Reliably delivering a sustainable middle-mile solution for Amazon

About Amazon

As the world’s largest online retailer, Amazon is a brand that is known by most of us. In fact, 86% of the UK population shop on Amazon.

Amazon were one of the first online retailers to offer next day delivery and consumers have become very used to this convenience. But with this expectation comes a lot of pressure on the transport network.

Amazon also intend to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2040 adding a new dimension to the day-to-day challenge of delivering parcels.

Amazon's complex needs

On average, Amazon deliver more than 2 million items a day. They have an intricate web of transportation to ensure those packages get to the right places as quickly as possible. To achieve this, they need transportation partners who provide a fast, cost effective, and reliable service. They also need a partner who has the capacity to flex with their seasonal demand fluctuations and evolving sustainability needs.

Delivering on time, every time

Since 2018, we have provided a middle mile solution for Amazon. We collect parcels from their distribution centre in Bathgate and transport them to a staging depot in Inverness. From here, Amazon vans take the parcels and deliver them to homes and businesses across the Highlands of Scotland. We operate 7 days a week, and while volumes fluctuate hugely, on average we have 7-10 truck loads transporting parcels every day. Once delivered, we return to the distribution centre with empty cages ready to go again.

In all the time that we have worked with Amazon, we have arrived on time 98% of the time.

Michael Yoong, Amazon’s Transport Carrier Manager, said:

Pollock has always been one of our top performing carriers. Their reliability is why we keep them on peak routes. I know I can trust them to deliver.

Adapting to Amazon’s changing needs

For Amazon, seasonal fluctuations are vast. Pollock is part of the wider Gregory Group and combined we have 1,200 trucks and 2,000 trailers. This means we have the scalability to flex up and down whenever needed. For example, over Christmas, Amazon have a huge amount of returns to handle. To support with this, we provide trailers as storage while the parcels are being processed.

As Michael points out, this is very valuable:

Pollock are very good at absorbing volume fluctuations. But they also accommodate us in other ways. From providing different trailers to support new lanes, to accommodating new processes - they respond immediately.

Working together to achieve net zero

Amazon has an ambitious sustainability target - by 2025 100% of Amazon’s energy will be supplied by renewables, by 2030 50% of all their shipments will be net zero, and by 2040 they will achieve company net zero.

With our own goal to be net zero by 2038, we are well positioned to support Amazon with this journey. Since 2022 we have delivered all of Amazon’s transportation on renewable fuels. Using HVO (Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil) we travel approximately 1.4 million kilometres on renewable fuels per annum. That prevents 1,200 tonnes of CO2e from going into the atmosphere each year.

Michael tells us more:

As well as investing in renewable fuels, Pollock can provide evidence of the HVO they use. This is vital so that we can measure our progress towards our sustainability goals.

Summary: Working in true partnership

For other carriers I have to get much more involved, almost holding their hands. There’s none of that with Pollock - they just get on with it. This makes it super easy to work with them.
I think the key to this success is the people. We meet monthly, and everyone is very transparent and communicative. They aren’t afraid to call us out either, which means ideas come to the table that turn into valuable improvements. Being able to talk to the team so openly has built a solid rapport and a relationship that I know I can rely on.