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Follow this page for weekly FedEx, UPS, and USPS updates, as well as parcel industry observations related to COVID-19.

Peak season surcharges began in 2017 as a way for carriers to mitigate some of the costs during the heavy shipping season. Packages that require extra handling (i.e. additional handling, large package/oversize, and over maximum limits/unauthorized package) that get pushed into the carriers’ network create less efficiency; therefore, carriers seem to penalize shippers even more during the holiday season.

An efficient supply chain is one that meets customer expectations in a cost-effective manner. With two-day delivery (or less) becoming the retail standard for customers, balancing cost and customer service is no small feat.

Parcel auditing is a necessary task for shippers in today’s rapidly growing parcel market. Without an accurate auditing system, shippers stand to lose a significant amount of money due to billing errors as well as the valuable data created by the audit.

Your customers are expecting faster and faster delivery times each year, all while you are trying to cut costs. Adding a distribution center (DC) will most likely decrease your average distance to your customers. However, to make adding a DC a profitable venture, you will need to leverage your data.

With another freight payment provider filing for bankruptcy, it is a useful time for shippers to take a closer look at the way they utilize payment vendors and how those vendors facilitate transactions. IPS Worldwide LLC has sought bankruptcy protection on liabilities north of $100 million to address “creditors becoming antsy,” according to the representing bankruptcy lawyer. Assets listed amount to only $50,000.

The tone of the UPS 4Q18 earnings call was uniformly upbeat as strong metrics were revealed one after another. Volume, revenues, earnings per share, and operating margins all went up in the fourth quarter. Comments around peak season performance were far more cheerful than last year as well.

The rapid evolution of the supply chain is being driven by consumers’ expectations for fast (and free!) shipping. How are major brands adapting? Get the latest parcel trends in this Report.

The quick fix for fast order fulfillment is using an express service, but in a world where shippers are constantly battling rising costs, that is not a sustainable option. Placing distribution centers (DCs) in the correct location can provide a long-term, sustainable option to reduce fulfillment time. Are your current DCs placed in the most optimal locations? Here are four steps in evaluating the location of distribution centers.

This is the time of year that shippers are often bracing for the blow of annual rate increases. Usually in the late third or early fourth quarter, parcel carriers will announce their annual rate and surcharge increases. With the growth in e-commerce, parcel is becoming a larger expenditure for companies. According to GMT’s 2018 Benchmark Report, 87% of shippers expect 2018 parcel rates to increase at a similar or higher pace as total transport costs year-over-year.

In the frothy battle for online customer loyalty, shipping choices and amounts charged for those choices is a highly influential front. Retailers have been grappling with this changing landscape for years as online disruption continues. Green Mountain Technology has combined the specific experience of its retail clients along with a multitude of other companies across industries in our annual Benchmark Report to understand strategies for differentiation in this dynamic space.

We live in a parcel world where accessorial increases can be announced at any time of the year and have huge impacts on budgets. Accessorial charges account for anywhere from five to 30% of our clients’ total parcel spend, and this proportion is rising. On top of trying to accurately forecast resource needs due to volume growth and system changes within an organization, accessorial increases add a huge layer of complexity and unpredictability that can lead to multiplied costs overnight.

Validation looks at “Did I get what I paid for?” whereas verification looks at “Did I request the right thing?” A common factor seen in the attempt to answer these questions is the utilization of a parcel audit. A traditional parcel audit can help to shed light on two issues regularly seen with high-volume shipping.

As logistic departments focus more time and energy on meeting fast order fulfillment, it can become inherently difficult to save money without changing the mix of services used to less premium ones. More often than not, managers are squeezing their network like a tube of toothpaste: getting every last drop out. Take advantage of the low hanging fruit in your network with four simple, yet powerful key performance indicators that focus on maintaining a healthy network by reducing unnecessary and often avoidable fees.

As a result of the ongoing rise in e-commerce and the growth of Amazon Prime (which has an estimated 80 million US members), today’s online shoppers have very different expectations when it comes to fast and free shipping than they did just a few years ago. In order to compete, many retailers are considering adopting a similar strategy to fulfill orders much more quickly to meet those consumer expectations. However, it is challenging for transportation executives to manage the competing objectives of keeping costs down while pursuing a significantly faster fulfillment network.