Postal Automation Systems Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Technology, By Component, By Application (Commercial Postal, Government Postal), By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2022 - 2030

Report Overview

The global postal automation systems market size was valued at USD 749.0 million in 2021 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.8% from 2022 to 2030. The growing demand for faster delivery while saving labor costs from numerous industries and the increasing need for automation in delivery and sorting processes are expected to fuel the market growth over the coming years. Furthermore, the factors such as the growing e-commerce market and globalization are expected to create more opportunities in the global industry.

The increasing popularity of e-commerce platforms has resulted in increased online shopping and processing of a considerable number of orders across the globe. This rising number of packages per day has resulted in the adoption of automated postal systems to deliver orders quickly and efficiently. The growing trend for e-commerce shopping has solidified the adoption of postal automation systems. The leading players in the e-commerce industry are adopting automated postal delivery systems to simplify the mail processing chain, improve service quality, and reduce fixed costs such as labor.

The leading postal automation systems providers are focusing on technological developments to meet the increasing demand. For instance, in June 2021, Siemens Logistics GmbH announced the launch of VarioBelt TilterPlus, a belt conveyor with an unparalleled tilting device designed for efficient baggage transport at airports. It serves three directions resulting in the least machinery requirements for baggage handling systems and reducing carbon footprints.

The postal automation systems include various systems and software including parcel sorting systems, mail sorting systems, coding systems, automatic reading, and postal software. Incorporating postal automation systems allow companies to reduce their reliance on traditional postal methods, including higher processing time, human errors, and high labor requirements. Automation in the postal systems offers better and faster classification of parcels and letters while supporting the digitalization of businesses.

Automating postal services helps reduce dependence on labor and labor costs. The labor costs are rising due to decreasing productivity, high attrition rates, shortage of employable skills, and government regulation affecting the traditional postal systems market. Automation allows companies to achieve high productivity, accuracy, and profitable postal systems while reducing labor costs. Thus, the market is expected to witness significant growth over the coming years.

Although, the initial investment to incorporate automation in postal service is high, and the automation requires the installation of large amounts of hardware and software. Additionally, once installed, the system requires timely servicing, maintenance, and upgrades, which further stimulates the variable costs. Technical errors such as the sensors associated with the system affect the entire operations, while software-related issues delay the sorting process and affect the functioning of operations.

COVID-19 Impact

The worldwide outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown restrictions forced businesses of all sizes to adopt remote working models, which urged the companies for digital transformation across several end verticals. Moreover, the pandemic impacted the market positively as the volume of parcels witnessed significant growth at the beginning of 2020. For instance, according to Bloomberg, U.S. e-commerce sales witnessed a year-on-year increase of 32.4% in 2020 as customers relied heavily on internet retailers to avoid spreading viruses.

Moreover, as travel restrictions were imposed, many companies shifted toward automation of their postal systems, effectively halting all manual labor-related work. The lockdown encouraged businesses to shift to automated postal systems. Many companies implemented postal automation to reduce labor costs, as government lockdown restrictions hampered business operations.

Technology Insights

The parcel sorter segment acquired the largest revenue share of approximately 30% in 2021. Sortation is the process that identifies the items on conveyer systems and diverts them to the targeted location with the help of various devices controlled by software. The parcel sorting solutions provide accurate results and help to decrease the number of missing package requests by improving traceability.

Furthermore, it improves operations by allowing real-time access to the package to streamline the processes. Additionally, it helps companies to achieve efficiency by incorporating customer clearance systems, invoicing systems, and many more. The adoption of parcel sorters is expected to increase significantly over the coming years.

The culler facer canceller (CFC) is expected to witness a strong CAGR of approximately 7% over the forecast period. The growth is attributed to its ability to detect and cancel postage stamps and select various mails such as postal cards and letter envelopes by width, thickness, stiffness, and length. Furthermore, it eliminates the complex objects unsuitable for processing through the machine.

The CFCs automatically identify the destination of the postal items and process items according to their weight, thickness, and size. Furthermore, CFCs adjust the alignment and manage the application of postmarks avoiding human interference in the process. Thus, the segment is expected to witness promising growth over the coming years.

