Abstract

Packaged goods move through varieous logistical networks each day all over the world. Packages moving through these various networks are exposed to dynamic forces such as drops, tosses, and kicks. This study investigated the effect of drops, tosses, and kicks encountered in the United Parcel Service (UPS) small parcel environment in the United States. The effect of the weight and volume of packages shipped was studied.

The results of this study showed the highest drop observed in the UPS environment in 35 roundtrips from Lansing, MI to Monterey, CA was 42.1 inches for the Small-size package. The size of the package had no significant effect on the drop heights. Lighter weight packages for the smaller size experienced higher drop heights. Weight in general also did not have a significant effect on the Medium and Larger size package drop heights. 95% of the drops occurred at 30 inches for the Small/Light package, 24 inches for the Small/Medium package, 18 inches for the Medium/Light package, 24 inches for the Medium/Medium packages, 26 inches for the Medium/Heavy package, and 18 inches for the Large/Medium and Large/Heavy packages.

Issue Section:
Research Papers
Keywords:
drop height, package drops, handling, UPS

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