FedEx: never exceeding expectations

[SteveRiley]

My employer has shipped some hardware to my home. One item was sent with FedEx via two-day service. It originated in Memphis. Take a look at the shipment travel history: the item actually arrived in Seattle after just one day.



Now, do you think they'd actually deliver it early? Of course not. They certainly wouldn't want to train folks to think exceeding service level agreements is ever possible. But does it make sense to advertise this fact? "Package not due for delivery," indeed!

[GreyGeek]

Did they toss it over the gate?

[Nate B.]

Some years ago I ordered a bunch of parts for a Kawasaki quad I had bought a few months before. The parts shipment originated on the east coast and was in Topeka on a Thursday morning (plenty early for the 2 hour delivery time to here). Well, Thursday comes and goes and so does Friday. By Friday evening I'm getting just a bit perturbed and called their customer service and the agent went so far as to call the Topeka depot to figure out what was going on. She called back rather apologetic saying that the depot simply didn't run a truck those two days. No explanation. The parts showed on Saturday!

UPS and USPS have had much better track records in this part of the world. I try to avoid FedEx, but sometimes there is no choice and I simply grit my teeth and await the inevitable.

[woodsmoke]

Well, to play devil's advocate for FedEx, or ANY shipping company, since I was involved with inventory control for one manufacturer. shipping with another manufacturer , and also since I, personally, manufactured educational products and shipped nationwide...

While the receiving customer tends to think in terms of "me first", the company does not necessarily so do,

And for reasons that not be immediately apparent.

The "customer" tends to think in terms of "first in, first out" (FIFO) , but the shipper does not necessarily think in terms of "fifo".

Depending on the shipping load, if something does not have to be moved forward "this day" but is scheduled to be there "that day" and if it comes in with a bunch of stuff that has to be there "this day", then, even though it is "available" to be moved on, it may be put back in the cue until the stuff that has to be there "this day" is shipped.

Since the item was scheduled for "two day" delivery, one would assume that, in terms of good public relations, the company would find it advantageous to deliver it a day ahead.

But, since it was not, then, possibly, there were other items that "had" to be moved forward that day and then the "second day" item could delivered "on the second day", when it was scheduled. This did not provide the company with the good public relations of being ahead of time but it did deliver "on time".

This is all assumption on my part, but having been involved shipping from a variety of standpoints, it would seem logical.

Or, it may be a business decision that even though they could ship "ahead" of time that not doing so then justifies the higher price of one day shipping.

Don't know, just some thoughts.

woodsmoke

[whatthefunk]

I had something similar happen once. I had lost my drivers license and I needed a new one shipped over-seas as soon as possible. From Colorado, it was sent to Memphis where it sat for two days with the same "not due for delivery" message. It then went to somewhere in Europe, London I think, and sat there for a day or two. It then came to Johannesburg the night it was supposed to be delivered, a Friday. I called FedEx and they said that despite it being evening the day my package was due, my package wouldnt be delivered until Monday because they didnt work on weekends. That was about three years ago and I havent used FedEx since.

[woodsmoke]

I've used all three, USPS, FedEx and UPS and of the three UPS was always the best.

Back when I worked for a company that made....dont' laugh....fruit cakes....I KNOW....So NOW everybody knows why the old woodsmoker is SUCH a fruitcake!!

But, letting that pass.... UPS back then only shipped "west of the Mississippi". In the many shipments we sent one to an address in Chicago, by Post Office and one to Hawaii by UPS.

The one to Hawaii was returned, as I remember about five days later with "addressee unknown" (both were "gifts") and just "dusty". Back then the packages were wrapped in brown paper, taped and then tied with string. The tape, string and paper were completely intact.

The one to Chicago, with the Post Office, was returned addressee unknown about two WEEKS later, crushed on one side, paper and cardboard box and TIN opened, and some of the fruit cake EATEN! They did not however, untie the string and left the return addy ok so it got back to us...

That was the first Christmas when UPS was shipping for us, and the driver appeared with their little "shorty" "van", and I told him he should bring a bigger truck, next day, there was too much for the van, so third day he came with the next up "cargo" van and it was pretty well filled, and I told him he really should bring a bigger truck...

Next day we filled that one and he allowed that maybe he should bring a bigger truck.... LOL

A coupla days later we called UPS and he showed up with the short bed trailer and we had the roller lines and he was having to shove cartons of grouped orders and almost filled that one ...lol

After that he just brought a full semi! until we had finished the Christmas season.