Component Insights

The hardware component accounted for the highest revenue share of approximately 66% in 2021, attributed to upgrades in processors, sensors, recognition, and scanner systems and the demand for new systems to upgrade the existing capacity. The segment is anticipated to continue to witness significant growth over the forecast period.

The key postal automation systems providers are focusing on expanding the market presence by expanding the current capabilities and establishing production capabilities in other countries. For instance, in August 2021, Vanderlande Industries Inc., a logistic and material handling company, announced the expansion of its operations campus in Marietta and Georgia. The company has invested approximately USD 59 million to meet the increasing demand for its solutions.

The services segment is projected to witness a significant CAGR growth of approximately 8% over the forecast period. The growth is attributed to the increasing demand for services such as international and domestic mail registration, transport tracking, mail item sorting, customs control area processing, document generation for international and domestic mail, information delivery for a tracking site, monitoring of mail items, sorting center operations report, and many more.

Application Insights

The commercial postal services segment is expected to witness the highest CAGR of approximately 10% over the forecast period. The increasing adoption of electronic communications and e-commerce platforms is driving the growth of commercial postal services. Furthermore, the increased volume of packages and parcels and increasing demand to deliver products to end-user quickly are expected to increase the demand for commercial automated postal services over the coming years.

The government postal services segment is projected to witness a significant CAGR of approximately 5% over the forecast period. The government postal services focus on improving the network, introducing new equipment, and improving operations to meet the rising customer demand. For instance, in February 2022, the United States Postal Service (USPS) announced the launch of USPS Connect, a set of delivery solutions to meet high consumer demand while providing fast regional, local, and national deliveries, affordable and returns.

Regional Insights

The North American postal automation systems market acquired the largest market share of approximately 43% in 2021. The growth is attributed to the increased adoption of the latest technologies in postal services and the presence of key market players in the region. Moreover, rising labor costs and labor shortages are driving companies to adopt automation resulting in the market's growth. The demand for postal automation services is increasing in government, BFSI, and other segments fueling the market growth in the region.

Asia Pacific postal automation systems is expected to witness the highest CAGR growth of approximately 10% over the forecasted period. The high growth of the e-commerce industry in countries such as Japan, China, and India has created the demand for a technologically advanced e-commerce logistics industry. Furthermore, increasing demand from the BFSI sector is creating numerous growth opportunities for postal automation systems in the Asia Pacific region.

Key Companies and Market Share Insights

The major players are focusing on mergers and acquisitions to gain access to the latest technologies to attract a more extensive customer base and gain a competitive edge in the market. For instance, in July 2022, Körber AG announced the acquisition of Siemens Logistics GmbH, a parcel and mail business. The acquisition has helped Körber AG to expand its market offerings and mail and parcel business by leveraging the advanced software and automation solutions of Siemens Logistics GmbH.

Additionally, in April 2022, TMEIC Corporation Americas announced the acquisition of the port and terminal division of Órbita Ingeniería S.L. The acquisition has helped TMEIC Corporation Americas to enhance its expertise in the optical character recognition space and expand its existing offerings. The increasing number of such mergers and acquisitions is expected to favor the market's growth over the coming years. Some prominent players in the global postal automation systems market include:

• Toshiba Infrastructure Systems & Solutions Corporation

• Körber AG

• NEC Philippines, INC.

• SOLYSTIC

• Pitney Bowes Inc.

• Vanderlande Industries B.V.

• Fives Group

• Leonardo S.p.A.

• Lockheed Martin Corporation

• BEUMER GROUP

• Interroll Group

• Dematic

• Eurosort

• Fluence Automation, LLC.

Postal Automation Systems Market Report Scope

Global Postal Automation Systems Market Segmentation

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional, and country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2018 to 2030. For this study, Grand View Research has segmented the global postal automation systems market report based on technology, component, application, and region:

• Technology Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

  • Culler Facer Canceller

  • Letter Sorter

  • Flat Sorter

  • Mixed Mail Sorter

  • Parcel Sorter

  • Others

• Component Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

  • Hardware

  • Software

  • Services

• Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

  • Commercial Postal

  • Government Postal

• Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

  • North America

    • U.S.

    • Canada

  • Europe

    • Germany

    • U.K.

  • Asia Pacific

    • China

    • India

    • Japan

  • Latin America

    • Brazil

  • MEA