Amazon has announced plans to roll out advanced automated packaging technology across its European network. This initiative aims to reduce waste and improve packaging for millions of customer orders. As part of its largest investment in sustainable packaging in Europe, Amazon will introduce custom-box-making machines, marking their first deployment on the continent.
The company intends to install hundreds of these automated machines in its fulfillment centers across Europe. By the end of 2025, more than 70 machines will be operational in key countries including Germany, the UK, France, Italy, and Spain, with additional machines planned for installation by 2027.
The new packaging system is designed to create custom-sized boxes for each item, reducing excess material use, minimizing waste, and increasing delivery efficiency. The goal is to reduce packaging volumes, allowing for more items to be shipped with fewer vehicles, ultimately cutting down on carbon emissions.
Pat Lindner, Amazon’s Vice President of Mechatronics and Sustainable Packaging, explained, “In order to reduce waste, we need to reduce packaging. We use machine learning and automation to create packaging that’s made to fit, which ensures products are protected while using fewer materials. This investment is a significant step in reducing the environmental impact of deliveries for our European customers.”
Made-to-Measure Technology
Amazon’s new packaging machines will use sensors and automation to create custom-made cardboard boxes in real-time. Employees will place items into the machines, which then measure the dimensions and automatically produce a box to fit. This process eliminates excess packaging material and applies shipping labels directly, making the packages ready for dispatch.
The machines will be particularly useful for heavier or more fragile items that require more protection than a padded envelope can offer.
On-Demand Paper Bags
In addition to custom boxes, Amazon is also introducing machines that create made-to-fit paper bags. These machines, adapted from technology that previously made plastic bags, use sensors to measure an item’s size and produce a weather-resistant paper bag. This new packaging, which has already been tested in Germany and the UK, will be expanded across these countries, as well as France, Italy, and Spain.
By using lightweight paper bags instead of larger boxes, Amazon aims to save more than 26 grams of packaging per shipment on average. The paper bags are also up to 90% lighter than similarly sized cardboard boxes.
Innovative Labeling Technology
Amazon is also enhancing its labeling technology with the Universal Robotic Labeller, an auto-labelling machine that can apply smaller labels to irregularly shaped items. The machine uses labels up to 75% smaller than standard ones, helping to reduce overall packaging size and material use. This technology can also place labels directly onto paper bags or items that are shipped in their own product packaging, further cutting down on waste.
Ongoing Commitment to Sustainability
Amazon has been working to minimize packaging waste for years. Already, half of Amazon’s shipments in Europe are sent without a box, using recyclable materials like paper bags or cardboard envelopes instead. Additionally, more than one billion shipments since 2019 have been sent without any added packaging, through Amazon’s Ships in Product Packaging program.
Since 2015, the company has reduced the average weight of packaging per shipment by 43%, preventing more than 3 million metric tons of waste—roughly the weight of 295 Eiffel Towers.
With these new automated packaging technologies, Amazon aims to further reduce its environmental impact while continuing to provide customers with safe and efficient deliveries.
