The new dimensional weight pricing policies of UPS and FedEx have brought challenges for many shippers, with some still to address the issues and others not sure how to even start. Businesses that fail to comply with the changes will see, or are already seeing, the cost of shipping goods increase.
If you want to manage the new pricing structure, there are ways in which you can adapt your warehouse operations that will also make your systems more efficient.
Evaluate your systems
Evaluating how you ship parcels is the first step in making compliance simpler. Rather than just taking weight, service level and shipping zone into account, carriers must now also consider the dimensions of the box. This makes the process more complex.
Third-party shipping companies can reduce the issues of non-compliance, as they have the systems in place to handle all the factors and can be integrated with existing warehouse systems.
Ensure measurements are accurate
If you want to reduce penalties for incorrect measurements, you need to establish the accurate dimensions of your shipping boxes so that every package is catalogued correctly. This will create a more efficient system overall.
There are now high-tech weighing and dimension systems that can quickly obtain accurate measurements for all your goods, providing you with quality data to use. This can help your whole operations run smoother, from the time goods enter your warehouse to when they are placed on pallet racking through to when they are finally shipped.
Make the slotting process better
The use of accurate measurements can help to optimise your slotting process, enabling orders to be fulfilled more efficiently.
Cluttered warehouses make it harder for employees to find and collect the goods effectively, with the time it takes them to search for and walk to the products making up the majority of the cost of fulfilling orders. The use of more accurate systems, such as product dimensions, historical data and forecasting information, enables you to have the right-sized picking locations, reducing the picking time and making replenishing racks faster and easier.
If you put the systems in place to deal with dimensional weight pricing, it will ensure you always comply with the new rules in addition to reducing costs and improving productivity across your warehouse.