Amazon tour: What happens after you place that order

Summary

The video takes viewers inside Amazon's Capel Fulfillment Center, showcasing its cutting-edge technology and operations. The facility spans over a million square feet and employs over 900 associates. Highlights include the Robo-stow, a 6-ton robotic arm that lifts pallets onto platforms, and Amazon Robotics, which moves items efficiently on a grid of QR codes using advanced sensors. The process moves from picking items to packing them with care, and finally, the SLAM line, where shipping labels are applied before packages are carefully loaded into trucks, optimizing space like a game of Tetris.

Takeaways

• 🏢 Amazon's Capel Fulfillment Center is over a million square feet and employs more than 900 full-time hourly associates.
• 🤖 The robot behind the speaker is called Robo-Stow, a 6-ton robotic arm capable of lifting pallets of items 24 feet high onto a second platform.
• ⚙️ Amazon uses advanced robotics weighing over 700 pounds, capable of lifting up to 3,000 pounds of customer items.
• 🛠️ The robots move on a field of QR codes and are equipped with motion sensors to avoid collisions, making their operations efficient and coordinated.
• 👀 Watching the Amazon robotics at work is fascinating, as they seamlessly move items around the fulfillment center.
• 📦 The packing station is where associates take totes of picked items and pack them into boxes with necessary padding to ensure safe delivery.
• 🏷️ The SLAM line stands for Scan, Label, Apply, and Manifest, which is where customer labels and mailing addresses are added to the boxes.
• 🚚 Despite the term, SLAM does not mean labels are physically slammed onto items; it's a systematic process for labeling shipments.
• 🧩 Packing boxes into trucks is likened to playing Tetris, as the goal is to pack efficiently and minimize air space, which is costly.
• 💡 The fulfillment process is carefully designed to optimize space, reduce costs, and ensure that items arrive at customers' homes safely.

Q & A

What is the size of the Capel Amazon Fulfillment Center?

The Capel Amazon Fulfillment Center is just over one million square feet in size.

How many full-time hourly associates work at the Capel Amazon Fulfillment Center?

The Capel Amazon Fulfillment Center employs over 900 full-time hourly associates.

What is Robo Stow, and what is its function?

Robo Stow is a 6-ton robotic arm that lifts pallets of items 24 feet onto a second platform.

How much do Amazon robotics machines weigh, and what can they lift?

Amazon robotics machines weigh over 700 pounds and can lift up to 3,000 pounds of customer items.

How do Amazon robotics navigate within the fulfillment center?

Amazon robotics move on a field of QR codes and have motion sensors to avoid collisions.

What happens at the packing station in the fulfillment center?

At the packing station, associates take the totes that have been picked by Amazon robotics, pack the items into boxes, and add necessary packaging materials to ensure items are secure.

What does the acronym SLAM stand for in the context of Amazon's fulfillment process?

SLAM stands for Scan, Label, Apply, and Manifest.

What is the purpose of the SLAM line?

The SLAM line is where the customer label and mailing address are first added to the box.

How is packing customer boxes into the back of a truck similar to a game of Tetris?

Packing customer boxes into a truck is like playing Tetris because items need to be packed to maximize space efficiency, minimizing empty gaps and reducing costs.

Why is it important to minimize empty space in the trucks when packing items?

Minimizing empty space is important because empty space is costly and can add unnecessary weight, so items are packed to the brim to optimize space and reduce expenses.