Amazon Prime Now: A peek inside the Manhattan warehouse (pictures)

The entrance and lobby of 7 W. 34th Street fit that of a modern office tower. Yet, while many of the building's floors are filled with office space, Amazon built out the fifth floor with an urban distribution center so it can quick deliver packages around Manhattan and Brooklyn.

The Manhattan distribution center helps power Prime Now, a rapid-deliveries service Amazon started last year, Prime Now, available through a mobile app, can deliver tens of thousands of products including electronics, diapers and household cleaners in two hours or less.

The building's lobby has a row of Prime Now lockers, to allow customers to pick up orders, providing a hint of what's on the fifth floor.

The fifth floor warehouse is 50,000 square feet, just a fraction of the size of a typical 1-million-square-foot Amazon distribution center.

Despite the space's small size, Amazon managed to cram in thousands of products.

The assortment on the shelves at the Manhattan location are intentionally random to ensure there isn't a traffic jam of workers in any one location. "The random sorting actually creates more efficiencies," spokeswoman Kelly Cheeseman said.

In one corner are pallets filled with larger items, including soda, bottled water and Razor scooters.

Nearby are rows of refrigerators and freezers that are stocked with orange juice, almond milk and ice cream.

Amazon workers buzz around the tight aisles of the warehouse, filling brown bags with orders to quickly ship out.

At the front of the warehouse, completed orders are prepared for delivery.

Here courier Sylvester Alderman checks an Amazon Prime Now app on his phone that tells him where to go for his next order.

Amazon workers walk, bike, ride the bus and subway, and drive vans to deliver orders around Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Alderman walks a few blocks down the street to an apartment building, where he delivers his package in a few minutes.