Interesting article
http://www.popularmechanics.com/technol ... s?click=pp
Shipping without damage who's best?
-
JWR
- Kitten Rescuer - Moderator
- Posts: 2822
- Joined: Fri Apr 08, 2005 9:40 pm
- Location: Eagle Rock , California
- Contact:
Shipping without damage who's best?
"Like the wind crying endlessly through the universe, Time carries away the names and the deeds of conquerors and commoners alike. And all that we are, all that remains, is in the memories of those who cared we came this way for a brief moment." Harlan Ellison
-
sensei
- Moderator and Admin-in-waiting
- Posts: 4997
- Joined: Fri Oct 01, 2004 6:55 am
- Location: Cephiro
- Contact:
One disheartening result was that our package received more abuse when marked "Fragile" or "This Side Up." The carriers flipped the package more, and it registered above-average acceleration spikes during trips for which we requested careful treatment.
That's what I always suspected, based on the aggressive way the clerk typically wields the "Fragile" stamp, banging and thumping the package all over in the process.
When shipping cels, I always tried to make the package inconvenient to abuse, rather than issuing a challenge to the masculinity of any handlers en route. 
-
cutiebunny
- Yosutebito - Hermit
- Posts: 1936
- Joined: Sat Jul 23, 2005 1:55 pm
- Location: Rockin' da Cats-bah
- Contact:
After watching baggage handlers at the airport that I work at, I can safely tell you to never, ever put the 'Fragile' tag on your luggage. Your bag will just be thrown harder than it normally would be.
Seriously...the "wear and tear" that the airline industry cites on your tickets is really because big guys pick up your bags with an equal amount of force and throw it, with an equal amount of force, onto the conveyor belt. They do this all day long and they do not show any additional caution for fragile bags. So, when you travel and you have something fragile, pack it in your bag extremely well. Or just carry it on the plane, if possible.
I imagine that, at large facilities, such as postal centers, that they employ equally big boys who do similar things to packages as well. At least, though, the airline industry puts a large, bright tag marking which bags are heavy. The post office only puts a small barcode with an even smaller number telling you how heavy that item is.
Seriously...the "wear and tear" that the airline industry cites on your tickets is really because big guys pick up your bags with an equal amount of force and throw it, with an equal amount of force, onto the conveyor belt. They do this all day long and they do not show any additional caution for fragile bags. So, when you travel and you have something fragile, pack it in your bag extremely well. Or just carry it on the plane, if possible.
I imagine that, at large facilities, such as postal centers, that they employ equally big boys who do similar things to packages as well. At least, though, the airline industry puts a large, bright tag marking which bags are heavy. The post office only puts a small barcode with an even smaller number telling you how heavy that item is.