Amazon today announced it will deploy advanced automated packing technology across its European network to improve packaging for its customers and reduce waste. Through its largest European investment in sustainable packaging, Amazon will bring custom-box making technology to Europe for the first time, so that more customers receive items in made-to-fit packaging.
Amazon plans to install hundreds of automated packaging machines across a number of its European fulfilment centers that will reduce packaging volumes for millions of customer deliveries. More than 70 of these machines will be installed in Germany, UK, France, Italy and Spain by the end of this year, with more to follow by 2027.
Made-to-fit packaging can reduce delivery emissions by minimizing material use, eliminating waste, and maximizing vehicle space—enabling more deliveries with fewer vehicles.
“In order to reduce waste, we need to reduce packaging. We use machine learning and automation to create packaging that’s made to fit, reducing excess materials while making sure the product remains protected. We’re now installing automated packaging machines in our facilities across Europe to better serve our customers and the planet,” said Pat Lindner, VP Mechatronics and Sustainable Packaging at Amazon. “This investment is a significant step forward in reducing the environmental impact of deliveries for our European customers.”
Packaging matched to the product - get to know Amazon’s made-to-measure technology
- Custom-made cardboard boxes created in real time: Using automation and precise sizing technology, Amazon will bring custom box-making technology to Europe for the first time. Employees place an item into the machine, which uses sensors to measure its dimensions and automatically produce a box that is made to fit, reducing excess packaging material. The machine applies shipping labels directly, making each package ready for immediate dispatch to customers. It will be used to pack heavier, or more fragile items that need more protection than a padded envelope provides.
- On-demand, made-to-fit paper bags: Amazon’s packaging engineers reimagined a machine originally used to create plastic bags, and retrofitted it to cut made-to-fit paper bags. Sensors measure an order’s dimensions, and then the new device creates a correctly sized, protective bag using a durable, weather-resistant paper and heat-sealing technology. After being tested in fulfilment centres in Germany and the UK, this new technology will now be rolled out across both countries, as well as France, Italy and Spain. By packing items in recyclable, light paper packaging, without the need for padding, the machines help to avoid more than 26 grams of packaging per shipment, on average. Lightweight paper bags used by Amazon are up to 90% lighter than similar-sized cardboard boxes.
- Innovative labelling technology: The Universal Robotic Labeller is a high-speed auto-labelling machine that can place smaller labels onto packages, including irregularly shaped items. It can use labels up to 75% smaller than standard labels, helping to reduce packaging dimensions and using less material overall. The labels can also be placed onto paper bags, or directly onto items that ship in their own product packaging. This eliminates the need for additional Amazon packaging altogether and contributes to reduced waste for the customer.
Amazon’s commitment to reducing packaging waste
Every day, Amazon ships millions of orders around the globe, working hard to make sure products reach customers safely and with the least amount of packaging necessary. One in two Amazon shipments in Europe are already delivered without a box and come in reduced, recyclable delivery packaging such as a paper bag or cardboard envelope or—in the case of more than one billion shipments since 2019—no added packaging at all through Amazon’s Ships in Product Packaging programme.
Since 2015, Amazon has reduced the average per-shipment packaging weight by 43%, representing more than 3 million metric tons of packaging avoided—the equivalent weight of more than 295 of Paris’ iconic Eiffel Tower.
Read more about how Amazon continues to improve its packaging.
