UPS. Friend Or Foe?


Recently shipped two speakers and the stands all in very good (8/10) condition to a buyer in another state. One speaker and the stands were in the factory boxes. The other speaker was boxed by UPS. The buyer sent pictures and stated they arrived damaged. One of the speakers had a rattle but no visible damage, the other speaker, (the one UPS boxed), had visible damage. Not surprisingly, the stands arrived unscathed.

All items were picked up by UPS in that city and taken for inspection.

And the results were...UPS is not at fault because they have a policy, buried in very fine print, that it is the shippers' (sellers') responsibility to ensure proper packaging.

My wife and I also found out the local UPS stores are legally not affiliated with UPS!!!

We are currently attempting to discuss this with the owner of the local store.

Sad but true...

tomcarr

Having shipped large heavy speakers and smaller packages for over 2 decades, we have witnessed some real freight abuse and have learned a few things along the way. During the first couple of years importing Analysis Audio speaker we spent more time redesigning the shipping crates than on anything else. During one of the first shipments I witnessed the UPS driver slide the crate to the back of the truck and push it off the end. The crate did an end over end barrel roll. I couldn't believe what I saw. I had words with the driver and he still wouldn't let me help him with the second crate. The first crate was destroyed with the speaker exposed at one end. Miraculously the speaker was not damaged. It confirmed to me just how rugged Analysis speakers are. In good faith, after witnessing that abuse, I ordered the customer a new pair and kept that pair as a demo. Thankfully they never had issues.

To survive shipment we ended up using 1.25" plywood around the perimeter and 5/8" plywood for the large flat sided with cross-braces. Internally we use strips of high density polyethylene foam in strategic locations. The foam does not contact the entire perimeter or sides, only in spots. It's all about minimizing and distributing the shock loads transferred to the speaker.

Most stereo equipment is not designed and built to withstand any significant shock load so the packaging has to lessen that load. For example: Imagine a  50 pound amp with an 8 pound transformer in it held in place by 2 #6 screws. Now place the amp in a box sized large enough so there is 3" of space around all sides. Add 3" of very ridged hard foam all around. Seal it up and drop it from 3'. It's likely the outside will look OK but the transformer has detached. Now take the same amp (with transformer in place) and box and substitute the ridged foam with 1" thick softer foam then 1" thick medium foam and the outer layer 1" thick high density foam. Drop it from the same 3' in the same orientation. It's very likely the transformer will still be attached and outside of the amp will be OK. That said I wouldn't use 2 #6 screws to hold a 8 pound transformer but you do see lots of weird construction in audio. Foam being expensive, you don't see packing as described. What is more common is the use of high density polyethylene foam in strategic locations in varying cross sections. Think of it as damped spring system designed to minimize the transference of the shock loads applied by the shipping abuse. The box or crate has to be designed to handle the weight deal with intrusion.

Even with using substantial wooden crates, we almost always have to repair or replace parts after receiving our gear back from shows. The main thing is that the equipment inside is well protected.

 

I had bought some totem forest years back...first pair damaged voil coil ?...Told him to ship me a undamaged pair...again another speaker boogered.Pallet is the way to go.Yeah saw one driver roll my new sim Cd/amp ? down the steps once.Driver knew i wanted to do something to harm him too...Gave me an f’u snicker and said anything damaged write it up...off he went.

For all the bad buzz about “the Amazon effect” on the economy, they are genius in effective delivery customer support. My take is that they’ve done the math that prompt shipping claims resolution, no questions asked is best for their bottom line. I suppose it’s possible they force suppliers and drop shippers to take the hit.

 

Just last week the brown truck guy comes to my door and he's carrying an old tube amp I purchased. The box has Fragile written on it, arrows pointing this way up. He's not carrying it the way the arrows would like him to, as I open the door he drops the box on its side from about knee height so he can pull the electronic signing box off his waist. I could literally hear the damage being done. I just look at him and say That's kinda fragile. He says My Bad..it's kinda heavy...sign here. Damage wasn't too bad, all the bolts holding the base plate and top of the amp together had snapped though. 

I truly feel bad for the OP. It is such a headache to deal with, plus the loss of any money as well as the damaging of good speakers. Hope everything works out for you in a positive way. I will say that even with the few bad instances I've had with shipping companies I couldn't live a happy life without them lol. I depend on them for many things...I just wish they would be a little more careful.