All lotsa fun!!

woodsmoke

[Detonate]

Well, I have a different problem with all of the shippers. The small town I live in does not have home mail delivery. We are required to have a PO Box at the post office, which USPS provides for free. Both UPS and Fedex will only deliver to my street address, not my PO Box. When ordering online, the shipper does not always specify which method will be used. So I have a problem determining which address to enter as my shipping address. If I put down my PO Box, many times I will get an error message that they do not ship to a PO Box. I will then change the shipping address to my street address. Then they will bounce the order because the address does not match the address on my credit card. So I have to restrict my online shopping to those sites which will ship to a different address than the billing address or ship USPS. Sometimes I get an error that says my address does not exist. I think they use the USPS database to check this, and since we don't have home delivery, my home address does not exist in that database.

[ScottyK]

It's too bad you can't simply go down to their warehouse location and pick up the package yourself. Nothing more frustrating than seeing that your package arrived Friday morning and Monday is a holiday.

[GreyGeek]

Fruit cakes?

One of my business partners, Buddy Miller III, lived in Waterproof, LA, and had an almond orchard. He made fruitcakes and stuffed his almonds into them. He had markets all over the world. (We were partners in an AI device for Apple & PC's called "SAVVY".)

[vw72]

My employer has shipped some hardware to my home. One item was sent with FedEx via two-day service. It originated in Memphis. Take a look at the shipment travel history: the item actually arrived in Seattle after just one day.



Now, do you think they'd actually deliver it early? Of course not. They certainly wouldn't want to train folks to think exceeding service level agreements is ever possible. But does it make sense to advertise this fact? "Package not due for delivery," indeed!

Our local FedEx already has packages on the trucks and the trucks out the door by 7:30am, so even though your package arrived at the facility on the 17th, the delivery trucks were already out the door. It's similar to dropping off a letter in the mailbox after the last pickup time. Yes, it's in the mailbox, but it won't be picked up until the next day. Doesn't make it any less frustrating, though.

[woodsmoke]

OK, GG I would really like for you to sit down and think VERY SERIOUSLY.....and determine if there is ANY ONE thing that you have not done in your long, amazing, and fruitful....(almonds...get it!? ) career and post that one thing, seriously, though, I doubt that you will be able to think of one thing ...

just kidding, but sometimes you are a hoot!

woodsmoke

[GreyGeek]

OK, GG I would really like for you to sit down and think VERY SERIOUSLY.....and determine if there is ANY ONE thing that you have not done in your long, amazing, and fruitful....(almonds...get it!? ) career and post that one thing, seriously, though, I doubt that you will be able to think of one thing ...

just kidding, but sometimes you are a hoot!

woodsmoke

Buddy was a character. He went to Russia to try and create a market for his hogs and fruitcake. (This was around 1982 or 83) and when he came back he had a bottle of Russian vodka. He gave me an amount equal to what a communion thimble would hold. It tasted and felt like mineral oil with a touch of turpentine. It instantly anesthetized my tongue. Within 5 to 10 minutes I was slightly dizzy. He said it was 180 proof, which is as strong as alcohol can get without using drying agents. I like an occasional glass of white wine, but that stuff was too strong for me.

On that trip I flew myself and my business partner (before we signed on with Buddy) down to Waterproof in a Cessna 172 and I landed on a grass air strip outside his southern mansion-style house. He owned two, the one his father and previous generations used, and a modern one. He put us up in the old one because the indoor pool in the new one was too close to the guest rooms and his kids were having an over-night. The next morning I got up early and walked around the grounds because I had seen some odd looking shacks behind the old mansion. They turned out to be slave shacks. Standing in one of those and looking around made the hair on my head and arms stand up. But, that's another story. Anyway, after we concluded our business arrangements he took Bob and I, along with his family, to "Cock of the Walk", at 200 N Broadway St Natchez, MS, for an evening meal. That was an awesome eating place. I had never had slices of dell pickle in fried with pancake batter before. Buddy suggested I try a "Mint Julep". I had no clue what it was. I gave it a sip but couldn't taste any alcohol. It tasted great! I order a second one. The view out the west window of the restaurant overlooking the Mississippi river with a setting moon in the western sky was awesome. Then the world started spinning around. I scratched Mint Juleps off my list of casual alcoholic beverages.

P.S. -- I haven't sky dived, but I'd love to, and I haven't bunge jumped, but you'll never catch me doing that voluntarily.

[SteveRiley]

LOL... one little gripe and it spawns a looooooong thread!

I have a slightly scary UEFI story to tell this evening. Will type it up momentarily.