Alaina D'Altorio, Content Marketing Specialist, Smith Corona08.30.22
Amazon ships approximately 1.6 million packages a day. That’s 66,000 an hour or 18.5 per second. They also offer lightning-fast shipping options, like 2-day free shipping or same day delivery.
Such huge scales of packing and shipping leave no room for errors, manual processes, stops in production, or lost items. Therefore it’s crucial for outbound operations to run seamlessly. So how does Amazon manage this? With just one simple 3×2 label.
“One label to rule them all, One label to find them, One label to…” you get the idea. This label, called internally by Amazon their “sp00″ label, is used to streamline their entire outbound order fulfillment process.
The information this single label creates a fast, accurate, and efficient operation.
Also known as sequential barcodes, the numbers on these labels carry large amounts of data and information that make tasks like tracking and traceability faster. So what does the sp00 label do that has such a powerful impact?
Sp00 labels contain:
So what happens after the application of the sp00 label? Packages are then scanned and sent to the next leg in the shipping process: the SLAM auto-machine.
Packages make their way to the SLAM machine where several actions happen in the blink of an eye:
What if an error occurs during the SLAM process? Amazon uses a kickout (KO) system to eliminate any defects while keeping the production line moving. The defective package is “kicked out” of the assembly line and diverted to a station where an associate manually resolves the issue.
Once through the SLAM process, packages continue their journey out of the facility, where they are sorted to designated delivery trucks and shipped out to waiting customers. Amazon’s entire outbound process relies on these steps to run efficiently. It’s why they delegate so much importance to the sp00 label. Because without it, their entire system falls apart.
That’s thanks to the sp00 label automating the outbound process.
LPNs effectively cut out steps that would otherwise increase the time, costs, and handling of orders. To keep such a large scale of business moving so efficiently, eliminating these unnecessary steps is essential.
A 2018 study found that “substandard” sp00 labels caused more KOs, meaning additional packages were left to be manually processed, costing time, resources, and money. Having a scannable LPN present accurate information at the right moment keeps production moving so orders can arrive at their designated time.
But LPN labels are just one way to efficiently run a warehouse, distribution center, or fulfillment center like Amazon. And they don’t have to be the only facility utilizing a system like this.
This article was originally published on the Smith Corona website and can be found here.
Such huge scales of packing and shipping leave no room for errors, manual processes, stops in production, or lost items. Therefore it’s crucial for outbound operations to run seamlessly. So how does Amazon manage this? With just one simple 3×2 label.
“One label to rule them all, One label to find them, One label to…” you get the idea. This label, called internally by Amazon their “sp00″ label, is used to streamline their entire outbound order fulfillment process.
The information this single label creates a fast, accurate, and efficient operation.
What is “Sp00” and why does it matter?
The sp00 is arguably the most important label applied at an Amazon Fulfillment Center (FC). “SP” stands for “shipping package,” and is followed by a serial number, uniquely identifying each package it’s scanned and placed on. This is identical to how LPN (License Plate Number) labels work.Also known as sequential barcodes, the numbers on these labels carry large amounts of data and information that make tasks like tracking and traceability faster. So what does the sp00 label do that has such a powerful impact?
Sp00 labels contain:
- Item(s) in the package
- Customer address and information
- Promised delivery date (PDD)
- Everything a package needs to get to its final destination comes from one scan, like a personal ID badge.
So what happens after the application of the sp00 label? Packages are then scanned and sent to the next leg in the shipping process: the SLAM auto-machine.
The SLAM Process
The SLAM (Scan, Label, Apply, Manifest) is the next step in the packing and shipping process. Information from the sp00 label is used to configure, print, and apply a shipping label.Packages make their way to the SLAM machine where several actions happen in the blink of an eye:
- The sp00 label is scanned
- The package is weighed
- A shipping label is printed and auto-applied
- But how is the correct information for the shipping label determined so quickly? Through an algorithm.
What if an error occurs during the SLAM process? Amazon uses a kickout (KO) system to eliminate any defects while keeping the production line moving. The defective package is “kicked out” of the assembly line and diverted to a station where an associate manually resolves the issue.
Once through the SLAM process, packages continue their journey out of the facility, where they are sorted to designated delivery trucks and shipped out to waiting customers. Amazon’s entire outbound process relies on these steps to run efficiently. It’s why they delegate so much importance to the sp00 label. Because without it, their entire system falls apart.
How LPNs Streamline Amazon’s Outbound Process
The amount of space inside an Amazon FC is no joke. At a range between 600,000 to 1 million square feet, the chances of losing a package or messing up an order should be extremely high. And yet their packing and shipping stations function at maximum efficiency with little to no errors.That’s thanks to the sp00 label automating the outbound process.
LPNs effectively cut out steps that would otherwise increase the time, costs, and handling of orders. To keep such a large scale of business moving so efficiently, eliminating these unnecessary steps is essential.
A 2018 study found that “substandard” sp00 labels caused more KOs, meaning additional packages were left to be manually processed, costing time, resources, and money. Having a scannable LPN present accurate information at the right moment keeps production moving so orders can arrive at their designated time.
But LPN labels are just one way to efficiently run a warehouse, distribution center, or fulfillment center like Amazon. And they don’t have to be the only facility utilizing a system like this.
This article was originally published on the Smith Corona website and can be found here.
