The Green Lie

MrFedEx

Engorged Member
For the last year or so, FedEx has really laid it on about "being Green", yet, as usual, the truth is far different from the reality. Just last week, they were all over a Green conference held in Shanghai, and the recent Route 66 trip with a pure electric van generated a lot of positive PR and was hyped incessantly in FedEx in-house media. Almost every day, there is something new and Green being announced on the corporate website, like the 3-wheeled trike that is being considered for Europe.

The key word is "considered", because when does FedEx ever really deliver on the Green Promise? It doesn't. We've been "considering" hybrid and electric vehicles for many years, but there are only a handful in the fleet, and only in areas that are particularly ecologically sensitive or have strict legal guidelines for pollution standards (think California). The overall fleet structure is essentially the same as it always has been. Is FedEx buying new tractors to meet the much stricter guidelines for diesel vehicles that hit first in 2007? Maybe a few. Are the old gas-guzzling walk-ins being replaced? Again, a few of the oldest have been retired or taken off the road when there was a major component failure. Overall...not much of an effort, but lots and lots of hype.

FedEx calls itself "The World's Largest Cargo Airline", which is expedient for RLA purposes, but what they really are is the world's largest express delivery system. And an express delivery system that relies on jet airplanes can never be "Green". Airplanes are far less efficient than ships or trains, and the amount of pollution any jet generates is massive. FedEx has "experimented" with Bio-jet fuel, but since it's more expensive than conventional Jet-A, does anyone think for a moment that Bio-Jet-fuel will be a primary fuel source? It isn't on Fred's front burner.

The truth is that FedEx is trying very hard to sell the idea that it's a Green company, because being environmentally-sensitive is big business these days, and the more people it can fool into thinking it "cares about the environment", the more shippers will choose FedEx. It's just another PR scam, and just another bold-faced lie for the masters of the craft.

For what it's worth, I don't see UPS putting the hard sell on being Green, but I do see them making more of a commitment to hybrid and other new technology vehicles. They seem far more upfront about the idea that it will save them money long-term to make a large capital investment in vehicles that will eventually pay for themselves in the form of fuel-savings. It's about the Green dollars, not the Green image. Substance over image, imagine that?

When you see a hybrid or electric van in your station, please let me know. Or if you're at a ramp, let all of us know when you see a jet being fueled with Bio-Jet Fuel or a new CTV tractor that meets 2010 clean air standards with EGR or Blue-Tec type diesel technology. And if you're in Europe, let us know when all of those super fuel-efficient trikes arrive, OK? Don't hold your breath on any of these.
 

vantexan

Well-Known Member
For the last year or so, FedEx has really laid it on about "being Green", yet, as usual, the truth is far different from the reality. Just last week, they were all over a Green conference held in Shanghai, and the recent Route 66 trip with a pure electric van generated a lot of positive PR and was hyped incessantly in FedEx in-house media. Almost every day, there is something new and Green being announced on the corporate website, like the 3-wheeled trike that is being considered for Europe.

The key word is "considered", because when does FedEx ever really deliver on the Green Promise? It doesn't. We've been "considering" hybrid and electric vehicles for many years, but there are only a handful in the fleet, and only in areas that are particularly ecologically sensitive or have strict legal guidelines for pollution standards (think California). The overall fleet structure is essentially the same as it always has been. Is FedEx buying new tractors to meet the much stricter guidelines for diesel vehicles that hit first in 2007? Maybe a few. Are the old gas-guzzling walk-ins being replaced? Again, a few of the oldest have been retired or taken off the road when there was a major component failure. Overall...not much of an effort, but lots and lots of hype.

FedEx calls itself "The World's Largest Cargo Airline", which is expedient for RLA purposes, but what they really are is the world's largest express delivery system. And an express delivery system that relies on jet airplanes can never be "Green". Airplanes are far less efficient than ships or trains, and the amount of pollution any jet generates is massive. FedEx has "experimented" with Bio-jet fuel, but since it's more expensive than conventional Jet-A, does anyone think for a moment that Bio-Jet-fuel will be a primary fuel source? It isn't on Fred's front burner.

The truth is that FedEx is trying very hard to sell the idea that it's a Green company, because being environmentally-sensitive is big business these days, and the more people it can fool into thinking it "cares about the environment", the more shippers will choose FedEx. It's just another PR scam, and just another bold-faced lie for the masters of the craft.

For what it's worth, I don't see UPS putting the hard sell on being Green, but I do see them making more of a commitment to hybrid and other new technology vehicles. They seem far more upfront about the idea that it will save them money long-term to make a large capital investment in vehicles that will eventually pay for themselves in the form of fuel-savings. It's about the Green dollars, not the Green image. Substance over image, imagine that?

