Volume 36: Negotiate Your Carrier Contract Like a Pro

Volume 36 Breakdown:?

1. Last Week's Top Parcel Power Plays
2. KPI of the Week: # of Additional Handling Charges
3. Negotiate Your Carrier Contract Like a Pro

Every week we’re catching you up on the top industry news stories from the previous week. Let’s get into it:

#1 FedEx Wins $500M in Business From Healthcare Sector

In a recent earnings report, FedEx revealed they won $500M in new business from the healthcare sector in FY2024.?

FedEx has improved their offerings to this sector recently, allowing customers to select specific service options - like temperature requirements - for individual packages.

Healthcare is one of the most high-margin sectors for parcel carriers. FedEx faces stiff competition from UPS, who has invested heavily in healthcare shipping capabilities and hopes to double their revenue from the sector by 2026.

#2 UPS Temporarily Closing Baltimore Facility

UPS plans to close a customer center in Baltimore in late August, a move which will layoff 540 employees. Over 100 employees were laid off at the same facility earlier this year.

According to UPS, the facility is being modernized as part of their Network of the Future initiative, and they hope to reopen it in late 2025. In the meantime, they’re working to place employees in a temporary on-site hub and other locations.

UPS announced their network transformation plan earlier this year, which plans to close up to 200 facilities and save $3 billion annually by 2028.

Article from Brinley Hineman, FreightWaves

What is # of Additional Handling Charges?

# of Additional Handling Charges refers to the number of packages that are charged for not conforming to shipping standards regarding weight, dimension, or abnormal packaging.?

Why is tracking # of Additional Handling Charges?

Tracking your # of Additional Handling Charges is important because they are often preventable. If you notice that you are getting a lot of these charges, you can evaluate a couple things:

• Are your boxes larger than they need to be??
• Could splitting shipments up into smaller packages save you money?

An inch can make a big difference in what you're charged. It is also important to track these charges because carriers make mistakes. Keep an eye out for incorrect instances of the additional handling surcharge.

4 Expert Strategies to Negotiate Your Carrier Contract Like a Pro

Don’t let fear keep you from getting the best deals with your parcel carrier! Get cheaper rates, reduced expenses and improved margins during your next negotiation by mastering these 4 strategies.?

You’ll learn how to analyze your shipping operations data to:

• Identify areas of impact and take action to lower expenses
• Assess base discounts, minimum charges, dimensional weight, surcharges and commitments
• Model operational data to visualize future decisions and market changes

Download the guide here!?