Amazon volume doubled this saturday
- Thread starter snowcat66
- Start date
hypo hanna
Well-Known Member
Yipee! More packages to drop kick in the back of the van!
fedupforsure
Well-Known Member
yes Saturdays are getting very heavy and we are hearing the mandatory ot bs
MrFedEx
Engorged Member
Of course FedEx management is going to tell you that UPS "failed". From what I have heard, FedEx failed far worse than UPS did. Perhaps the reality is that Mr. Bezos is playing UPS and FedEx off against each other right now, with each company trying to kiss his ass as hard as possible. My guess is that FedEx offered to undercut whatever UPS was charging in order to curry favor with Amazon and try and keep the business.
I would expect the back and forth to continue, and I highly suspect that I am correct about Amazon using the joint Peak disasters as leverage.
MrFedEx
Engorged Member
They still must want it, based on volume. I agree that it's low-margin. How else could Amazon ship diapers, Top Ramen and all of the other garbage freight through Express.
Route 66
Slapped Upside-da-Head Member
and they're used diapers at that!
FedExRookie
Well-Known Member
Dear god, can you admit the ENTIRE shipping industry (FedEx, UPS, USPS) was not ready for the influx of volume and a shorter 'peak period'. FedEx wasn't prepared and neither was UPS, I still had a 3 hr wait at their distribution center on January 9 of this year. They were WORSE off than we were, there is no doubt about it. They run their entire network through one company, Fedex at least splits it up (Ground, etc), and that's why you didn't hear as many complaints about FedEx. We were behind, we failed to deliver, but due to the split air and ground entities our customers didn't feel it as bad. I'm not saying Express was a shinning example of how to operate, all parcel delivery entities did horrible, FedEx just happened to be the turd that was an inch or two shorter than UPS in regard to logistics this year.
MAKAVELI
Well-Known Member
UPS stated most of the backlog during Christmas week was due to weather and overcapacity in their air system. Not due to their system being combined. You also have to take into account UPS volume is greater than FedEx overall. Separating the opco is a very inefficient business model. The only reason FedEx does it because of the huge profits it makes via the contractor scam.
FedExRookie
Well-Known Member
I'm saying efficient in the sense that it helped reduce the backup for FedEx. Imagine if we were running Express and Ground out of the same stations. What could have reduced overcapacity... If air and ground were separated? If one is delayed both are delayed with UPS, not with Fedex since ground and air don't move together.
I haven't dug into the logistics or the financial statements of either opco to say which is truly more efficient. I'm just saying that during this peak disaster, having air and ground separate reduced the backlog for FedEx for each.
MAKAVELI
Well-Known Member
If we were running express and ground our routes would be more condensed, more drivers and be able to adjust more efficiently to volume changes. I see it every time we have late freight, UPS is always on road earlier than us and shuttle freight out. While we are starting our sorts later and forcing drivers to rtb to get late freight. MFE was right about Express management having no plan and creating a cluster friend. I'm sorry if the kool aid blinds you but it is reality.
FedExRookie
Well-Known Member
UPS is on the road before you because their trucks are loaded 2 to 4 hours before sort starts. I can agree that it makes more sense and is probably more efficient. You're missing my point, maybe i'm missing my point.
This peak was the equivalent of each company being a highway. Lets say UPS is I-50 and FedEx is I-55.
Both I 50 and I 55 got bottle-necked during peak for various reasons. Weather, increase in freight, smaller window.
With FedEx's business model, they created exit ramps (ground) to divert that freight another way freeing up space on I 55.
So while UPS's I 50 is still bottle-necked, FedEx has cleared up some room loosening up the bottle-neck. As I said, I haven't looked into the logistics and financial implications. Maybe the cost of maintaining those exit ramps isn't beneficial (Lower pay to employees, etc) with the increase cost of creating and maintaining them along with I 55.
So during peak, with the influx of freight, some of it was diverted and allowed for FedEx to not have as bad of delays as UPS. Now fedex has to keep up with the infrastructure of the ground exit ramps even though there is enough capacity on I55, which is where you would be correct in it being inefficient throughout the rest of the year.
MAKAVELI
Well-Known Member
You are missing the point. UPS's peak problems were not the result of it's ground and air networks being combined. You are comparing the two companies as if they had the exact same volumes and hubs located in the same locations. Apples to oranges. What's funny is FedEx promotes itself as being the world's largest air cargo company in the world and according to you being more efficient by separating the opco and still had major problems with it's Express volume.
http://www.aviationbrief.com/?p=15339
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
In the latest mailout 'From The Chairman' Fred unsurprisingly is unwilling to accept any blame for the last peak fiasco. He goes on to say that it was mostly UPS that failed and any FedEx service failures were "blown out of proportion by the media."
I suppose he expects the workforce and the stockholders to swallow his latest round of BS hook, line and sinker. I guess he chooses to ignore all the mountains of undelivered freight that sat at each station for up to 10 days because him and his Memphis elite have no clue how run Express properly.
One would think that after 40 years in the business they'd have some sort of clue.
I suppose he expects the workforce and the stockholders to swallow his latest round of BS hook, line and sinker. I guess he chooses to ignore all the mountains of undelivered freight that sat at each station for up to 10 days because him and his Memphis elite have no clue how run Express properly.
One would think that after 40 years in the business they'd have some sort of clue.
whenIgetthere
Well-Known Member
You know how they are at the top of Express, it would work out better for them if Christmas fell on the same date every year!
amazon really doesn't care who they ship packages with. their computer picks the warehouse, box size and carrier that is cheapest automatically, the only reason for us to get a surge over UPS would be because we decided to deliver their packages for even less money or just plain dumb luck.
Doc Sorting Dude
Well-Known Member
Kinda wish they would send those exercise machines via ground oh yeah, also those freakin' massage tables. What next appliances?
MrFedEx
Engorged Member
I love the fact that FedEx dumped a lot of W700s and replaced them with smaller Sprinters and Nissans, which now get bulked-out all the time with the Amazon garbage freight. Smart move.
fedupforsure
Well-Known Member
what I loved was the letter from freddy telling us that we had a great peak and only looked bad because we were lumped with ups. OMG what color is the sky in his world?
