Hey, this is quite an odd question but as a new Preloader at UPS, I want to be able to catch up quickly so I don't have to learn the REALLY hard way. To all you old Preloaders, what do you do to maximize your efficiency? I'm currently in the training week, but normal preloaders who work everyday have to take care of 3 trucks all by themselves. I was in charge of sorting 3 trucks and taking care of 1 truck and that was quite difficult! Please help, thanks!
Preloader Efficiency
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evilleace
Well-Known Member
Way to be positive and help the guy out.
I try to maximize my carries and make as few trips into the car as possible. Also try to either pull the pal label or write the pal number on the outside of the package so you can quickly find where you need to be in the car, you don't have to write on every single box but every couple doesn't hurt. Move bulk stops to the floor if they are on the shelf. If you are getting slammed stack out but try to keep it neat so you can work around it and get caught up when the flow slows down. Mostly just keep a good safe pace, go as fast as you safely can it gets done when it gets done is the way I have been looking at it recently. Good luck
Cementups
Box Monkey
Time and practice is the only way you can get better. We all developed our own techiques on how to work the Preload. And working off a boxline and working off a belt are completely different ball games. Especially depending on the jerk who is in charge of the speed of the belt.
'Lord Brown's bidding'
Well-Known Member
If on a boxline.....4 per bin, EVERY bin. It really works (unless your pull totals north of 1100 pieces). Letters are included; afterall, they are included in your piece count.That being said (about letters and/or other "smalls"), focus on the bigger/heavier pieces early in your shift. Empties out bins and can allow you to have smoother time as morning goes on. Meet bins 3 ft in front of your work area.If your timing is thrown off and you should meet a bin in the middle of your work area, don't focus on it; rather, let it go and make up the pieces with other bins. For instance, take two extra from the next two bins, or one extra from the next four.Remember that this is a numbers game. If you are projected to have 800 pieces count on 850. Assuming you have 25 bins to pull in one standard revolution (20-21 mins) you should pull around 300 pieces an hour, perhaps more, when your bins are full. Don't care how bad your bins look in the beginning, do the 4 per bin and they will empty, unless it is north of 1150 piece count. If it is, and they are giving you a hard time, make sure they are giving you enough time to load. UPS asks for 224-230 pieces an hour; 4 per bin puts you north of 275 at least (depending upon the number of bins in a revolution. do the math. Have lots more, but 4 per bin is important......If you are on a belt.....never mastered the belt, but try to meet your pkgs well ahead of the work area
UnconTROLLed
perfection
I have more than 3...at least 4, if not 5 trucks. 1200-1500pcs. Most people have 4 car pulls in our building.
What type of preload operation is this? Boxline? Belt to car?
Do you have PAS system yet? WIth the smaller white label? Or is your building loading by the 4x6 printed UPS label?
Answering this question would help answer yours. Also, do you split a belt? Any quirks about your "pull"?
UnconTROLLed
perfection
My random thoughts (probably echoing others in this thread). These are mostly boxline- car thoughts because it has been roughly 8-10 years since I've done belt to car.
-#1 LOAD EVERYTHING. Never stack unless you absolutely, positively must. Even if you are "behind" never stack, it is a safety hazard (even when you are doing so "neatly") and the company CANNOT make you work unsafely.
You will never see a "fast and efficient" preloader stack anything! unless it's a bulk stop that simply cannot fit/would be in your way, which is normal.
By far the most overrated and unnecessary thing I see people do is stack, so don't do it!
-#2 If boxline -car - Pull every large package out from your cages frist. Leave the small stuff for the next revolution. Even if you only get 1-2 pcs per cage, they are 1-2 pcs that take the time of loading 4-6 small ones. Your cages will be much easier when you have room to sort through it on the next revolution.
-#3 maximize your path efficiency. load your cars sequentially down the line, try not to start at the last one unless that is the only car you have packages in your hands for
-#4 (boxline to car) NEVER sort your packages in the cages for the next rev. the sorters just throw packages into the cage (it is frustrating) and have no regard for your cages. It's best to leave them a mess than to sort it and waste the time doing so.
