Shipping

Parcel induction refers to the process of injecting packages into a carrier’s network at an optimized location to improve shipping costs and transit times.

Why Parcel Induction Is Important:

✔️ Faster delivery by entering the carrier network closer to final destination

✔️ Lower shipping costs through workshare discounts

✔️ Improves delivery accuracy & tracking visibility

How FirstMile Uses Optimized Parcel Induction:

📦 Inducts shipments into multiple carrier networks to reduce costs

🚀 Leverages regional sortation hubs for speed & efficiency

💰 Ensures eCommerce brands get the best rates through dynamic routing

Multi-carrier shipping is a logistics strategy where multiple shipping carriers are used instead of relying on one carrier like UPS, FedEx, or USPS.

How FirstMile’s Xparcel Multi-Carrier System Works:

🚀 AI-driven routing selects the most cost-effective carrier for each shipment

📦 Hybrid last-mile options like USPS, UPS, OnTrac, and LaserShip lower costs

💰 Reduces reliance on major carriers, minimizing rate hikes & surcharges

Peak season surcharges are temporary fees imposed by carriers during high-demand shipping periods, such as the holiday season (November–December).

How to Reduce Peak Season Surcharges:

✔️ Ship before peak periods (October & early November)

✔️ Use hybrid carriers like Xparcel for lower surcharges

✔️ Offer in-store pickup or local delivery alternatives

How FirstMile Helps Businesses Manage Peak Season Shipping Costs:

📦 Xparcel dynamically selects the lowest-cost carrier to minimize surcharges

💰 Multi-carrier options allow businesses to shift volume away from costly routes

🚀 Predictive shipping analytics help prepare for holiday demand

APO/FPO/DPO shipping refers to shipments sent to U.S. military personnel stationed at domestic or overseas bases.

Key Facts About Military Shipping:

• USPS is the primary carrier for APO/FPO/DPO addresses.
• Packages must be labeled with military ZIP codes (e.g., APO AE, FPO AP).
• Some carriers do not ship directly to military addresses.

How FirstMile Supports Military Shipping:

📦 Optimized routing for APO/FPO shipments using USPS.

🚀 Alternative international carriers for faster delivery.

💰 Reduced costs for eCommerce brands shipping to military customers.

A Delivery Area Surcharge (DAS) is an extra fee carriers charge for deliveries to remote or less accessible locations.

How DAS Fees Are Calculated:

• Based on ZIP codes identified as "remote" or "difficult to access."
• DAS applies to both residential and business addresses.
• May be combined with Extended DAS (EDAS) fees for extremely rural locations.

How FirstMile Helps Avoid DAS Charges:

🚀 Uses regional carriers that do not charge DAS fees.

📦 Zone-skipping to move packages closer to final delivery.

💰 Dynamically selects alternative carriers to minimize surcharge impact.

Freight consolidation is the process of combining multiple shipments into a single, larger shipment to reduce transportation costs and improve logistics efficiency.

How Freight Consolidation Works:

1. Multiple smaller shipments from different customers or locations are collected at a central facility.
2. Shipments are grouped together based on destination zones to maximize space utilization.
3. The consolidated shipment moves through linehaul to the final delivery hub.
4. Individual packages are sorted and delivered to customers.

Benefits of Freight Consolidation:

✔️ Lower Shipping Costs – Reduces per-package transportation costs.

✔️ Improved Delivery Efficiency – Fewer touchpoints mean less risk of delays.

✔️ Minimized Environmental Impact – Fewer trucks = lower carbon footprint.

How FirstMile Uses Consolidation to Reduce Shipping Costs:

🚀 We consolidate packages at our sortation hubs before induction.

💰 Reduces shipping costs through bulk transport savings.

📦 Optimizes shipping lanes for faster and cheaper delivery.

Hybrid shipping is a logistics model where multiple carriers work together to complete a shipment. Instead of one carrier handling the entire route, packages are transferred between different services to reduce costs and improve delivery efficiency.

How Hybrid Shipping Works:

1. A national carrier (e.g., UPS, FedEx, or FirstMile) picks up the package.
2. The package is transported via linehaul to a regional hub.
3. Final-mile delivery is completed by USPS or a regional courier.

Why Hybrid Shipping Matters for eCommerce:

✔️ Lowers Costs – Hybrid services use low-cost last-mile carriers like USPS.

✔️ Flexible Delivery Speeds – Businesses can choose between economy and expedited hybrid options.

✔️ More Carrier Options – Reduces dependency on one carrier’s pricing & network.

How FirstMile’s Xparcel Hybrid Shipping Works:

🚀 Automatically selects the best combination of national and regional carriers.

💰 Reduces overall shipping costs while maintaining fast delivery speeds.

📦 Optimizes final-mile delivery using multiple network options.

A workshare partner is a logistics provider that sorts, processes, and inducts packages into USPS or other carriers at a discounted rate. These partners help reduce costs & improve efficiency.

How Workshare Partners Operate:

1. Packages are picked up & sorted by a workshare partner (e.g., FirstMile).
2. Shipments are inducted into USPS closer to the delivery destination.
3. Final-mile delivery is completed by USPS or another last-mile carrier.

Benefits of Workshare Partnerships:

✔️ Lower Shipping Costs – Reduces USPS processing & handling fees.

✔️ Faster Transit Times – Packages enter the USPS network closer to final delivery.

