Hazardous Materials Shippers - This Update is for You - Take 2

Let's keep going about the new October 1, 2010 hazardous materials shipping regulations. These regulations are far too complex to cover in a blog, but there is one special case that could affect a number of shippers, especially during the holidays - batteries, specifically lithium batteries. Batteries with lithium seem to be everywhere, from the "button" batteries in countless small electronic devices, to the larger batteries in digital cameras and the rechargeable batteries in portable computers, cell phones, cordless phones and more.

If you ship these, be sure to check how the new regulations apply to your products. There are quantity limits, weight limits, battery power limits, battery label requirements, shipper education requirements, type of transportation restrictions (especially air shipments) and documentation requirements for these, even with small batteries and small quantities. Even when the full hazardous materials process does not have to be observed, there are still some documents and labeling that you'll need to pay attention to.

Defective lithium batteries are a special case. Some of these cannot even be shipped. If you have any of these in your shipping, pay real close attention to the rules. There are fines, penalties, and even criminal penalties when hazardous material shipping rules are not followed.

Remember - the deadline is October 1, 2010 to meet the new hazardous regulations. So if you ship HazMat or batteries, take a look now to be sure your HazMat packages meet the new requirements. After you ship the package is not a great time to discover there is a problem with the new government regulations or with the carrier being able to deliver your package.

To read more about the Federal Regulations concerning lithium batteries click here...

For information at the UPS web site about shipping HazMat with UPS, click here...

For more information about the CPS shipping software, visit www.HarveySoft.com.

Hazardous Materials Shipping Changes Starting October 1, 2010

Hazardous Materials Shippers - This Update is for You.

For companies shipping hazardous materials with UPS, there are new regulations shippers must meet by October 1, 2010. The Department of Transportation now requires companies shipping Hazardous Materials (HazMat) to provide Emergency Contact and Emergency Telephone information.

What does this mean to shippers? It means that software producing Hazardous Materials documentation must require the entry of the Emergency Contact and Emergency Telephone information. If the existing HazMat document software does not already do this, look for an update to this software. There may also be an update for your shipping software for this, too. Here is how this will work with Harvey Software's Computerized Parcel System (CPS™) shipping software.

CPS works with LabelMaster's Masterform® software for HazMat documentation. Right now, updates are on the way to all current users of the Masterform software. There is also a new version of CPS to support this. Install Masterform, then install the CPS update and that's it. These updates can be installed anytime. After the Masterform and CPS updates are installed, the HazMat shipping process will meet the new regulations. If this change affects your company, contact your HazMat documentation company and/or shipping software company if you have specific questions about this.

If your company needs a HazMat compliant, multiple carrier shipping system, contact Harvey Software for information about the CPS shipping system.

Remember - the deadline is October 1, 2010 to meet the new HazMat regulations. This is definitely important since there are heavy fines and even criminal penalties when HazMat is not shipped correctly. We suggest you do not wait until the possible last day to update so you can be sure your HazMat packages meet the requirements to be delivered properly and without issues with the carrier or government regulations.

Click here for information found at the UPS web site about shipping HazMat with UPS...

For more information about the CPS shipping software, visit www.HarveySoft.com.

Dependability For Your Shipping System with 3 Easy Tips

It's getting to the "home stretch" for this year's business. Many companies look forward to the sales they make in the holiday quarter. For some, the holiday quarter is critical for their yearly business projections. For a few, successful holiday sales mean the company survives for another year. Whatever the situation, it's always important for products to be delivered as the customer expects, but at the best price for the shipper, too. As the final link in holiday success, your shipping system can be your best friend or can cause nightmares. Use these 3 tips to make your shipping system your BFF.

Apply Those Updates

It seems like the carriers are always changing something. Look for a shipping system that supports automatic updates or at least automatic update notifications. As an example, our CPS shipping software lets you choose how to handle updates, including applying them automatically whenever they are available. New routing codes, labels, services, rate classifications and other information that is required - all of these can change anytime and without much notice, if any.

For CPS users, we keep an email list just to let CPS users know whenever an update is available. Using your shipping software vendor's latest program and being up-to-date with the carrier requirements are steps you can take to keep your shipping system working great and help your packages get delivered on time.

Use A Battery Backup to Safeguard the Shipping Station

If you have a power loss and lose that day's shipping data, it's NOT a good thing. Other power line problems, like power spikes or voltage sags, can also damage the shipping computer or corrupt your shipping data and software. Here are some ways to solve this power problem as much as possible before it happens - use a battery backup and protect the network connection.