#5- get as many totes as you have cars to load, when you first start shift. when you get small pkgs middle and end of shift, just throw them in the tote instead of loading them. Periodically I'll go into the car and load the 10-15 smalls all at once instead of wasting time in travel, tossing them behind all of the other packages individually.
#6- don't be afraid to skip cages that are less heavy to meet with ones that are heavy. if you can do so without interfering with the person up the line from you, meet your heavy cages well ahead and sort them. Try to get 6-10 packages from a full one instead of 2 from an empty one and 4 from a full one.
-#1 LOAD EVERYTHING. Never stack unless you absolutely, positively must. Even if you are "behind" never stack, it is a safety hazard (even when you are doing so "neatly") and the company CANNOT make you work unsafely.
You will never see a "fast and efficient" preloader stack anything! unless it's a bulk stop that simply cannot fit/would be in your way, which is normal.
By far the most overrated and unnecessary thing I see people do is stack, so don't do it!
-#2 If boxline -car - Pull every large package out from your cages frist. Leave the small stuff for the next revolution. Even if you only get 1-2 pcs per cage, they are 1-2 pcs that take the time of loading 4-6 small ones. Your cages will be much easier when you have room to sort through it on the next revolution.
-#3 maximize your path efficiency. load your cars sequentially down the line, try not to start at the last one unless that is the only car you have packages in your hands for
-#4 (boxline to car) NEVER sort your packages in the cages for the next rev. the sorters just throw packages into the cage (it is frustrating) and have no regard for your cages. It's best to leave them a mess than to sort it and waste the time doing so.
#5- get as many totes as you have cars to load, when you first start shift. when you get small pkgs middle and end of shift, just throw them in the tote instead of loading them. Periodically I'll go into the car and load the 10-15 smalls all at once instead of wasting time in travel, tossing them behind all of the other packages individually.
#6- don't be afraid to skip cages that are less heavy to meet with ones that are heavy. if you can do so without interfering with the person up the line from you, meet your heavy cages well ahead and sort them. Try to get 6-10 packages from a full one instead of 2 from an empty one and 4 from a full one.
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grgrcr88
No It's not green grocer!
Good to know, I occasionally need help with my belt!!
UnconTROLLed
perfection
lol....
..seriously, One thing that was difficult about belt-car was not letting boxes go by.
I was at the end of the belt for around 1.5 or 2 years and I'm sure you know about the carting of packages back to the top of the belt (unless you're preloading in one of those more newer advanced bldgs)
The best part of the day was giving back to those that gave so much all morning.
menotyou
bella amicizia
lol....
seriously, One thing that was difficult about belt-car was not letting boxes go by.
I was at the end of the belt for around 1.5 or 2 years and I'm sure you know about the carting of packages back to the top of the belt (unless you're preloading in one of those more newer advanced bldgs)
The best part of the day was giving back to those that gave so much all morning.
When I first started, we were allowed to 'police' ourselves. I was dragged out of the feeder to cover-load the gouverneur area. I had no idea what hell that would be. Avon doesn't deliver there, so we do. OH MY GOD, do those women shop.
Anyway, I missed a few packages as I was at the head of the belt and getting pounded. It was Avon Wednesday. A kid across the belt from me started getting tired of pulling my missed. He took a small box that I missed and nailed me in the head with it. I didn't run to the sup and cry foul. I understood his frustration with me. The next time he pulled this, I took the box he threw at me and nailed him in the head. He never pulled that, again. And, might I add, all of the sudden everyone knew my name and talked to me on break. I earned their respect. I never missed a package again, either.
Now, some people will pick up on the 'violence' in the situation I described. It wasn't meant to hurt me, just wake me up. No packages were hurt in the above situation, either. I am still friends with G***, as he was smart enough to quit when the previous center manager wouldn't control the Preload sup at the time's preloader boyfriend.
ORLY!?!
Master Loader
I work a boxline, good lord is that thing is obsolete. The problem is theres a large sum of volume coming at any given time. Thus you learn that grabbing larger boxes within each cage will help later down the road. You can also set up each cage by using other cages to pull pieces out and sort for each car.
1200-1500 pieces eh? Are those cars for rezys or buisness?
