Planes land. Planes take off. A steady stream of trucks and package cars are loaded and unloaded. Thousands of packages are shuttled between them. This is a common scene at Worldport, UPS’s global air hub in Louisville. On the surface, this scene doesn’t scream innovation.
But peel back the roof and you’ll find 4,500 miles of fiber optic cable and 122 miles of high-speed conveyors. You’ll see wireless networks pumping package-tracking data into high-speed servers. And you’ll watch one of the world’s fastest databases push this information out to consumers and businesses so they can track their packages as they move through the UPS network. This innovative technology is a key component of the $1 billion UPS Worldport facility -- the largest capital project in company history.
As packages zip through the facility, crucial package information embedded within each "smart label" is read by overhead cameras. High-tech conveyors whisk the packages through the 4-million-square-foot hub in as little as eight minutes. (The super-detailed information digitally encoded on the UPS package labels helps UPS process, sort and distribute 5 percent to 7 percent of the nation’s GDP and 2 percent of the world’s, at its global facilities.)
UPS developed proprietary middleware to integrate more than 50 applications running on five different operating systems -- enabling 59 million data transactions per hour through an intricate network of computer-activated sorting and tracking devices.
While imported and exported goods at Worldport must be handled separately from domestic shipments, UPS’s tightly controlled tracking and sorting systems allow international and domestic shipments to be loaded into the same general sorting operation. A UPS software program enables U.S. Customs officials to isolate individual international packages and route the packages for inspection with just a few clicks of a mouse, based on a variety of criteria, including the name of the shipper or recipient, or the description, weight or declared value of the goods.
As a result of this innovative technology used by U.S. Customs, UPS saved approximately $70 million by eliminating the need for a separate customs facility. The entire Worldport hub qualifies as the “controlled building” required by federal law.
In addition to the massive technology deployment and expansion, the project required more than 75 million pounds of steel and the careful management of 200- plus individual vendors. Worldport’s opening in August 2002 positioned UPS for continued growth in its global air express business. The expansion also helps pave the way for continuing growth in international shipping volume at UPS, which in January reported its second consecutive record quarter for international business – with export volume up 20 percent.
Today, Worldport’s capacity has increased by 40 percent to 304,000 packages per hour, or about 85 per second. Ultimately, the operation is expandable to accommodate up to 500,000 packages each hour, or 140 packages per second.
Outside, Worldport might look just like another airplane terminal or warehouse. But inside, it’s a hotbed of innovation.
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