How to Beat the UPS and FedEx Price Increases

The imposition by UPS and FedEx of dimensional weight pricing on all ground shipments is bound to raise the price of moving parcels and packages. But there are ways that shippers can mitigate the increase. Up to now, dimensional weight pricing has been applied by the two big parcel carriers to air and express moves, as well as to packages greater than three cubic feet in size. As of the beginning of this year, however, the formula was extended to include all ground shipments. The idea is to charge shippers for the space that a package actually takes up on a truck. Boxes with lightweight contents or lots of filler will be especially impacted by the change. On this episode, we talk with Kevin Lathrop, president of Unishippers, a nationwide reseller of shipping services. He offers advice on how shippers can offset at least some of the increase. And he explains how the pricing change might actually yield benefits to shippers and manufacturers, in the form of reduced packaging materials and more efficiently designed products.