KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City USPS Processing and Distribution Center is bursting at the seams.
"We’ve processed just about 7 billion mail pieces nationwide just since Thanksgiving," said Mark Inglett, a strategic communications manager for the U.S. Postal Service.
On Tuesday night, the Kansas City mail processing facility sorted approximately 250,000 pieces of mail for Wednesday delivery.
"It’s our time to shine. We prepare for it all year round," Inglett said. "We’ve got the extra workforce needed to get ready. The volume really grows this time of year."
The USPS Distribution and Processing Center relies on bar code scanning technology. Scanning packages at each stop on its journey, passing through on conveyor belts to bins designated for the sender's desired location.
"These machines can process 5,000 packages an hour," explained Inglett. "Employees place it with a bar code facing up. That’s all the manual work there is and they do a great job getting them on here quickly. After that, the machine takes over."
USPS is consistently rotating sorting bins and preparing packages for the next available delivery truck. Kansas City's centrally located position in the United States allows the facility to assist processing for communities across the nation.
"We deliver for America every day and we are woven into the fabric of every community. We’re really proud of that," added Inglett.
In 2021, USPS rolled out its Delivering for America plan. The 10-year vision plans to "achieve financial sustainability and service excellence." The goal is to address numerous problems, including underperforming air and surface transportation, high employee turnover rates, and misaligned mail and package processing operations.
"We brought more of a workforce on," explained Inglett. "We’ve been planning this all year round. We’ve already got them on board and they’ve been trained."
Prior to implementing the Deliver for America Plan, USPS was projecting $160 billion in losses. Inglett told KSHB 41 that USPS mail carriers will be more present in Metro neighborhoods.
"We’ll be out early in the morning delivering packages. Please leave those porch lights on for us. It gets dark early in the afternoon so leave those porch lights on as well," Inglett asked. "At all times keep those pets inside. If we come to the door and you have a pet, maybe take that pet to a back room and shut the door behind you. Then come to the door so we can give that package to you, a wave and smile, and we’re on our way.”
USPS asks its customers to prioritize shipping now. Time is running out for holiday packages to arrive on time.
- Dec. 18 - Last day for First Class and Ground Advantage
- Dec. 19 - Last day for Priority
- Dec. 21 - Last day for Priority Express
Inglett exclaimed, "Don’t wait, let’s mail now!"
USPS also assured KSHB 41 that letters were delivered on time to the North Pole.
"Santa reads every one of them. Santa has us on speed dial for a reason. We take real good care of the big man and we’re doing it again this year," he added.
For more information on how to track packages, click here.
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KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa covers Miami County in Kansas and Cass County in Missouri. Share your story idea with Ryan.
