Brand New Australia Post Parcel Facility in Perth Boosts Capacity – Honors Traditional Owners

Australia Post has opened its brand-new, state-of-the-art parcel processing facility in Perth to meet the growing eCommerce needs of the region.

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Why it matters: The 23,000 square meters parcel processing facility is Perth’s first state-of-the-art automation center with an initial ability to process close to 200,000 parcels daily during peak periods.

When the project was announced last year, Australia Post said the facility was being built with the future in mind and could be scaled to potentially process up to 23,000 parcels per hour to meet customer demand.

The $82 million investment has already proved effective in helping Australia Post process more than 650,000 parcels over the Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend amid a national record-setting Cyber Weekend for Australian online shoppers.

New Australia Post Facility Honors Indigenous Peoples

The Perth facility has also been given a dual name in the traditional language of the Noongar Nation, Boorna Wangkiny Mia.

Boorna Wangkiny Mia, which culturally translated means ‘Home of the Message Stick’, celebrates Australia’s oldest form of communication and cultural diplomacy.

Message sticks would be passed from Elders to visitors when entering their lands, seas and rivers. They are important cultural and historical emblems that connect people and communities.

In naming the new Perth facility Boorna Wangkiny Mia, Australia Post honors and recognizes the spiritual and cultural knowledge of Indigenous peoples, and celebrates the influential historical and cultural role of the message stick.

What they said: Australia Post Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Paul Graham said the dual naming of the facility was an example of Australia Post’s strong commitment towards reconciliation, and this new facility represents a significant investment in Perth as online shopping continues to grow.

“We’re proud of our leading role in promoting awareness of reconciliation, which formally began with our first Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Employment Strategy in 1988,” said Graham.

“Working closely with the Traditional Owners to name this brand-new facility is another example of that commitment and reflects our shared purpose of connecting people and communities.

“Online shopping continues to grow in Western Australia. This $82 million facility is a significant investment in our overall network and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to meet growing eCommerce needs.

“The automation inside the new facility means significantly reduced manual handling keeps our people safer, parcels are processed faster with more scanning events, which is fantastic for our customers.

“This state-of-the-art facility is allowing us to deliver in Perth like never before and continue to connect Australians to each other and the world.”

Minister for Communications, the Hon Michelle Rowland MP — who officially opened the new facility — added that Australia Post is an important enabler of the country’s digital economy and the growing eCommerce market.

“Australia Post is a cherished national institution, from the red post boxes dotted along our streets, to the red vans rolling down every road to deliver online orders,” said Rowland.

“Australia Post is a recognizable and trusted organization which provides essential services to communities right across the country.

“It is however a highly competitive business and ongoing investments, like this facility, are an important part of Australia Post’s transformation strategy to ensure it stays competitive.

Whadjuk Noongar Elder Professor Len Collard, who worked with Australia Post through Moodjar Consultancy, said the chosen name was fitting as message sticks were the forebearers of modern-day letters and parcels.

“Message sticks were the first way messages were shared. One man couldn’t travel all the pathways, it had to be passed ceremonially to the representative of the next Country,” said Collard.

“They carried specific symbols to be translated to each carrier as it was passed over from one pathway on Country to another, so the name Boorna Wangkiny Mia works very well for a facility like this that helps to transport items on behalf of other people from around Australia and the world.”