The USPS is now building a new $100 million ‘Regional Processing and Distribution Center’ (RPDC) as part of their $40 billion 10-year plan to streamline mail delivery plan across our nation.
Located in the 365-acre NorthPoint Development industrial park between Gastonia and Lowell, this facility is set to be a cornerstone of a high-tech mail flow system in the US.
The Charlotte Regional Processing and Distribution Center spans 700,000 square feet and will utilize advanced AI-powered robots and conveyor systems to enhance mail sorting efficiency for the Southeast region. This centralization will lead to the closure of numerous smaller delivery units and sorting sites.
According to the USPS’s recent report, “RPDCs are strategically important for our modernization. They will act as multi-functional distribution centers for all network originating mail and packages and all destinating packages — effectively centralizing all metro-area originating processing operations in a single building, with crossdocking and other functionality as required in the specific region.”
They are currently designing 11 new RPDCs (Atlanta, GA; Richmond, VA; N. Houston, TX; Greensboro, NC; Santa Clarita, CA; Portland, OR; Charlotte, NC; Chicago, IL; Indianapolis, IN; Jacksonville, FL; Boise, ID), with 4 set to open in the coming months (Atlanta, Richmond, Charlotte, and Chicago).
The Gastonia facility’s service area will extend as far south as Columbia and as far west as Johnson City, Tennessee. It is expected to employ between 700 and 1,000 workers, with over 400 already hired. This development is part of the US Postal Service’s larger presence in North Carolina, which includes approximately 20,000 employees, with 5,000 based in the Charlotte region.
What do you think about the new USPS system?