Lately they switched the work around here in Orlando. I have 3 buisness cars for the Disney area here in Orlando. Everything is large and / or heavy, plus 100 sum erges between 3 different sets. Sure im getting anywhere from 800 to 1200 a night, but its too much. Weight, size and per cage amount is enormous. Not to menction it has gotten hot and very humid this time of year. Its worse then peak in my opinion.
I've loaded 4 - 5 cars on a weekly basis. During UPS days off, like during the holidays I've loaded 10 cars, worked out of three cages.
With all of that under my belt, this is the worst I've ever had it.
1200-1500 pieces eh? Are those cars for rezys or buisness?
Lately they switched the work around here in Orlando. I have 3 buisness cars for the Disney area here in Orlando. Everything is large and / or heavy, plus 100 sum erges between 3 different sets. Sure im getting anywhere from 800 to 1200 a night, but its too much. Weight, size and per cage amount is enormous. Not to menction it has gotten hot and very humid this time of year. Its worse then peak in my opinion.
I've loaded 4 - 5 cars on a weekly basis. During UPS days off, like during the holidays I've loaded 10 cars, worked out of three cages.
With all of that under my belt, this is the worst I've ever had it.
washington57
Well-Known Member
It seems like this place just gets harder every year. It got better for a little bit but the past 3 yeas have just been terrible. Each day it feels like i'm given a little extra work.
UnconTROLLed
perfection
There is only so much the avg person can do per hour and the company can keep "raising the bar" but if the workers do not respond it's useless.
Mostly business, like most pulls. There is one residential car that is a p700 and gets around 250 stops, the other three are mostly business with the typical housecall sections. I get 900-1200 a day and also bleed around 200-250 in another pull from 2am-3am. The funny part is taking a lunch at 6am to 7am during the sort frenzy..however it's not my fault that the company and union cannot come up with a reasonable FT 22.3 job.
ORLY!?!
Master Loader
With Pass, they dotn see weight, size as an issue. They just keep adding on and on. About three months its the same issue here. I get tired and start to stack out. I cant help it, really. I could eat 3000-4000 calories a night and still not make it. To me its time to start making a point that hustle and focus dont imply with this set. Anyone have a suggestion how to get out of it? Can I, may I request a better job?
Hannibal55
New Member
Back in my Preload days, i had 5 "package cars" to take care of! 3 P1000's, 1 P800, and an old P600. Things have changed!
UnconTROLLed
perfection
Work safely. Don't do anything that is unsafe including stacking. Once you are buried at the end of the day, you should get help. If not, it is not your problem. THe best you can do is all you can do.
Thanks guys for the awesome tips and I'll be sure to use them tomorrow! Today I had to carry out 3 UPS trucks all by myself and I couldn't do it. I tried so hard to keep up the work, but fell back for some reason and started stacking the boxes. At first I thought I was doing well, grabbed a few boxes and sorted them in their proper section and then I got hit with massive amounts of boxes all at once which just made me go into a downhill FAIL. Kept stacking and stacking boxes until my supervisor began to help me out. Thanks for the awesome tips, keep them coming!
And to the most of the questions, I work on a conveyor belt. So if I miss them, it looks bad!
And to the most of the questions, I work on a conveyor belt. So if I miss them, it looks bad!
ORLY!?!
Master Loader
I know all that jazz. Theres days when I can hustle all 4 hours and get nowhere when it comes to finishing. Plus staying over 9am is nice too, minutes are mintues logged ( hopefully ).
What is said during PCm as of late is they want all preloaders to be at 250 an hour for the first hour. Yet when you start talking about large amounts a person can get here, you start to see that one might have to keep that pace up for the entire night. Keep that pace for more then 3 and a half hours is quite hard.
They did do a time study on me, found out I was going at 274 an hour. After the soup was done he tried to get me to sign the sheet, I declined too. This is after they thought I was slacking off, nope.. I anit. Plus signing that sheet and they would expect that from me every single night. Ive also decided that I wont sign missload sheets as well, even though I havnt had one in over three months. Performance isnt an issue here, because they would keep expecting more and more. I thought it was going to get easier with senority, not harder.
