Sorry, but CanPar does not provide direct service to the USA. They would interline which is always less timely and more expensive.
UPS would be a far better alternative than CanPar although packaging should always be a concern with them. They are not gently with freight and notoriosly bad at paying claims.
UPS would be a far better alternative than CanPar although packaging should always be a concern with them. They are not gently with freight and notoriosly bad at paying claims.
Relax, x-modz, nowhere did I say that UPS was cheaper. Please check my posting.
I assure you, I spent twenty-five years in the import/export business. Freight is a factor that I am familiar with. CanPar also has dimension restrictions as you should know.
Yes LTL is probably the best option and there are tons of small companies that are prepared to work "off" tariff. TST/Overland (when it was AllTrans) was one of the companies that was reluctant to move from the tariff.
My suggestion to the OP is to approach some of these smaller companies and ask if they would quote a price based on top-fill. Sometimes that may garner a slightly better price.
I assure you, I spent twenty-five years in the import/export business. Freight is a factor that I am familiar with. CanPar also has dimension restrictions as you should know.
Yes LTL is probably the best option and there are tons of small companies that are prepared to work "off" tariff. TST/Overland (when it was AllTrans) was one of the companies that was reluctant to move from the tariff.
My suggestion to the OP is to approach some of these smaller companies and ask if they would quote a price based on top-fill. Sometimes that may garner a slightly better price.
The Airborne relationship is apparently over.
My neighbour (who drives short haul between Toronto and Ayr for CanPar) suggests that packages shipped by CanPar from Ontario to the USA may actually be taken to a UPS warehouse/distribution centre in the USA. Wouldn't that be something.
dtech, UPS will accept insurance for all items shipped... they just won't pay for personal effects or for items shipped by individuals. If you are shipping business to business they will honour claims (but its like pulling teeth). UPS also has one of the worst conveyor systems that routinely chews up and spits out packages.
I learned the hard way that you don't ship oversized/odd sized items by UPS. Two years ago I shipped an antique crokinole board to a customer in Kansas. When it got to the other end the bubble wrapped used to protect the wooden board had been melted onto the board leaving a very undesired fish-eye effect. After a little investigation I learned that the UPS conveyor motors run very hot and are positioned at the corners. If an odd-sized/shaped package should get jammed at a corner it would find itself up against those very hot motors (the melted plastic explained).
It took two and a half months to get that claim paid. I never logged my time but I'm guessing I probably had to spend close to six hours on the phone with UPS terminals and the NB claim centre.
My neighbour (who drives short haul between Toronto and Ayr for CanPar) suggests that packages shipped by CanPar from Ontario to the USA may actually be taken to a UPS warehouse/distribution centre in the USA. Wouldn't that be something.
dtech, UPS will accept insurance for all items shipped... they just won't pay for personal effects or for items shipped by individuals. If you are shipping business to business they will honour claims (but its like pulling teeth). UPS also has one of the worst conveyor systems that routinely chews up and spits out packages.
I learned the hard way that you don't ship oversized/odd sized items by UPS. Two years ago I shipped an antique crokinole board to a customer in Kansas. When it got to the other end the bubble wrapped used to protect the wooden board had been melted onto the board leaving a very undesired fish-eye effect. After a little investigation I learned that the UPS conveyor motors run very hot and are positioned at the corners. If an odd-sized/shaped package should get jammed at a corner it would find itself up against those very hot motors (the melted plastic explained).
It took two and a half months to get that claim paid. I never logged my time but I'm guessing I probably had to spend close to six hours on the phone with UPS terminals and the NB claim centre.
Of course the other side of the coin may be that larger companies tend to be much more rigid and lack flexibility.
My experience with larger trucking firms goes back to the Maislins and Glengarry's - both relatively large firms that did not survive their largeness.
Smith Transport, Highland, Dominion Consolidated and others also got large and where are they now?
I beg to differ - there are many small companies that offer the "professionalism, guarentees (sic), service, and other perks". Don't sell small companies short... they are often bending over backwards to please their customers because they are small... every customer is important to them. I wonder to what extent most large companies extend this level of "professionalism, guarentees (sic), service, and other perks" to small, infrequent customers.
I think its great that you have such a high opinion of your employer but not every small company out there operates like an Apex or Mowat. The level of service provided by companies like Challenger and BMO have seen them grow considerably in recent years. They don't operate shabby or poorly maintained equipment either. In fact, TST would be hard pressed to stack their equipment up against a BMO for road-worthiness.
x-modz, I am well aware of the principles of purchasing service and that the "cheapest" doesn't equate to the best. Having said that, I'm also aware that sometimes "premium" doesn't equate to better but often has a direct correlation to infrastructure and overhead. "Premium" pricing occasionally has more to do with the encumbrances that come with size.
To bring this whole conversation back to earth though, the OP was looking for suggestions for shipping a mattress to Texas. I don't get the impression that he is looking for a daily scheduled pick-up. This scenario is closer to a one-shot deal. I maintain he would be far ahead looking for a small to moderate size company that would give him a sweet deal for top-load rather than a large company that lacks the flexibility to quote anything but tariff for an infrequent customer. That does not in any way, shape or form run down TST Overland. The observation I am making is that it might not be the best solution for the scenario the OP painted.
My experience with larger trucking firms goes back to the Maislins and Glengarry's - both relatively large firms that did not survive their largeness.
Smith Transport, Highland, Dominion Consolidated and others also got large and where are they now?
I beg to differ - there are many small companies that offer the "professionalism, guarentees (sic), service, and other perks". Don't sell small companies short... they are often bending over backwards to please their customers because they are small... every customer is important to them. I wonder to what extent most large companies extend this level of "professionalism, guarentees (sic), service, and other perks" to small, infrequent customers.
I think its great that you have such a high opinion of your employer but not every small company out there operates like an Apex or Mowat. The level of service provided by companies like Challenger and BMO have seen them grow considerably in recent years. They don't operate shabby or poorly maintained equipment either. In fact, TST would be hard pressed to stack their equipment up against a BMO for road-worthiness.
x-modz, I am well aware of the principles of purchasing service and that the "cheapest" doesn't equate to the best. Having said that, I'm also aware that sometimes "premium" doesn't equate to better but often has a direct correlation to infrastructure and overhead. "Premium" pricing occasionally has more to do with the encumbrances that come with size.
To bring this whole conversation back to earth though, the OP was looking for suggestions for shipping a mattress to Texas. I don't get the impression that he is looking for a daily scheduled pick-up. This scenario is closer to a one-shot deal. I maintain he would be far ahead looking for a small to moderate size company that would give him a sweet deal for top-load rather than a large company that lacks the flexibility to quote anything but tariff for an infrequent customer. That does not in any way, shape or form run down TST Overland. The observation I am making is that it might not be the best solution for the scenario the OP painted.
