Scan the work order
ParcelOffice asks your factory software for the job. If it is packed and ready, the station shows the recipient, the postcode and the parcel choices that suit it. If it is not, nothing can be booked.
Early-access requests open
The job is packed.
SCAN-TO-SHIP DESPATCH FOR MANUFACTURERS
The job is packed.
Two scans ship it.
Scan the work order, then the parcel choice your team has approved. ParcelOffice books the shipment on your own courier account, sends a label for every package to the bench printer and gives your factory software the tracking reference. Plain English rules can offer, recommend or choose the parcel for you.
No payment. Start with your workflow.
PARCELOFFICE · ILLUSTRATION
Packing bench 2
WO-000042 · one packed itemLabel sent
Work orderWO-000042 scanned: ready, address loaded
ReadyParcel choiceOperator scanned 1 × small bag
1 pkgCourier bookingOne shipment on your courier account
BookedLabel and trackingLabel sent to the bench printer; tracking returned
1 labelThe operator scans the preset that matches the packed parcel. Manual needs no rules and is always available.
Fictional example. This illustration does not book a shipment or print a label.
Change the mode. See who chooses the parcel.
WHO IT IS FOR
UK manufacturers who despatch finished work from a packing bench, with the work order, delivery address and package details already held in their own software or online shop.
THE DESPATCH STEP, SHORTENED
The address is already in your system. Stop typing it again.
At most despatch benches someone copies the address into a courier website, picks a service, prints the label from another tab and types the tracking number back into the job. ParcelOffice replaces all of that with a lookup, an approved choice and a signed update.
Scan the parcel choice
Each preset, such as “1 × small bag” or “2 × long box”, has a barcode on a sheet at the bench. Scanning it books one shipment on your courier account with the service and package count it describes.
Labels out, tracking back
The courier’s labels go to the bench printer through SmartFACT PrintStation, one for each package. Your software receives the shipment and tracking reference for the job that started it.
FOUR WAYS TO CHOOSE THE PARCEL
Start with scans. Add rules when you trust them.
Every mode shares the same booking, printing and reporting. What changes is who chooses the preset.
The operator chooses
After the work-order scan, the operator scans the preset that matches the packed parcel. It needs no rules and stays available whatever else is switched on.
Rules narrow the list
Approved rules offer a short list of suitable presets for the order. The operator picks one, and choosing outside the offer records a reason. An offer never blocks a despatch.
Rules recommend, people confirm
Rules recommend one preset and say why. The operator confirms it with a scan or chooses another with a reason. No timer ever confirms on anyone’s behalf.
One scan at an armed station
Once the rules have been qualified on real despatches, an operator arms the station and the work-order scan alone books the selected preset. The station stays attended.
AUTOMATION FROM PLAIN ENGLISH
Write down the packing rule your team already follows.
Describe a rule in plain English and SmartFACT turns it into a precise condition on the fields your software supplies, such as package count, weight or product category. You read it back, test it against example work orders and approve it. At the bench the approved rules run exactly as written, with no AI call.
See more parcel rule examplesEXAMPLE RULE
“For a single packed item under 2 kg, use the 1 × small bag preset.”
Describe→Test→Approve→Apply
Result at the bench: WO-000042, one package at 1.4 kg, gets 1 × small bag. A job no rule covers, or that two rules disagree about, is held for a person rather than guessed.
BUILT INTO EVERY DESPATCH
One shipment per job, and the paperwork done.
One booking per despatch
Scanning a despatch again opens its existing shipment. If the courier’s reply is lost after a booking request, the despatch is held for a supervisor, never sent twice on a guess.
A label for every package
Two boxes get two courier labels, not two copies of one. Labels go to the printer assigned to that station, so nobody picks a printer for each job.
Addresses stay at source
Recipient details are read from the work order and cannot be edited at the bench. Correct the source, then scan again.
Tracking back to the job
Signed updates tell your software what was booked, the tracking reference and what happened to the labels. Missed updates are retried, then kept for an administrator to replay.
