Amazon.com, Seattle, Wash., USA, was founded in 1995 and today is the No. 1 selling e-tailer in the world. The company started selling books online and CDs, then expanded their product range to electronic items, clothes, and much more, Todate they serve 137 million customers a week.

These figures clearly illustrate the endless necessity of improving customer satisfaction, through competitive strategies and better services. One of these latest strategies by Amazon.com is the use of the Panotec (Battke Creek, Mich., USA) Box on Demand system to develop ahigh quality package for quick and cost-effective shipping.

Speed, savings, and care are three distinguishing words for Amazon.com, the company notes. These three expressions are not only ideas, but also are keywords that became reality thanks to the new Box on Demand (BOD) system, it emphasizes.

With a BOD machine working with fanfold, Amazon fulfillment reports that its centers are able to keep working and producing boxes all day long, without having any downtime because the boxes are produced while the products are coming out from their warehouse. The operator no longer has to go looking around the warehouse to find the right box for the product.

 

 

This solution allows the Amazon Centers to save not only in terms of time but also in packaging costs. In fact, with the BOD system, there is no need to use void fillers, such as packing peanuts, and other cushioning materials. In addition the amount of containerboard used by the machine is only the quantity needed to create the right sized box, the square meters are already optimized to produce only the boxes they need. And last but not least, a right sized box that perfectly fits the product inside also bettertakescare andprotects it from damages during transport, ensuring intact products delivered to customers.

Amazon has now more than 20 Box on Demand machines across the U.S., and more than four machines between the U.K. and German sites. With the Panotec BOD system they are able now to pack those products that didn't have a specific box before, due to their big or awkward sizes, and also the returned goods.

Amazon estimated that their costreduction is about 40% and the return of investment has been already achieved.

More information Amazon’s Box on Demand packaging is available online.