When you see a hybrid or electric van in your station, please let me know. Or if you're at a ramp, let all of us know when you see a jet being fueled with Bio-Jet Fuel or a new CTV tractor that meets 2010 clean air standards with EGR or Blue-Tec type diesel technology. And if you're in Europe, let us know when all of those super fuel-efficient trikes arrive, OK? Don't hold your breath on any of these.


We recently got 6 new Ford Econolines with the "flex fuel" logo on them. It's really a matter of public perception. If the current mood is to be "green" then a company that's by definition a huge carbon emitter is going to wave green flags and hope the extremists don't try to shut them down. The only way FedEx is ever going to be a truly green company is if the technology advances to the point that it's financially worthwhile to convert the fleet. Not going to happen anytime soon.

I've always thought it odd that SUV's generate so much negativity and yet people have been cruising around in vans for decades. I guess vans are just too cool to criticize, not to mention they've provided housing for many who hug trees. Not knocking them, may end up in one for retirement at the rate it's going.
 
I drive a Hybrid Fedex truck and i swear i gas this thing up twice as much as a regular truck.I know they have smaller tanks but cmon.I dont see any in gas savings.
 

FedEx2000

Well-Known Member
The downtown station where I am has either 6 or 10 hybrid W700's, can't remember exactly, not in CA or East Coast either. Everyone likes to criticize the purchase of the 757's and 777's, but they are much more fuel efficient than the 727/Airbuses they replace, not to mention they require less crew to operate. Obviously they still require huge amounts of fuel to operate, but that's the nature of our business. We also have some of, if not the largest, solar arrays in the world on the OAK hub, Cologne, Germany, and on multiple Ground/Freight locations in CA and NJ. Not to say we don't use a lot of energy....but nothing wrong with trying to use less is there? In regards to the all-electric truck from the Route 66 tour, of course it will only be used in dense urban areas. Such are the limits of technology at this point, thus the support truck that followed it on it's way. Fred supports the electrification of our transportation network, where viable, and decreased dependence on oil......read the "Electrification Coalition" to find out more. (Not saying it's all 100% correct/accurate, just a good read about the topic) But until someone invents an electric/solar/hybrid aircraft, or something vastly different from our current options, what choice is there?
 

MrFedEx

Engorged Member
The downtown station where I am has either 6 or 10 hybrid W700's, can't remember exactly, not in CA or East Coast either. Everyone likes to criticize the purchase of the 757's and 777's, but they are much more fuel efficient than the 727/Airbuses they replace, not to mention they require less crew to operate. Obviously they still require huge amounts of fuel to operate, but that's the nature of our business. We also have some of, if not the largest, solar arrays in the world on the OAK hub, Cologne, Germany, and on multiple Ground/Freight locations in CA and NJ. Not to say we don't use a lot of energy....but nothing wrong with trying to use less is there? In regards to the all-electric truck from the Route 66 tour, of course it will only be used in dense urban areas. Such are the limits of technology at this point, thus the support truck that followed it on it's way. Fred supports the electrification of our transportation network, where viable, and decreased dependence on oil......read the "Electrification Coalition" to find out more. (Not saying it's all 100% correct/accurate, just a good read about the topic) But until someone invents an electric/solar/hybrid aircraft, or something vastly different from our current options, what choice is there?

You're right that the very nature of the business makes being Green difficult. My take is that FedEx wants the public to think it's making an all-out effort, when that's just not the case. I can't stand Sarah Palin, but her "lipstick on a pig" analogy seems appropriate for the FedEx Green Team. We're nowhere close to being there, and I think that it's much more about the PR than any real concern for the planet. The solar arrays and energy cells at OAKR and other locations are more of the same IMO.
 

MrFedEx

Engorged Member
I drive a Hybrid Fedex truck and i swear i gas this thing up twice as much as a regular truck.I know they have smaller tanks but cmon.I dont see any in gas savings.

You just undid yourself. Think about it for a second and then review your past posts. You said you were a foot courier. Sorry, but foot couriers do not drive. That would put them in a different pay class and negate the cost savings of their lower pay grade. Caught, roped, and tied. You are welcome.
 

Cactus

Just telling it like it is
I drive a Hybrid Fedex truck and i swear i gas this thing up twice as much as a regular truck.I know they have smaller tanks but cmon.I dont see any in gas savings.

You just undid yourself. Think about it for a second and then review your past posts. You said you were a foot courier. Sorry, but foot couriers do not drive. That would put them in a different pay class and negate the cost savings of their lower pay grade. Caught, roped, and tied. You are welcome.