What to look for? Companies like APC, TrippLite, Belkin and others provide battery backup devices with surge/spike suppression in a variety of sizes. Make sure you get a device with the right capability for your computer's system, but even in the under $100 price range, you will find a battery backup that will at least provide protection from a power loss and the resulting mess it can make of your day. For additional protection, look for a connection to protect your network connection, too. Of course, a direct lightning strike can be devastating, but the idea is to do as much as you can for problems you can prevent.

Backup / Backup / Backup

Actually, just one backup each day should do. What is the wild card in even the best shipping system protection plan? It's a critical computer component (hard drive, motherboard, etc.) that that just stops working. Computer components do wear out and fail - but almost never at a convenient time. Our CPS shipping software can perform an automatic backup to protect your valuable shipping data every time the CPS program is closed. Set up the automatic backup to send your important shipping data to a server, and your shipping system safety net is in place. And if the worst happens, like data corruption or a computer failure, getting back to shipping will be much easier if you have a current backup.

Look for an automatic backup feature in your shipping system and be sure it's setup and working for you. This is smart and could make a key difference at a crucial time if something breaks.

So, keep your shipping system updated, backed up and plugged into a battery backup. That's doing what you can to help create a successful shipping season.

To find out more about CPS, visit our web site at www.HarveySoft.com.

Check Your Carrier Bill...Boost Your Sales!

When you check shipping invoices from the carriers, how do you know they are right? Do the reports from your shipping system let you easily check your carrier invoice? And is that all you need to do? You negotiated a good contract with your package carrier(s), then you got the first bill. Surprise! The bill doesn't seem to match what you were expecting. You tallied up your shipping system's daily shipping reports, but they show the carrier's published rates, not your contract rates. No help there. Next you try to apply your contract discounts to the published rates on your shipping reports, but since the discount percentage changes according to the service you use and how much the box weighs, this is not straightforward. This is hard… Your shipping system gets your boxes out the door quickly and it sends the carriers the data they need to bill you. So far, happy customer and happy carrier. Now, how about happy shipper?

Today, shippers want their shipping system to be fast, but accurate shipping cost information is needed to check carrier bills and to be sure enough is collected to cover shipping costs. When your shipping system has accurate shipping costs, your shipping system can help with checking the bills. Even more, it can even help make sales, too. With holiday promotions, ads with "Free Shipping" and "Flat Rate Shipping" offers are prominent. These offers encourage sales, combat abandoned shopping carts and expand your market.

This is where your shipping system can really help. Ask your shipping system provider to help you get your company's contracted rates into your shipping system. If you use a multiple carrier shipping system like Harvey Software's Computerized Parcel System (CPS™), when the shipping system uses your company's rates, you benefit with accurate rate shopping and accurate cost reporting, too. That's the foundation to really put the shipping system to work for you.

Now for the best part - when your shipping system helps you make sales. Find a report in your shipping system that summarizes your company's shipping history for shipping cost by service (Ground, Next Day, etc.), a date range and by carrier. A sample of this is the Flat Rate Shipping Charge Analysis report in CPS. This report displays a break down and average cost for each carrier service. Your company's actual shipping history and charges are used, so you know you have the best information for your company. You can run the report for a range of dates, for all carriers or just the carrier(s) you choose. This is the information you need to develop a strategy of how and how much to charge for shipping, including the "Flat Rate" and "Free Shipping" offers that drive more sales. That's a clear winner.

There is a lot of power in a multiple carrier shipping system that uses your company's rates. Look for these tools in your shipping system, or visit www.HarveySoft.com if you would like to know more about CPS.

It's Time To Get Ready for the Busy Shipping Season

We are seeing more and more companies getting ready for the upcoming busy shipping season. This is smart planning since now is the perfect time to get your shipping system and shipping procedures ready for the holidays. But, preparing your shipping department to do its best this holiday season is much more than making sure the shipping software and hardware work.

It's more than just getting the boxes out the door. It also includes checking out shipping systems advancements and how they can help your company. These advancements include: using "best rate" shopping or getting the best price for delivery by a certain date; implementing a strategy so that what you charge for shipping increases your sales; using address verification to eliminate non-delivery and address correction fees; telling your customers their order is on the way; and providing the data you need to make smart decisions about how you use your carriers.

Here are some areas to check:

Does your shipping system use your company's actual contracted rates with the carriers when you rate shop?

Does you rate shopping include the residential or commercial address status so you rate shop the right prices?

Does your shipping system provide reports to analyze your average "break even" shipping costs for Ground, 2Day, etc., so you can intelligently determine the correct flat-rate shipping charge or what you need to do to offer free shipping?

