GEORGIA — The U.S. Postal Service today shared the ways it’s ready to deliver for Duluth this holiday season, welcoming members of the local press to the Duluth Local Processing Center. At the event, guests were able to view the Parallel Induction Local Sorter or PILS a state-of-the-art sorting machine that boosts local processing and logistics capabilities, expanding USPS’s infrastructure to meet customers’ needs during the busiest mailing and shipping season. Attendees were also able to ask about key shipping information, critical dates, and best practices for sending their holiday cheer.

The Postal Service has installed over 600 sorting machines across the country in recent years, including the PILS in Duluth which has a processing capacity of 7,000 packages an hour, up from 6,000 packages an hour on previous machines. Thanks to these advancements, Duluth customers can expect holiday mail and packages to be delivered on average, in less than 3 days. For shipping within the same regional service areas, holiday customers can expect a 2–3-day turnaround.

“We are passionate about serving our customers. This is the Postal Service’s busiest season, and it’s also a season that brings us so much joy. We love delivering holiday cards and packages to every doorstep in Duluth,” said Kennard Everett, Executive Plant Manager at Duluth Local Processing Center. “A lot goes into ensuring the billions of holiday cards and packages that Americans send each holiday season reach their destinations, reliably and on time. We plan throughout the year to optimize our processes to ensure we are prepared for the holiday mail and package volume. The Parallel Induction Local Sorter, PILS is just one of the many improvements that allow us to deliver the exceptional service our customers have come to expect from USPS during the holidays.”

USPS investments in network transformation and modernization have resulted in a daily processing capacity of approximately 88 million packages – up from 60 million last holiday season – outperforming its competitors at the most affordable prices available.

The Postal Service has also launched a live holiday counter, keeping tally of how many mailpieces and packages have been accepted into the network this holiday season.

For holiday related information – including how to order free Postal Service shipping supplies – visit usps.com/holidaynews.

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