Busted! :funny:
 

vantexan

Well-Known Member
No doubt about that.

That PR machine of Fred's runs on BS.


In all fairness guys if you are truly worried about the planet you would quit working for such a huge carbon emitter. To attack the company you work at for not being green enough is somewhat comparable to Al Gore talking about global warming while flying around in a large jet. A jet model by the way that is known for being an especially inefficient carbon emitter. FedEx is a lot of things, not all good, but it does provide a much needed service that requires burning a lot of fuel to get the job done. That's one thing I'm proud of when I do this job. To see the look of relief on an elderly person when I deliver their meds to them. Attack FedEx all you want for not being fair with their pay policy. But dredging up every negative angle possible to put them down only makes you look silly.
 
You just undid yourself. Think about it for a second and then review your past posts. You said you were a foot courier. Sorry, but foot couriers do not drive. That would put them in a different pay class and negate the cost savings of their lower pay grade. Caught, roped, and tied. You are welcome.
Where did i ever say i was a foot courier?At least i don't pretend i have a bunch of fake college degrees and brag about it.hahahaha
 

UnconTROLLed

perfection
You just undid yourself. Think about it for a second and then review your past posts. You said you were a foot courier. Sorry, but foot couriers do not drive. That would put them in a different pay class and negate the cost savings of their lower pay grade. Caught, roped, and tied. You are welcome.

Here's a good one for you and everyone.

I was a driver for UPS from 81-99.

Care to go into detail about how Fedex benefits our lousy compared to UPS?I was a driver at UPS for 13 years and I don't remember the UPS benefits being so superior.If anything they were worse.A surgeries that my wife had to get were also denied.This was a long time ago so it may be different now.Every Local is different.

lmao, can't even get his tall tale straight. :)
 

bbsam

Moderator
Staff member
I think you're missing the point. If Fedex get's even a 1/2 mile per gallon better on average, the environmental impact is huge. We don't have to have 40 mpg trucks to make a difference. And you need the small steps (1/2mpg) to get to the larger, incremental steps. In other words, it took alot of people buying alot of crappy American cars for the industry to right itself and put out a decent product
 

UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)

Well-Known Member
I think you're missing the point. If Fedex get's even a 1/2 mile per gallon better on average, the environmental impact is huge. We don't have to have 40 mpg trucks to make a difference. And you need the small steps (1/2mpg) to get to the larger, incremental steps. In other words, it took alot of people buying alot of crappy American cars for the industry to right itself and put out a decent product

I always thought it was a lot of people buying fuel efficient foreign cars that got the industry to right itself and put out a decent product.
 

MrFedEx

Engorged Member
I think you're missing the point. If Fedex get's even a 1/2 mile per gallon better on average, the environmental impact is huge. We don't have to have 40 mpg trucks to make a difference. And you need the small steps (1/2mpg) to get to the larger, incremental steps. In other words, it took alot of people buying alot of crappy American cars for the industry to right itself and put out a decent product

True. My point is that their walk doesn't match their talk. Lots of hype, and not much action. They are much more concerned about increasing their PR mileage than overall fleet mileage.
 

MrFedEx

Engorged Member
In all fairness guys if you are truly worried about the planet you would quit working for such a huge carbon emitter. To attack the company you work at for not being green enough is somewhat comparable to Al Gore talking about global warming while flying around in a large jet. A jet model by the way that is known for being an especially inefficient carbon emitter. FedEx is a lot of things, not all good, but it does provide a much needed service that requires burning a lot of fuel to get the job done. That's one thing I'm proud of when I do this job. To see the look of relief on an elderly person when I deliver their meds to them. Attack FedEx all you want for not being fair with their pay policy. But dredging up every negative angle possible to put them down only makes you look silly.

I'm not worried about working for a major polluter, nor am I claiming I'm Green. FedEx is trying to convince us that they are Green. They aren't.
 

Cactus

Just telling it like it is
In all fairness guys if you are truly worried about the planet you would quit working for such a huge carbon emitter. To attack the company you work at for not being green enough is somewhat comparable to Al Gore talking about global warming while flying around in a large jet. A jet model by the way that is known for being an especially inefficient carbon emitter. FedEx is a lot of things, not all good, but it does provide a much needed service that requires burning a lot of fuel to get the job done. That's one thing I'm proud of when I do this job. To see the look of relief on an elderly person when I deliver their meds to them. Attack FedEx all you want for not being fair with their pay policy. But dredging up every negative angle possible to put them down only makes you look silly.

Keep drinking Fred's Kool-Aid while you admire him while you live below middle class standards.

In the mean we'll look for you on I AM FEDEX.
 
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