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CARIBBEAN BUSINESS THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2011

Fast logistics^ green logistics

The UPS overnight deliveries most of us take for granted seem like daily logistical miracles, made even more efficient by the company's renewed focus on sustainability
BY JAIME SANTIAGO j aimes @ caribbeanbusinesspr.com

W O hours after the plane arrives, your package is on its way to you. Many decades after the introduction of overnight-delivery services, most customers take the service for granted and probably think accomplishing it is an easy feat. The logistics involved in moving a package from origin to destination within 24 hours is mind-boggling, requiring precise coordination and systems that work flawlessly. For a behind-the-scenes look, CARIBBEAN BUSINESS visited the Muiz Base operation of United Parcel Service, better known as UPS, the global logistics company. Muiz Base is the air-cargo auxiliary airport at Luis Muoz Marn International Airport in Carolina. At midnight every day, the company-owned planes land in Louisville, Ky., to pick up packages delivered throughout the day from all parts of the mainland U.S. and the world. In the span of four hours, hundreds of thousands of packages are sorted and transferred to their respective destination planes. Four hours later, the airplanes take off. Three times a day, a company-owned airplane lands at Muiz Base with small and midsize packages destined to be delivered to all parts of the island. The first plane arrives at UPS' central distribution facility at 9 a.m., six days a week. "This plane leaves Louisville full, at 4 a.m. every day, no matter what," Juan Coln, a 17-year veteran of UPS in Puerto Rico and recently appointed local country manager, told CARIBBEAN BUSINESS. "Once it lands, it is unloaded and the packages are sorted. In two hours, the packages are loaded onto our delivery trucks, and the goods are delivered to their final destination that same day."

"The cargo bay in each truck has shelves assigned to specific routes," Coln explained. "Each shelf is also divided into specific addresses on that route. The person loading the truck needs to know on what part of the shelf to place the merchandise so the driver can readily locate the package once delivery is being made." During this timespan, each package is electronically bar-coded with its consignee information and address, and imputed into a system so customers can track their packages in real time.
GOING GREEN

UPS Puerto Rico Country Manager Juan Coln makes the overnight-delivery process seem simple. In reality, however, it takes a lot of work, coordination and precision to handle thousands of packages every day and still deliver on time.

Coln makes the process seem simple. In reality, however, it takes a lot of work, coordination and precision to handle thousands of packages every day and still deliver on time. When the packages come off the plane, they are put on a conveyor system. One by one, each package is placed on a conveyor assigned to a specific route. Once on the correct conveyor, an employee takes the package and loads it on the truck that will make the deliveries on that route. Loading the truck is another exercise in logistical precision.

The process is getting leaner still by a string of green changes being implemented by UPS. In the logistics business nowadays, lean-process reengineering is equivalent to going green, since the objective is to reduce packaging to fit more per plane or container, consolidate routes and otherwise reduce the transport that spews so much greenhouse-causing carbon into the atmosphere. "We are continuously working to develop and implement systems that will help us become a more environmentally friendly and responsible company," Coln said. The corporate commitment is explained on the UPS website. "The long-term success of our company absolutely requires a balance of the environmental, economic and social aspects of the business," according to UPS Chief Operating Officer David Abney. "Sustainability encompasses all those areas." The company says on the website that it "has set aggressive goals for reducing the carbon emissions in its air and ground fleets, promoting fuel and energy conservation, investing in
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CARIBBEAN BUSINESS THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2011 UPS has also recycled 24.5 million pounds of electronic equipment since 2000, and has set up 11,000 computers at four facilities with "sleep" software to conserve energy when not in use. At its Palm Springs, Calif., facility, the company installed 145 solar panels that serve as the primary power source.

alternative fuels and technology, and leveraging technology to reduce the miles the company flies and drives." The green change has been implemented locally across many fronts, starting with new alternativefuel vehicles in its fleet on the island, out of a total of more than 1,900 globally, reportedly the most in the industry. Coln added that by outsourcing logistics operations to UPS, a client becomes that much greener, instead of being stuck with having to do the green conversion on its own. Other green initiatives UPS has implemented includes: delivery-information devices, which electronically record delivery data, and have saved 89 million sheets of paper and 7,300 trees annually, according to the website. The green delivery devices have been deployed in Puerto Rico. "We recently implemented in our truck fleet a 'telematrix' monitoring system. It allows us to monitor our fleet and gives us all kinds of information. We now know how efficiently our fleet is managed," Coln added. "The system shows us, in real time, how many miles a truck has been driven, the idle time it

In the logistics business nowadays, lean-process reengineering is equivalent to going green, since the objective is to reduce packaging to ft more per plane or container, consolidate routes and otherwise reduce the transport that spews so much greenhouse-causing carbon into the atmosphere.

had during the day, its fuel consumption, if its mechanical and electrical parts are working, etc. With this information, we can better manage our routes and also provide proper maintenance."

"The system show us, in real time, how many miles a truck has been driven, the idle time it had during the day, its fuel consumption, if its mechanical and electrical parts are working, etc. With this information, we can better manage our routes and also provide proper maintenance."
^Juan Coln

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