Dec. 17, 2023

San Francisco Processing Facility Ramps up for the Holidays

Get a rare behind-the-scenes look at package sorting systems

Package sorting system

What:

The San Francsico Processing and Distribution Center (P&DC) will handle over 7 million of pieces of mail and packages this holiday season. We will open up our doors to the media for one evening only.

We will show high-speed letter sorting operations and large bins of parcels being separated and sorted on the most advanced equipment in the country.

Over 1,000 holiday postal elves keep the San Francisco P&DC running for the holidays. With the help from automated processing equipment this facility can process over 245,000 packages per day and more during the busiest time of the year.

Packages both big and small can be processed on this equipment with some equipment processing over 180,000 packages per day.

Designed to handle large parcels, the USS can process over 15,000 pieces during an operating window. The machine can sort packages weighing 70 pounds lbs. and almost four feet in length which is ideal for handling robust holiday shipments, like a new mini-fridge or even a tire.

When:

Wednesday, December 20 at 4:30 PM

Where:

San Francisco Processing & Distribution Center
1300 Evans Ave, San Francisco, CA 94188

Who:

John Finnigan, Processing Support Specialist

Media Alert
RSVP:

Please RSVP to Kristina Uppal Kristina.Uppal@usps.gov for attendance.

Please be aware that proper footwear is required. Please avoid heeled shoes and pumps. Ensure that you are wearing closed-toed (preferably leather) shoes that are non-slip.

Background:

As part of the USPS Delivering for America Plan, 348 additional package sorting machines have been installed throughout the country since the beginning of 2021. The USPS has the most sophisticated mail processing and delivery network in the world and continues to maintain a keen eye on product, performance, price and most importantly people.

As a result of customer package demand, the Postal Service relied on manual by-hand sortation of packages to route them to our customers.

The installation of these additional machines is a game changer, allowing for a new daily package processing capacity of 70 million. These machines ensure that package sortation capability is improved and offers a more reliable service to our customers locally and beyond.

USPS continues to remain on the cutting edge by proactively thinking ahead to provide more predictable service to our customers ahead of the much-anticipated holiday seasons. Installing package sorting machines is not only part of a $40 billion dollar investment, it is a step towards modernizing operations to better equip the Postal Service to provide consistent and reliable service to customers.

  • No holiday surcharges for mailing or shipping this holiday season
  • Hiring 10,000 employees for Peak Season 
  • Deploying more than 348 new package sorting machines 
  • Increased daily processing capacity to approximately 70 million
  • Moving 95% of volume via more reliable ground transportation
  • New Shipping Solution – USPS Ground Advantage
  • Learn more about our 10-Year Delivering for America Plan.

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