s solutions are designed to help you manage the unexpected. We ensure your mail production or parcel operations keep moving—no matter the challenges.

Next in our series: Maintaining Peak System Performance. How to keep your equipment running smoothly during the busiest time of the year.