“Brown” bags coming up! UCOP transitioning to UPS for shipping
October 20, 2014 •
There will be two more brown bag sessions this week on UCOP’s transition to UPS (United Parcel Service) and the new procedure for how to order shipping. Each session will begin with a brief orientation to an easy-to-use interface, then open up for attendees to ask questions:
- Wednesday, Oct. 22, 12 to 1 p.m., 5320 Franklin
- Thursday, Oct. 23, 12 to 1 p.m., 612 Kaiser
The five-year contract with UPS is now being implemented and will result in better rates and service than FedEx for shipping expedited mail and small ground freight. The new service is scheduled to be fully operational at UCOP by Nov. 14. It will cut UC’s shipping costs by about 25 percent and introduce efficiencies for both users and the Business Resource Center, said Brad Niess, Business Resource Center (BRC) team lead.
“The new process will be seamless for our customers and much easier on our side,” Niess said. “We’ll be paying one weekly bill for all of OP, eliminating the need to process purchase orders and invoices for each individual transaction.”
In the meantime, staff who do shipping in their departments should continue to use their current process with FedEx. UC Procurement Services and UCOP Mail Room staff are working to ensure that FedEx services continue through the implementation period.
When the new UPS process is implemented, staff will simply log into the “UPS CampusShip” system to create a shipping label, enter the department FAU and print the label. BRC will batch all charges weekly and provide departmental reports as requested.
The systemwide contract with UPS will result in an average 25 percent cost reduction and save the university an estimated $2.8 million in shipping costs annually.
FedEx will remain UC’s preferred provider for shipping some hazardous materials or for service to destinations not served by UPS. OP staff will be able to continue using FedEx for several weeks as the transition to UPS is completed.
For questions regarding the change or to get a login to the new system, contact Niess at Brad.Niess@ucop.edu. For questions regarding FedEx pick up and deliveries, please contact Mail Services at mailroom@ucop.edu or Building and Administrative Service Center Specialist Loreaner Lopez at Loreaner.Lopez@ucop.edu.