✔️ Scalability for High-Volume Shippers – Supports large ecommerce fulfillment.

How FirstMile Uses Workshare Partnerships:

🚀 Inducts packages into USPS, DHL eCommerce & regional carriers

💰 Reduces postage & last-mile fees for high-volume shippers

📦 Optimizes shipping zones for faster transit

Accessorial fees are additional charges that carriers apply for extra services beyond standard pickup and delivery. These fees can increase shipping costs significantly if not managed properly.

How FirstMile Lowers Accessorial Fees:

✅ Dynamically routes packages through carriers with lower or no DAS/EDAS fees

✅ Uses hybrid & regional shipping networks to minimize surcharges

✅ Optimizes shipping profiles to avoid unnecessary accessorial costs

A hybrid shipping model combines multiple carriers to reduce costs and optimize delivery speed. Instead of one carrier handling the entire route, packages are transferred between different carriers for efficiency.

Examples of Hybrid Shipping Services:

• UPS SurePost – UPS handles the long-haul, USPS does final delivery.
• FedEx SmartPost – FedEx linehaul, USPS delivers to the recipient.
• Xparcel by FirstMile – Dynamically selects the best mix of national & regional carriers.

Why Hybrid Shipping Works for eCommerce:

✔️ Reduces Costs – USPS delivers to all ZIP codes at lower rates.

✔️ More Carrier Options – No single-carrier dependency.

✔️ Flexible Transit Times – Balance between speed & savings.

How FirstMile’s Xparcel Uses Hybrid Shipping:

• Automatically selects the fastest, cheapest carrier mix for each package.
• Reduces fuel surcharges & delivery fees by leveraging regional carriers.
• Improves final-mile delivery performance through gig-economy networks.

Dimensional (DIM) weight pricing is a carrier pricing model where package volume (size) is factored into shipping rates instead of just weight.

Formula for DIM Weight:

DIM Weight (lbs) = (L x W x H) / DIM Factor

• UPS, FedEx, and USPS use 166 for domestic and 139 for international DIM factor calculations.
• If the DIM weight is greater than the actual weight, you’ll be charged based on the DIM weight.

How DIM Pricing Affects Shipping Costs:

🚀 Light but bulky packages are more expensive to ship.

📦 Carriers charge for wasted space in trucks/planes.

💰 DIM fees can significantly increase shipping costs if not managed properly.

How FirstMile Reduces DIM Fees:

• Carrier Selection: Xparcel dynamically chooses the best-priced carrier based on weight and dimensions.
• Box Optimization: FirstMile helps businesses choose better box sizes to minimize wasted space.
• Regional Carrier Inductions: Some regional carriers have less strict DIM pricing.

Zone skipping is a cost-saving logistics strategy where shipments are transported in bulk to a hub closer to their final destination before being inducted into a local carrier’s network.

How It Works:

1. Instead of shipping 100 packages from California to Florida individually, a business consolidates all shipments into one truckload.
2. The packages are transported to a Florida sortation hub.
3. Once at the hub, they are inducted into USPS, UPS, or FedEx’s local delivery network, skipping multiple zones.

Benefits of Zone Skipping:

✅ Lowers Shipping Costs – Avoids long-distance carrier pricing.

✅ Faster Delivery – Reduces transit times by skipping unnecessary sorting steps.

✅ Improves Efficiency – Packages reach their destination closer to final-mile delivery.

How FirstMile Uses Zone Skipping:

• We optimize package routing based on weight, zone distance, and carrier performance.
• Leverage regional carriers to further reduce cost and delivery time.
• Consolidation hubs across the U.S. allow for bulk shipments, lowering per-package costs.

Linehaul refers to the long-distance transportation of freight or parcels between carrier hubs, sortation facilities, or distribution centers. It’s a critical part of logistics, ensuring packages move efficiently across regions.

Types of Linehaul:

1. Air Linehaul – Faster but costlier (e.g., UPS Air, FedEx Express).
2. Ground Linehaul – Cost-effective trucking routes (e.g., USPS and DHL eCommerce linehaul).
3. Rail & Intermodal Linehaul – Used for bulk and freight consolidation.

Why Linehaul Matters for eCommerce:

• Reduces shipping costs by consolidating shipments before last-mile delivery.
• Enables faster cross-country shipping (e.g., a package from California to New York first moves via linehaul before entering local carrier networks).
• Minimizes reliance on a single carrier, improving efficiency.

How FirstMile Optimizes Linehaul:

• Uses dynamic routing to select the fastest & cheapest linehaul method.
• Leverages regional carriers for cost-effective linehaul operations.
• Optimizes zone skipping to reduce total transit distance.

Carriers are chosen based on various factors including package size, destination, and cost-effectiveness to ensure timely and safe delivery.

‍

Yes, you can specify your preferred carriers, and we will do our best to accommodate these choices.

The Dimensional weight is calculated by multiplying the length, width, and height of a package, using the longest point on each side to get the cubic size.

Then, divide the cubic size of the package in inches by the dimensional divisor to calculate the dimensional weight.

Key data point you need to know to calculate dimensional weight:

• Length = the longest side running from left to right
• Width = the perpendicular side to the length usually running front to back
• Height = the side that runs perpendicular to the length and width usually running from bottom to top
• Dimensional Divisor = The number provided by the carrier to divide into the cubic size to determine the Dimensional Weight