The postal and express industry is under mounting pressure to keep up with surging parcel volumes and increasingly complex operational demands. Traditional manual security inspections are becoming less viable: they are expensive, time-consuming, and prone to human error, making them ill-suited to handle the millions of packages processed daily. At the same time, managing efficient logistics across multiple modes of transport is complicated by massive data volumes and diverse operational requirements. Moreover, last-mile delivery remains a persistent bottleneck, plagued by high costs, urban congestion, and growing environmental concerns. As a result, postal operators worldwide are stepping up efforts to improve operational efficiency, modernize parcel screening, and adopt more sustainable practices.
In response to these challenges, SF Express, a member of the UPU Consultative Committee, partnered with the China State Post Bureau, combining its expertise and cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, operations research, simulation, and automation to modernize the entire postal and express value chain.
One central innovation emerging from this partnership is the Intelligent Cloud Security Inspection Platform. By integrating high-speed X-ray scanning with AI-powered multimodal analysis, this platform enables non-intrusive, 100% security screening of parcels without disrupting sorting workflows. Specifically, AI systems pre-analyze package images and flag suspicious items for human review, which reduces manpower requirements by 80%, lowers error rates by 25%, and significantly shortens inspection times. Furthermore, with cloud-edge-end collaboration, the platform provides 24/7 remote monitoring and centralized oversight, now operating across over 100 transfer venues and more than 1,000 high-speed inspection devices.
Beyond inspection, the partnership actively optimizes logistics. They apply large-scale AI models and operations research tools to design cost-efficient routing networks across land, air, and rail. SF Express leads the way with its digital twin technology, creating virtual replicas of transfer hubs and airports that enable dynamic scenario simulations and real-time operational adjustments. For example, at Ezhou Huahu Airport - Asia’s first dedicated freight airport - physical and digital systems work in sync to coordinate apron activities, sorting processes, and ground transportation in real time.
To tackle last-mile delivery challenges, SF Express and the China State Post Bureau are also deploying Intelligent Terminal Express Lockers. These modular lockers provide 24/7 unmanned parcel drop-off and pick-up, helping cut delivery costs while easing urban congestion and lowering carbon emissions. Their open network design allows multiple express and e-commerce companies to share the infrastructure, all managed through a multilingual SaaS platform compliant with international data security standards. Currently, this network spans 22 countries, with over 320,000 lockers handling 20 million daily transactions.
SF Express and the China State Post Bureau have further enhanced package safety by jointly deploying advanced inspection technologies that protect both postal workers and customers. At the same time, through automation and intelligent routing, they have boosted operational efficiency, speeding up deliveries and improving reliability. Additionally, operational costs are lowered thanks to optimized resource use and shared infrastructure. Crucially, the partnership promotes international cooperation by sharing data and intelligent solutions globally. This collaboration helps build trust in cross-border supply chains while advancing global sustainability goals through reduced emissions and streamlined delivery networks.