Exact reprints
Supervisors reprint the original label with a recorded reason. A reprint never books a new shipment.
Named people, clear roles
Everyone signs in through SmartFACT Accounts. Every booking records who scanned it, at which station and with which preset.
IS IT A FIT?
Start with one bench and one courier account.
A good starting point
- You despatch finished work from a UK site, using a business account with a major UK courier.
- Your factory software or online shop holds the order, delivery address and package details. WooCommerce, PrestaShop and Shopify are connected for you; other systems answer a lookup directly or through a small adapter.
- A short list of bag, box and service choices covers most of what you send.
What it does not do
- One despatch site, one work-order source and one courier account per organisation.
- No rate shopping, picking, stock control, parcel measuring or collection booking. ParcelOffice books what your approved presets describe.
BEFORE YOU START
A few useful answers.
Does it work with WooCommerce, PrestaShop or Shopify?
Yes. As well as ERP and factory software, ParcelOffice connects to WooCommerce, PrestaShop, Shopify and other ecommerce platforms. Shop orders are looked up at the bench like work orders, and tracking goes back to the order. We set up the connection for your platform during onboarding.
Which couriers does it book?
The major UK couriers, booked on your own business account at your own rates. Tell us which couriers you use and we connect them during onboarding. See courier coverage.
Does AI decide how we ship?
No. AI helps turn a plain English rule into a precise condition while you set it up, and your team tests and approves it. At the bench, ParcelOffice applies approved rules exactly, without calling a model. A rule can only choose from your approved presets or hold the job.
What do we need at the packing bench?
Either of two setups. A desktop station: a computer with a browser, a barcode scanner that types like a keyboard and a label printer connected through SmartFACT PrintStation. Or a mobile station: a phone or tablet scanning with its camera, or a handheld scanner computer such as a Zebra MC9400, with labels sent to an unattended workstation connected to the label printer. Either way, the printer, label stock and label format are checked with real labels before the bench goes live. Setting up the bench.
Can we practise without booking real shipments?
Yes. A sample workspace has fictional work orders and a simulated courier, so your team can practise the scans. It cannot book a live shipment or send updates to your systems.
What does it cost?
Pricing and terms are agreed with you before you commit. Courier charges stay on your own carrier account, and getting in touch takes no payment.
GUIDES
Find the part you care about.
HOW IT WORKS
How ParcelOffice works
From approved parcel choices to a booked courier shipment, labels at the bench printer and tracking back on the work order.
HOW IT WORKSParcel rule examples
Example parcel rules written in plain English, and what each does at the bench: select a preset, offer a shortlist or hold the despatch.
COURIERS AND LABELSCourier coverage
ParcelOffice books the major UK couriers on your own account, to wherever your courier delivers. Tell us which couriers you use and we connect them during onboarding.
YOUR SYSTEMS AND DATATracking back to the work order
ParcelOffice sends the shipment and tracking reference back to the job that started it, with signed updates, retries and a backlog an administrator can replay.
YOUR SYSTEMS AND DATAFor developers and IT teams
What developers and IT teams build to connect ParcelOffice: a signed work-order lookup, a receiver for signed despatch updates, and nothing at the bench.
WHO IT IS FORFor despatch supervisors
How ParcelOffice runs at the packing bench day to day: stations, presets, held despatches, reprints and uncertain bookings, from the supervisor’s side.
EARLY ACCESS
Show us how finished work leaves your site.
Tell us which courier account you use and where your orders are held, in factory software or an online shop. We review the fit and set up your first packing bench.
Request early access
Start with your workflow. No payment.
THE SMARTFACT SUITE
One suite for the factory floor.
ParcelOffice is part of SmartFACT, a set of focused services and free tools for manufacturers. People sign in through SmartFACT Accounts, with two-factor checks for administrators and supervisors, and labels reach the bench printer through SmartFACT PrintStation.
Other SmartFACT services check kits, guide work steps and route orders with the same approach: describe the rule in plain English, test and approve it, then let approved rules handle the routine work.
Explore SmartFACT