Australia Post will establish a parcel processing machine at its Strathfield, Sydney facility as part of a $300 million national investment over the next 18 months.

The new equipment will process 10,500 parcels an hour, significantly increasing parcel processing numbers for New South Wales residents.

Australia Post group chief operating officer, Bob Black, said the investment is part of the company’s ongoing efforts to meet continuing parcel growth, with Australians spending $21.3 billion on goods online last year, up 18.7 per cent on 2016.

“This new automated machinery is great news for residents in New South Wales, where our research shows online shopping grew 21.1 per cent last year. It also means we’re providing a safer working environment for everyone, with automation reducing manual handling and the risk of injury,” said Black.

The new sorter at Strathfield is one of many infrastructure upgrades planned over the next 18 months, including an automated, parcel delivery centre scheduled to be operating in Chullora in time for the Christmas rush.

New satchel and small packet sorters will also be installed in Brisbane and Melbourne, which combined with Strathfield, will be capable of processing more than 40,000 parcels an hour, significantly increasing Australia Post’s processing capacity and improving service standards.