I honestly think FedEx is collapsing

[Kerbie]

Originally Posted by RP

Yes. The OP was about FedEx decompensating. Enron had the appearance of a very solid company until it suddenly wasn't...

Enron was one of the largest, corporate scams in US history. It wasn't the story of a good company gone bad. It wasn't even a good company which failed to keep up with the times. It was a fraud.

[buddyhu]

Originally Posted by rokdog49

Another example of generalizations based on limited personal experiences....my favorite pet peeve.

I had a pet peeve once. I forgot to feed it, and it went away.

But there is a lot of food for peeves here on AGF. So they won’t be leaving any time soon.

But I guess that is another generalization/conclusion based on my personal viewpoint.

We could start a poll.....


Returning to the topic of the thread: I think package delivery is in a strange new world. I wouldn’t make too much of weird tracking results at this time. Lots of possible explanations that would not presage the collapse of FEDEX.

[Silurian]

I thought that the algorithms are designed to maximise deliveries at the
lowest cost to the company.

I'm sure a percentage of packages take circuitous unexplained routes.

The computers know what they're doing....

"I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that"

[woodbox]

The first thing that enters my mind when we talk about circuitous routing, or a ping-pong effect in package travel is this:
Was this a re-used carton with a double label?

A scanner reads one label THIS time directing the package East.
Then another scanner reads the OTHER label directing the package West.

I’ve seen the double label scenario cause problems many times.
Not saying this is the culprit in our OP’s situation,
but it happens all too often with recycled/reused boxes.


btw.. the overwhelming volume of the last year has caused tremendous stress on all package delivery companies.
Not the least of which is newly hired, under-trained personnel who make mistakes under pressure.
Not trying to excuse incompetence.. oh no!
But when good people are making bad choices, it’s usually due to being overworked and/or undertrained.
In our current world, it’s likely both.
Just my opinion based on inside experience.

[Kerbie]

FWIW, here's the announcement of their most recent quarterly results.

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by Kerbie

FWIW, here's the announcement of their most recent quarterly results.

Yep, definitely “a harbinger of business failure”.
Between Fed Ex with their delivery issues and Martin with their bridge issues, it’s hard to say who is going down first.

[Slothead56]

Let’s not forget what this thread is really about....

Sorry for frustration Fazool. Waiting on a new guitar is extremely painful.

[Wengr]

My recent ngd from fedex included the stress of two "delivery exceptions' where they falsely claimed they were here when I know for a fact they were not.

[RP]

Originally Posted by Wengr

My recent ngd from fedex included the stress of two "delivery exceptions' where they falsely claimed they were here when I know for a fact they were not.

Although on a much smaller scale, my last FedEx delivery was marked "Left at door" when in fact it was left several hundred yards away on top of community mailboxes, none of which was mine. It didn't seem worth lying about, but there you have it. I wouldn't make the leap to say that FedEx is on a collision course, but as Fazool said, "There's no such thing as too big to fail."

The story of Enron Corporation depicts a company that reached dramatic heights only to face a dizzying fall. The fated company's collapse affected thousands of employees and shook Wall Street to its core. At Enron's peak, its shares were worth $90.75; just prior to declaring bankruptcy on Dec. 2, 2001, they were trading at $0.26. To this day [1/19/21], many wonder how such a powerful business, at the time one of the largest companies in the United States, disintegrated almost overnight. Also difficult to fathom is how its leadership managed to fool regulators for so long with fake holdings and off-the-books accounting.

[KevWind]

Amazing at it may seem even in the middle of nowhere we get very good service from both Fed Ex and UPS.

While it is SOP for Fed Ex with just about anything coming from the Eastern US to actually go past Rock Springs Wy 167 miles to SLC which is where I assume the major distribution hub for the region is . Then backtrack agin through Rock Springs for delivery to NW Wyoming . But the tracking virtually always indicates this.

UPS has a small distribution hub in Rock Springs so that backtrack seldom happens with them

The nice thing is we know both the UPS and Fed Ex drivers and they always text my wife when they are getting like a half hour away.

I am just guessing here but I think what the OP was seeing, is probably more of a tracking software glitch than the packages actually going back and forth..... BUT I suppose anything is possible ??

[Kerbie]

Kev... unless they've changed recently, FedEx does have a smaller hub in SLC. It's just not one of their biggest 5 or so in the states.

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Kerbie

Kev... unless they've changed recently, FedEx does have a smaller hub in SLC. It's just not one of their biggest 5 or so in the states.

Oh I have no idea of size just that it appears to be the one items have to go to deliver to my area.

[fazool]

Originally Posted by Slothead56

Let’s not forget what this thread is really about....

Sorry for frustration Fazool. Waiting on a new guitar is extremely painful.

Thanks I appreciate the kind words.

I'm actually not angry or hoping to see a company fail. My point is that USPS and UPS both seem to have adapted well to the new higher volume of service. FedEx seems to have totally lost their handle on package tracking, which was one of their big advantages (back in the day).

This makes me think its a symptom of a bigger problem deeper inside the company.

[Blueser100]

USPS has become unreliable. But all shippers are struggling under the weight of all those Amazon bags and boxes, and returns.

[seannx]

The same thing happened with me on a FedEx shipment that arrived last week. I paid extra for expedited shipping, then got a notice that delivery would be several days later. I called the company about the delay, and they said FedEx service had been like that due to Covid-19.

Tracking showed the package slowly making its way from Massachusetts across the country to CA, and then inexplicably being back at the point of origin. It was delivered the next day, which was a few days earlier than the "new arrival date" notice had quoted.

I haven’t had the same problem with UPS shipments.

A few of the many packages our business has sent via USPS priority in the last year have gone missing from tracking, anywhere from a few days to almost a month, but finally were delivered. It will show them as "on the way but taking longer". Thankfully customers have been understanding, but it sure can be frustrating, and waste time with phone calls and emails.