By Fello Logistics
No one would say it’s easy to ship goods from dock to dock on a conventionally sized pallet. Shipping is never easy. But at least you could say that this type of shipping is fairly standard. Everyone involved is familiar with how it works, so any complications probably have precedent.
But what happens when a different kind of customer, one who has never received a pallet before, is confronted with a pallet nine feet long and six feet wide, weighing 3,000 pounds?
Surfacequest is a Fello client that has regularly transported shipments like this. The company provides architectural fusions for its customers to use in the areas of adaptive reuse, product and design solutions.
This is the sort of thing that some shipping professionals describe whimsically as “ugly freight,” not because it’s literally ugly but because it doesn’t fit the “normal” templates for how freight is shipped.
“We’re not dock-to-dock like most companies,” said Surfacequest shipment manager Kevin Brass. “We’re a dock to a customer that has never seen a normal pallet before. So our customers need a lot of handholding.”
Upon taking on the needs of Surfacequest and other customers with such specific requirements, Fello Vice President Dylan Campbell quickly recognized that communication would be the key.
“Of course we do the usual work of keeping in communication with everyone along the way to ensure safe, on-time delivery,” Campbell said. “But that’s not the end of our responsibility. We need to make sure our client’s customers are happy with the final outcome, so we make sure the drivers know exactly what to do to help the end-recipient handle the item upon delivery.”
Making that effort effective has required a lot of background work, because no one can help anyone else handle something if they don’t understand it first.
“Fello has sat down with us numerous times,” Brass said. “And they not only know us as customers, they know our customers too.”
During those sessions, the Fello team explored deeply into the products shipped by Surfacequest, posing the types of questions they anticipated drivers would raise — and which drivers would subsequently need to address with customers.
As is so often the case with good customer service, it all comes down to communicating well – speaking clearly, asking good questions and listening attentively.
“No client should ever feel like they can’t get the best service because they are shipping something that doesn’t fit normal templates,” Campbell said. “Anything can be handled properly and professionally if we understand exactly what’s required. And the carriers we work with are excellent. They’re willing to go above and beyond to make both the shipper and the end recipient happy. They just need to know what’s required.”
Certainly, effective communication isn’t always the sole solution to every challenge. Occasionally, Fello encounters unprecedented scenarios that demand genuine creativity to devise the most suitable approach. This exemplifies one of Fello’s core strengths.
But in the end it always starts with good communication, bolstered by a company culture that believes there is a solution to every problem – even if it’s unique.
Shipping unusually sized freight is no hassle at all for Fello. It’s the sort of challenge a great team welcomes because of how rewarding they know it will be when the challenge has been conquered.
Fello Logistics is known for integrity, reliability, industry-leading customer service and genuine care for it’s clients. Learn more about our freight shipping services.
