Ken Nowicki on thu 20 feb 97
In a message dated 97-02-19 12:36:06 EST, Ken Tighe wrote:
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
UPS has a near-monopoly on "ground" shipping. This is because it is
For 9 years I was a UPS employee.
I never drove a "Brownie" but worked part-time in the wee hours of the
morning loading packages. Pressure for production is beyond belief.
Packages fly through the air like paper airplanes in a second grade
classroom. The word "Fragile" written on a package brings laughter. The
company, of course, wants it both ways. High numbers (packages-per-hour)
and low breakage. Employees on this loading shift are the most abused
(mentally and physically) and angry of any I have seen in my entire working
life. The gulf between management and the workers is huge and filled with
hatred. People injured on the job are harassed on the telephone by company
safety-goons for having the audacity to miss work because of a work-related
injury. A smart, seasoned employee knows enough to use the word "Lawyer"
ON THE VERY DAY OF THE INJURY!! (The Union is so necessary here!). So this
is the company you are dealing with. For me it is still a tough call
whether or not to ship UPS. I don't want to help this company any more
than I want to hurt their wonderful workforce.
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Wow! ...if what you say about UPS is true, that's too bad. I had heard that a
"Fragile" sticker causes UPS employees to knock it around even more... (and
listen to see if they could hear something break) but always wondered if that
was just a rumour. I still use Fragile stickers anyways. I once had an
employee of UPS tell me, "If you can pack it well enough that it won't break
from falling from a 4-6' drop (like falling off a loading dock or off a
truck) then you should be alright"...
The bottom line here on this thread is simple. Pack well... and then pack
some more. I've only once had a piece crack due to shipping and it was
because "one time" I was in a hurry and chose to cut corners from my regular
packing method. I ship all my pieces to galleries and have been using UPS
regualrly for about 8 years with no real problems.
My packing method is simple, and similar to what I've seen some of you
mention on this thread. It may take some time and effort, but that's the cost
of doing business as far as I'm concerned. It is as follows:
Packing 101
(1) Wrap each piece well with bubble wrap (bubble side facing IN). I use the
1/2" size bubbles, not the small stuff... you need the extra cushion. Then
using packing tape, tape it tightly to the piece. (Tip: Fold under about an
inch of tape onto itself to make a tab at the end. This helps whoever unpacks
your piece to facilitate peeling off the tape)
(2) I arrange 2-3 bubble wrapped pieces (sometimes more depending on their
size) into medium sized boxes, filling in the gaps with styrofoam peanuts.
Tape the box shut.
(3) I use the largest box possible that UPS allows (they have restrictions on
the girth measurment). I'm sorry I don't have the exact measurement, but any
good shipping supply werehouse would know what size that is as well. I order
my bubble wrap and boxes from the "Uline" catalog. Put at least 2" of
styrofoam peanuts on the bottom of the box. Nestle the smaller boxes tightly
together starting from the center of the box outward, making sure you leave
AT LEAST 2" of space on all sides of the big carton (including the top) to
fill in styrofoam peanuts. Really wedge those peanuts down in those cracks
too, don't just drop them in there. When filling the top part with peanuts,
grab the corners of the box and shake it to settle the peanuts down in there
real well, then continue filling to the top. This is where I add my packing
slip in an envelope. Tape the box up real well with strong packing tape. I
tape not just the long seam but the side flap edges as well... top and
bottom. I believe this helps to (a) Keep the box from snagging on equipment
during shipping and (b) Stengthens and firms up the catron as a whole.
(4) Label the box with a clear, easy-to-read large shipping label. Adding
"Fragile" stickers or writing "Fragile" is up to you (see discussion
above)... but I prefer to at least be in the position to say to UPS if
something breaks... "well, I did have it labled fragile" Insure your work on
your UPS form. That is it.
This may seem very elementary to many of you, but in my experience, when you
start cutting corners is when you start having breakage. If you pack well,
the issue of who and how much to pay for broken pots will become a moot
point. Just my two cents worth...
Ken Nowicki - RakuArtist@aol.com
....where it's sunny, warm, and beautiful today in Sherman Oaks, CA
Richard Aerni on fri 21 feb 97
Concerning UPS:
I've shipped via UPS for almost twenty years now and don't have any major
gripes with them. Their drivers are friendly and courteous, and I've
only had one problem collecting on a claim in all that time. As others
have mentioned, the key is to pack well, overpack really, and to resist
the impulse to put just one more pot into that box.
When I was ready to go into wholesale seriously, I hired a packaging
engineer to look at my work and design several systems to pack
efficiently and cheaply given the nature of my work, the size of my
studio, and the resources available. Some of the best money ever spent.
