When businesses use a courier service for fragile items, there are likely to be special requirements to keep the items protected during transportation. For this reason, you’ll need to choose a bespoke courier service who are trained and experienced in carefully handling fragile consignments.
With most fragile items often being expensive, invaluable or irreplaceable, you’ll need to take all appropriate steps to safely package up your parcel.
In this article, we identify the steps that businesses should take when selecting a courier service for transporting fragile items. From packaging effectively, to choosing a trusted courier service that can handle your consignment appropriately and safely, there are many ways to ensure that a consignment is safe and protected.
Packaging Effectively
Choose a box large enough to fit both your fragile goods and sufficient protective packaging to surround it. Many businesses use a variety of protective materials, however, some of these will offer very minimal protection, including newspapers or airbags. Instead, we recommend using bubble wrap, corrugated liners or styrofoam wedges as this offers a great level of protection and is proven to keep fragile items secure.
If the package contains heavy fragile items, it’s a good idea to label your box as ‘fragile’ or ‘heavy’ – which can let the courier know to handle your consignment with care, whilst also letting the recipient know to carefully handle the fragile items when they are received. This is particularly important where items may be stored in a warehouse or a similar environment prior to delivery. It might also be worth indicating which way up your consignment should be handled and stored.
If utilising a courier service that provides product assembly or installation, it may also be worth checking that they can also dispose of the packaging for you, as it may not be convenient to dispose of this on-site.
Weigh Your Parcel Accurately
It’s also important to make sure that once your goods are packed and ready to be sent, you weigh and measure the item to enable the courier to provide you with an accurate cost.
Having an accurate measurement of the weight of your parcel can also provide our professional team of courier drivers with appropriate guidance of how to handle the parcel, which is dependent on the weight. For example, if the fragile consignment is classified as heavy, it will need further due attention and consideration during transportation.
If an item is particularly large or heavy, it might require a two-man delivery service to transport the consignment. This service is also beneficial where goods are particularly valuable, as your courier can arrange for the vehicle to be manned at all times during delivery.
Make Any Requirements Known
Some fragile items such as computing equipment, may also be valuable. So be sure to make your requirements known to your chosen courier service who can take your requirements into consideration when delivering your fragile goods. At Crown SDS, our trained team of DBS security cleared drivers are provided with manual handling training to keep all consignments safe, secure and protected.
When sending perishable and fragile goods, timing can be a critical factor and can make the difference between your goods arriving in perfect condition or an unusable condition.
If you work in a pharmacy and have medicine that needs to be delivered to a patient’s home, you might have a unique delivery requirement for the package. Our drivers are trained to handle special requirements such as home equipment installation of drug refrigerators and rotation of medication.
Security
If a fragile consignment requires a high level of security, you’ll most likely want reassurance every step of the way. At Crown SDS, we provide you with a dedicated point of contact to handle all communication and keep you in the loop. This contact will fully understand your requirements and needs to ensure your confidence every step of the way.
We also use electronic POC (proof of collection) and POD (proof of delivery) systems to alert you on the progress of your delivery, from the moment the delivery is scheduled, to the very moment your consignment reaches its destination.
Choose a Trusted Courier Service
When choosing the best courier for fragile items, it’s worth considering a courier service which you know and can trust. Whilst you can effectively package up your parcel and ensure your fragile items are protected for transportation, it’s also the responsibility of the courier service to protect and safely handle any goods to protect them from shock and vibration that can occur.
At Crown SDS, our reliable courier service is tried and trusted by many industries from healthcare to manufacturing. We are the UK’s leading bespoke same day courier experts. Adapting to the unique and challenging needs of our clients to deliver essential, time and condition critical items.
Our logistics team are fully aware of handling every delivery and collection with care. We offer a network of nationwide, reliable couriers that understand how to handle your products appropriately in-transit.
Every consignment is protected with our in-transport insurance, which covers your fragile goods from the moment it’s collected, to the moment it’s delivered. Whilst our drivers treat every consignment with the utmost care, the insurance covers the unexpected event of something breaking.
Our experienced account managers specialise in finding the most efficient solution for businesses: from route planning and scheduling to on-site coordination. No matter what size or shape, our wide range of vehicles will ensure safe and secure delivery across the UK.
If you’d like to find out more about our fragile goods courier service, please get in touch with us.