Springfield’s Amazon hub opens

Same-day and next-day deliveries of pet food, diapers, makeup, hair gel, breakfast cereals and other common household items will be available in the Springfield area by late-October or early November with the recent opening of Amazon’s new distribution hub, a company official says.

The 71,000-square-foot warehouse, so far employing 75 part-time, entry-level workers and about 25 full-time managers, began shipping packages Oct. 9 from its site at North Dirksen Parkway and Bissell Road on Springfield’s northeast side.

The $20 million site is part of Amazon’s Rural Super Rural (RSR) network of 150 distribution hubs designed to speed deliveries to communities ranging in size from 60,000 to 120,000 people, site manager Max Flynn said.

“This has been a big push for Amazon in the past five years,” Flynn told Illinois Times during a recent tour of the sprawling, one-story warehouse with a 40-foot ceiling. “If you’re an Amazon Prime customer, you’ll get items really quick out of this place.

“It’s a huge win for Springfield,” he said. “Anytime we can ensure the speed of our packages, it’s a win.”

The Springfield location is known as an RSR Plus site. Like other RSR sites, it will coordinate delivery of products shipped from larger “fulfillment” centers to customers within a 60-mile radius. The Springfield warehouse will have the added feature of a mini-fulfillment area stocked with commonly ordered items.

The “plus” side of the business should start up in coming weeks, Flynn said.

“It will have everything from ChapStick to dresser drawers,” he said. Also included could be things like toothpaste, soaps and shampoos.

“You could order them that morning and get them that night,” Flynn said.

Funding for the Springfield site is part of Amazon’s recently announced $4 billion commitment to further expand its RSR network and help ensure two-days-or-less deliveries for Amazon Prime customers, he said.

Other than managers, the building is designed for a solely part-time workforce of employees, known as “associates,” who work an average of 20 hours or more each week, Flynn said.

Previous experience isn’t required. There’s a three-day training period, and starting pay is $19 per hour. Raises based on experience can boost hourly pay to a maximum of about $25, Flynn said, adding that full-time managers can earn $50,000 a year or more.

Amazon has hired about 75 entry-level workers so far and is processing 1,000 packages a day, Flynn said. It will take nine to 12 months to fully ramp up operations, he said.

Amazon’s busiest time is from Thanksgiving through December. During that peak, the Springfield site could process 40,000 to 50,000 packages a day, operate 24 hours a day and employ up to 200 part-time workers, Flynn said.

The site expects to employ adults of all ages, nationalities and backgrounds, he said, noting that several deaf people are among the workforce.

“We have a very inclusive work space,” he said. “Everybody’s welcome.”

Workers use scanners and a guided routing system to sort and load Amazon packages into bags that are transferred to delivery trucks and cars.

“Anyone can work here,” said Flynn, 32, who grew up in Dubuque, Iowa, and worked for Amazon in Cedar Falls, Iowa, before moving to Springfield. He graduated from The Citadel Military College of South Carolina with a bachelor’s degree in political science and joined Amazon after working as a U.S. Army logistics officer.

Deliveries will be handled by DSPs, or delivery service providers – companies that contract with Amazon and whose workers wear Amazon vests and drive vans with Amazon markings or other identification, he said.

Deliveries also can be made by people who use their personal cars and become private contractors through the Amazon Flex program.

Job opportunities are listed through Amazon.com/jobs and on social media. People interested in becoming Flex drivers can find out more by downloading the Amazon Flex app, Flynn said.

Amazon is looking forward to working with local businesses such as hardware stores, florists and coffee shops that can help deliver Amazon packages through the Hub Delivery program, he said.

RSR sites, including Springfield, regularly donate to local causes and local nonprofits, he said. The Springfield site recently donated $1,000 to Springfield’s WILD Canine Rescue.

Amazon received city approval to recently reconstruct Bissell Road, a city street, for the increased truck and car traffic along the company’s 29-acre site, according to city traffic engineer T.J. Heavisides. Amazon made the two-lane road wider and increased the width of the shoulders as part of requirements in the city’s subdivision code, Heavisides said.

The amount Amazon paid for the improvements was unavailable.

Dean Olsen is a senior staff writer with Illinois Times. He can be reached at dolsen@illinoistimes.com, 217-679-7810 or www.x.DeanOlsenIT.