Most everyone has run through the major points--double boxing, tightly
packing objects amidst immovable cushioning, etc. A couple of things
more, though. I never used to use Fragile stickers because of my
experience with them when working for Parcel Post in the United States
Postal Service--it often did make them targets for those "disgruntled
Postal workers". But after UPS raised their size and wieght limits a
couple of years ago, and started saying they needed to survive a six foot
drop off the conveyor, I invested in the brightest biggest fragile
stickers I could find and would plaster four or five on every box. It
worked, and my breakage stopped. I used to use a whole lot of those
styrofoam peanuts to float my inner box in the outer one, and felt bad
about all those plastics I was using. I'd tried the cornstarch
peanuts(anyone else notice that they don't have the resiliency of the
styrofoam ones?) at 1 1/2 times the price, don't have an industrial
popcorn popper (and don't want rats), and was wondering what to do. Then
a guy I know out in the country told me about his trucking route to and
from farmers and the egg plant, and his trouble getting rid of his
cardboard 12" x 12" egg flats, and a light bulb went off! I get
thousands from him now...they are wonderful shock absorbers, recyclable,
and fit in between the boxes like a dream. They are easily cut using a
serrated knife, and are free! (actually I give him pots in exchange for
this) Now I hardly ever use styro peanuts, and the boxes I ship are
slightly more rigid.
Another thing I do with UPS is to call and have them stop out and pick up
my boxes for shipment. It's called the "Ready Customer" account, and it
costs 5$ per call for pickup, but you keep the paperwork and put on the
stickers and weigh the boxes, etc. Saves time, and time is money,
right? Youmight want to see if they offer it in your area.
That's all for today folks, time to go glaze.
Richard Aerni
Bloomfield, NY
Suzanne Storer on sat 22 feb 97
Another great free packing material are those purple paperboard flats at the
grocery store that peaches and other fruit are shipped in. Every once in
awhile I have the produce department save them for me for about 3 weeks
running. Every 3-4 days I haul home those they've saved. Otherwise they'll
ber burned and I've found the store workers themselves appreciate all the
material being reused rather than gone up in smoke. And, talk about
ultimate recycling, one customer was resuing this material I'd shipped work
in to him by putting them in his worm farm where they eventually completely
decomposed.
Suzanne StorerAt 09:01 AM 2/21/97 EST, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>Concerning UPS:
>
>I've shipped via UPS for almost twenty years now and don't have any major
>gripes with them. Their drivers are friendly and courteous, and I've
>only had one problem collecting on a claim in all that time. As others
>have mentioned, the key is to pack well, overpack really, and to resist
>the impulse to put just one more pot into that box.
>
>When I was ready to go into wholesale seriously, I hired a packaging
>engineer to look at my work and design several systems to pack
>efficiently and cheaply given the nature of my work, the size of my
>studio, and the resources available. Some of the best money ever spent.
>Most everyone has run through the major points--double boxing, tightly
>packing objects amidst immovable cushioning, etc. A couple of things
>more, though. I never used to use Fragile stickers because of my
>experience with them when working for Parcel Post in the United States
>Postal Service--it often did make them targets for those "disgruntled
>Postal workers". But after UPS raised their size and wieght limits a
>couple of years ago, and started saying they needed to survive a six foot
>drop off the conveyor, I invested in the brightest biggest fragile
>stickers I could find and would plaster four or five on every box. It
>worked, and my breakage stopped. I used to use a whole lot of those
>styrofoam peanuts to float my inner box in the outer one, and felt bad
>about all those plastics I was using. I'd tried the cornstarch
>peanuts(anyone else notice that they don't have the resiliency of the
>styrofoam ones?) at 1 1/2 times the price, don't have an industrial
>popcorn popper (and don't want rats), and was wondering what to do. Then
>a guy I know out in the country told me about his trucking route to and
>from farmers and the egg plant, and his trouble getting rid of his
>cardboard 12" x 12" egg flats, and a light bulb went off! I get
>thousands from him now...they are wonderful shock absorbers, recyclable,
>and fit in between the boxes like a dream. They are easily cut using a
>serrated knife, and are free! (actually I give him pots in exchange for
>this) Now I hardly ever use styro peanuts, and the boxes I ship are
>slightly more rigid.
>
>Another thing I do with UPS is to call and have them stop out and pick up
>my boxes for shipment. It's called the "Ready Customer" account, and it
>costs 5$ per call for pickup, but you keep the paperwork and put on the
>stickers and weigh the boxes, etc. Saves time, and time is money,
>right? Youmight want to see if they offer it in your area.
>
>That's all for today folks, time to go glaze.
>
>Richard Aerni
>Bloomfield, NY
>
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