Subscribe to our e-mail newsletters
For more info on a specific newsletter, click the title. Details will be displayed in a new window.
Computerworld Daily News (First Look and Wrap-Up)
Computerworld Blogs Newsletter
The Weekly Top 10
More E-Mail Newsletters 
Computerworld 2007Subscribe to Computerworld
40 years of the most authoritative source of news and information for IT leaders.

New package-flow technology not delivering at UPS

The company acknowledges problems with the software
Linda Rosencrance   Today’s Top Stories    or  Other Software Stories  
 

Sign up to receive Security Resource Alerts

February 24, 2005 (Computerworld) -- United Parcel Service Inc. has acknowledged that its highly touted package-flow technology isn't flowing as smoothly as expected, with problems at about a third of the 300 or so centers where it has been implemented.
The package-flow software suite, a UPS initiative unveiled in October 2003, was developed in-house to help the company more efficiently plan deliveries made by its drivers in the U.S. At that time, UPS said it would deploy the technology at its 1,000 U.S. hubs by 2005 (see story). However, now it seems that full implementation won't be achieved until the end of 2007, said UPS spokeswoman Donna Barrett.
According to the company, the technology will shave time and miles from drivers' routes, saving millions of dollars.
"This year, we'll probably see $50 million to $100 million dollars worth of cost-cutting as a result of improved productivity and reduced mileage and associated fuel costs," Barrett said. "We're creating optimal routes for package delivery, and that cuts down mileage. And when you cut down mileage, that cuts down fuel consumption, which cuts costs and also helps the environment."
But according to Donald Broughton, an analyst at St. Louis-based A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc., that's far less than the savings projected in 2003. "At that time ..., they said that by 2007, they would save $600 million a year by more highly refining, more highly regulating the way trucks were loaded and unloaded, and the way routes were planned and executed," he said.
In fact, Broughton said, the technology is increasing the time needed to load and deliver packages, and decreasing the number of packages that can be loaded.
"If it takes longer to do it, you artificially limit the capacity," Broughton said. "So if you normally grab packages and say, 'OK, these all go on this block on this route' and put them in a particular bin, but the system tells you to put each package in a very specific location on the truck, it takes you longer. Because first you have look at the system, then do exactly what the system tells you to do.
"If a loader is there 10 hours and can do 400 packages an hour, he does 4,000 [a day]. But if he can do 500 an hour, then he loads 5,000," Broughton said. "So there's a thousand packages still on the dock that haven't gotten loaded at the end of his shift. ...

Continued...
1 | 2 | NEXT  



Print this Story Send Us Feedback E-mail this Story Digg! Digg this Story Slashdot this Story
"It's IT Blogwatch: in which Research In Motion unveils its sexy new device -- the BlackBerry Bold (n��e 9000). Not..." Read more...
"Worried about the explosive growth of Linux on inexpensive, ultra-portable PCs like the Asus Eee PC, Microsoft has launched a..." Read more...
Read more Software posts or See all Blogs
Powerset unveils test version of Google-killer
iPhone out of stock 'company wide,' say Apple sales reps
Microsoft to limit capabilities of cheap laptops
More top stories...
FBI worried as DoD sold counterfeit networking gear
Update: Microsoft to appeal $1.3B EU fine
XP SP3 cripples some PCs with endless reboots
Mistakes such as putting down co-workers or burning bridges when you resign are surefire ways to darken your career prospects. Here's how to avoid them
Hype and promises abound in the IT world, but these six breakthroughs really will change your life, says author and former IT manager John Brandon.
Baby boomers are retiring and taking their knowledge with them. Why do so few in IT seem to care?
Computerworld editors share stories of their first PCs, including some classics and some real clunkers -- then we ask readers to share their early-PC tales.
Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS.
Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready?
All Zones
Application Performance Zone
Enterprise-Class Security Zone
Enterprise Solutions Zone
The File Data Management Zone
Grid Computing on Windows Zone
Security Management Zone
ITIL Best Practices Zone
The SAS Zone
Storage Virtualization Zone
The Data Center Management Zone

Ads by TechWords

See your link here
Computerworld Technology Briefing: An open-source path to optimal virtualization
Download this Technology Briefing now (a $195.00 value), compliments of Novell, IBM, and Intel.
(Source: Novell/IBM/Intel) Looking for a virtualization strategy that offers both the flexibility and reliability to meet the demands of mixed-source environments? Look no further than the fast-emerging open virtualization approach backed by some of the biggest names in enterprise computing. Together they are pointing the way toward higher data center performance without higher costs.
Download this executive briefing download
E-Mail As a Service: Time for Another Look?
E-Mail As a Service: Time for Another Look?
Download this webcast, compliments of Google.
Go to the webcast 
Top 10 Reasons to Go Green in IT
Get this white paper now!
(Source: Verdiem) With fast facts and figures, this free e-booklet details the significant savings you can expect from a greener IT department. Plus: how sustainability can improve employee and customer retention, boost IT performance, even protect against energy price fluctuations. Download your copy of this e-booklet now.
Download this white paper go
White Papers
Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services.
New Fujitsu High-End Itanium Windows- and Linux-Based PRIMEQUEST Servers Offer the Utmost in High Availability
New Fujitsu High-End Itanium-Based PRIMEQUEST Servers Offer Industry-Leading System Management for Linux and Windows
Symantec State of the Data Center Report 2007
View more whitepapers