Right on. No, didn't go to Integrad, just a local training class at my building. Well, local for me -- but some of my classmates will be qualifying at buildings 200 miles away, ha. Heard the company at least paid for their hotel rooms.
Re: what tests are hardest, it really depends on the person. Make sure HR gets you a copy of the 5s and 10s (aka 5 seeing habits and 10 point commentary, or 'depth of knowledge') and study study study. Practice reciting them out-loud during your Amazon breaks. You'll have to verbally recite them to a trainer, so it's good to be used to saying them out-loud, not just writing them down from memory. Be ready to test out your first day; it's one less thing to worry about. If HR doesn't tell you, ask what you'll be expected to know. Our class had to nail the 5s word for word. First sentence/bold point of the 10s word for word; we were allowed to explain the hows and whys in our own words.
You'll have to pass a road test before they'll let you in class. So it's good to know your 5s and 10s as early as possible. When you road test you can already put the 'DOK' items into practice. Go ahead and start treating your Amazon routes as training for UPS to the extent that you can -- that way you'll develop the driving and delivering habits they're looking for. Here's a link to the 340 methods:
UPS Package Delivery Methods
Testing out of the pre-trip inspection isn't easy, so practice that a lot too. Long as you don't dawdle completing the computer modules, should have plenty of time to practice pre-trip with classmates. It's ~60 items, and you'll do it with a package car, so it's 'open book' and many of the items are duplicate, e.g., DOT number, side marker lights and reflectors, scan body for major damage ... but we were only given 3.5 minutes to note each item. That's a mouthful when you're walking in, out, and about a package car. Anyway, you can only miss 3 and you'll have to be quick. I'd recommend sticking more or less to the order on the checklist, no need to reinvent the wheel.
There are very few manual package cars in my building, haven't had a chance to drive one. If you can drive stick on a passenger car, shouldn't be a problem. If you don't know how, definitely find a way to learn, e.g., even if your building only has 1 manual in the fleet, you must be able to drive it.
UPS 'base cars' (p700s) are wider, longer, and taller than anything I've seen in the Amazon fleet. And don't forget the mirrors stick out farther, ha. No reason to fret. If you learned how to drive a sprinter safely, or ever rented a box truck when moving, you can get used to a package car. Just use extra caution and good judgment. If you're not sure of your clearance, stop the car, get out, have a look. Always better to take those extra seconds than risk hitting something. Set up and use your mirrors (ofc!), e.g., the rearview camera is just that: a 3rd mirror to see what's directly behind you, not a magic bullet for back-ups. Which you should always minimize as much as possible anyway and -- remember --, 'if you must back-up, back first'. Generally you'll have much better visibility that way. And watch your tail swing when pulling away from curbs, making turns. I saw UPS drivers walk off stops (within reason) to avoid plowing into tight parking lots, narrow drives and started doing that long before I left Amazon. Resi deliveries along busy streets/highways aren't fun, but it's part of the job and the slightest area knowledge goes a long way ... as always the best method will depend on the situation. Sometimes you can't avoid blocking a lane of traffic, flashers on. Better that than cracking someone's driveway, rutting up their grass, getting stuck, hitting a tree branch or mail box, or worst of all, getting into a collision after you've pulled 'nose-in' and have to back out
into a lane of traffic.
Yes, UPS has rolled out GPS navigation -- you'll hear it called Orion, also ODO (optimal delivery order). Not all buildings have it yet, but many do. From the ride-along, it looks like worse than Amazon's system ha. According to my driver the DIAD doesn't offer scalable map views, there's no screen with all your stops plotted on the map, just turn by turn navigation for each stop. (But, you
should be able to get print-outs of these before leaving the building.) When you're training you will have a route. Everyone will tell you: if you want to qualify, get maps printed, and go drive that route, study, take notes, e.g., one-way streets, major thru streets, number breaks, location of businesses and their preferred delivery locations, little odds and ends.
If you haven't already weaned yourself off GPS, do it now. You'll probably find it makes the day a lot easier. It will force you to become a better delivery driver. You'll actually learn routes, since you're scanning and paying closer attention to your physical surroundings. That means you'll drive more safely, too. You'll also discover little tricks and learn to identify poor dispatching ahead of time and override it. Nearly every day had to fix Amazon dispatching, esp. apartments or newer subdivisions. No reason to zig-zag about a large complex, or do half of it in one pass then back-track to deliver the rest 45 stops later. That said: at UPS there's more moving parts. At Amazon all packages are 'ground' so the only thing I'd scan for was businesses and schools hidden at the bottom of the manifest. At UPS, you'll have commits: NDAs, air savers, pickup windows, on demand pickups, my choice deliveries, etc. So, for example, if you have 10 NDA stops spread out over several miles, better not try and sneak in several ground stops outside the dispatch order, e.g. 'break trace', even though they're on the way to your next NDA delivery ... you won't want the sup asking why in the hell you scanned your last NDA package at 10:31a. If it's during your qualifying period ... plan on looking for another job.
It sounds like their union is losing power anyways.
ing Post!