Use these ideas to help you get ready for a profitable shipping season.

The right shipping system, including our own CPS shipping software, will help with all of these. Your customers and your bottom line will both appreciate the effort.

Making the Smart Choice for Declared Value Coverage and Parcel Insurance

Let's say you've decided to insure the packages you ship, and you ship enough packages with value so that you want the best price for package insurance. First the basics - the major carriers include $100 of coverage for each package you ship. There are some limitations on this coverage, which the carrier can tell you about. You can also purchase additional coverage directly from the carrier. The Post Office does not include any coverage for your packages unless you purchase insurance for a specific package, plus there is a form that must be filled out.

Now there are two challenges. Challenge one is to find the best value for package coverage and the next is to be able to implement it easily, quickly and reliably. A shipping system, such as our CPS multi-carrier shipping software, can help with both of these. The carriers have a published charge for their package coverage, plus there is normally a minimum charge per package. Here is a little information on two established alternate package insurance companies that may provide considerable savings for package insurance. And there is still another solution for Post Office shippers.

Let's focus on the money saving insurance choices you can make. Parcel Insurance Plan (PIP) and U-PIC provide discounted package insurance when shipping with UPS, FedEx and the US Post Office. In our CPS shipping software you simply enter the total coverage needed, then at the end of the day choose the alternate insurance processing step. In seconds CPS stores the correct information to report to your insurance company, so this is quick and easy. The process is the same no matter the carrier or the insurance company. If you use Endicia Internet postage when you ship with the Post Office, you can choose package insurance through Endicia. Use Endicia insurance and there are no additional steps to take, so this is very easy.

Next, for each company you might choose, take a look their claims' process. Insurance companies are almost invisible until you have a claim. Does their process look straightforward, are they easy to contact, do they ask for reasonable information (or do they ask for your family's history for two generations - this is a stretch but you know what I mean), and do their claims' rules make sense for your business? Paying premiums and maybe making a claim will likely be your primary contacts with one of the alternate insurance companies. Check out each of these until you are satisfied with the answers.

Finally, PIP, U-PIC, Endicia and the Post Office provide "insurance". Coverage purchased from the carriers may increase their limit of liability, but look at their tariffs to see if that coverage is insurance and, from what you find, consider how or if this affects your company. When you're shipping valuable packages, this information and a little research on your part should get you a great deal with a company you can live with.

Links for more information about parcel insurance:

PIP Insurance

U-PIC Insurance

What Do You Mean...It's Not OK to Ship That?

Almost everyone knows there are some items you are not allowed to ship. A couple of examples: Illegal things (obviously and which will not apply to this group); Gasoline (even in an approved container) or other hazardous items - and, well, you get the idea. For other items it can be much less obvious. For example, the PACT (Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking) Act means cigarettes, including roll-your-own tobacco and smokeless tobacco cannot be shipped using the Post Office, FedEx or UPS. Cigars? No problem. Cigarette shipments from authorized companies for testing, health or regulatory purposes? OK.

Let's look at other items. Chickens and snakes in the mail? That's OK. Hamsters? Not so much. Bees? Sure, but only a queen bee can go by air, even though she can be accompanied by up to 8 honeybees. And even though there are no federal restrictions against sending that nice bottle of wine to someone, the carriers do not accept those shipments, except in some situations involving licensed dealers. But there may still be state-to-state restrictions. Get the idea that shipping regulations can be complicated? Yes!

For shipments originating and delivered in the US, there are regulations that most shippers are aware of. If you have items you are not sure about, you should definitely ask about the carriers' rules as well as check federal and state law. Domestic restrictions are interesting enough, but the real adventure starts with international shipping.

Want to use the post office to send a package to someone in the United Kingdom with items in the box to be distributed to others? Not allowed. How about sending playing cards to Germany? Not unless they are brand new in the box, unopened with the wrapper intact. Or sending a feeding bottle to France? Nope. These are samples of items that are completely prohibited.

We would like to say that we made up these examples, but these are real. If you have any doubt about if it's OK to ship a particular item, be sure to check with the proper authorities to stay out of hot water. But playing cards to Germany? Maybe you better check anyway.

Good luck and good shipping!

Related Links

Summary of the US Government PACT Act - S. 1147: PACT Act

UPS Wine Shipping Guidelines

UPS Restricted and Prohibited International Items

USPS Shipping Restrictions

USPS Aviation Mail Security & Hazardous Materials

USPS Military Mailing Restrictions