With the rapid development of e-commerce, people enjoy the convenience of online shopping and also want to get their carefully selected items as soon as possible. This brings challenges to logistics and distribution. Due to the size of the warehouse, the number of orders and the type of goods in each distribution center, the sorting methods are also different. However, the commonly used sorting methods can be roughly divided into three categories: manual sorting, semi-automatic sorting equipment and automatic sorting systems. Let's analyze the differences and characteristics of these sorting methods.

1. Manual sorting method

 

Manual sorting is the initial form of express sorting, which is mainly based on manual identification and handling. However, with the development of e-commerce, the order sorting volume increases rapidly, the distribution area increases, and the labor cost is getting higher and higher, and the efficiency is low. And when requirements such as error rate, management efficiency, and user experience have changed, manual sorting alone will inevitably fail to complete the sorting task, and even delay the delivery efficiency and service quality. In response to market demand, various sorting equipment has been produced and put into use. However, manual sorting still plays an important role in the sorting of oversized, overweight, and irregular packages that cannot be handled by the sorter, especially in the LTL logistics industry.

 

2. Semi-automatic sorting equipment

 

Semi-automatic sorting equipment is mainly based on belt conveyor as the main conveying tool, and sorting is carried out by assigning operators at each sorting position. This sorting method does not require much investment, reduces labor intensity to a certain extent, and improves sorting efficiency. It is suitable for small sorting centers with a daily sorting volume of about 10,000 pieces. However, this sorting method only improves the efficiency in the handling link. If the sorting volume surges and the load of the sorting line is exceeded, sorting errors are prone to occur when the sorter is not in good spirits.

 

3. Automatic sorting system

 

The automatic sorting system is not limited by climate, time and physical strength, and realizes continuous large-scale sorting of goods. The most suitable equipment can also be selected according to the actual needs of customers. It not only reduces the labor cost and labor intensity of the enterprise, but also improves the work and management efficiency. For example, the high-speed circular cross-belt sorting system developed by Yiyitong in Anhui Province, the measured sorting efficiency is as high as 23,000 pieces/hour, and the sorting accuracy rate is 99.99%. The automatic identification function can be used to judge the barcode, size, weight and shape of the product, and the classification error rate is extremely low. It is widely used in postal express, cross-border e-commerce, customs and other industries, and is widely praised by customers.

 

With the development of my country's logistics industry, the improvement of basic equipment is the foundation for the development of logistics enterprises and a major prerequisite for achieving a leap in development. Only by changing the extensive manual sorting and conforming to the development trend of intelligent logistics can logistics enterprises achieve rapid development. In the future, manual sorting will inevitably be replaced by intelligent sorting. In addition, basic activities such as logistics transportation, warehousing, distribution, packaging, loading and unloading will all move towards automation and high efficiency. This is the general trend and is needed for development.