Flavor of the Month: Following Trace

[JL 0513]

Brother, I'm a cover driver. I sheet closed whenever I pull up to a business and it's closed.

If you think time-of-day matters then L-O-friggin'-L.

Um OK, so no air and pickups on time either?

Cover driver is regular driver. Here anyway.

 

[Hot Carl]

I've said for months now that I'll follow it as soon as the warning letter shows up with my name on it. I've never followed it a single time since I took this route because it is just unusable trash. I know the right way to run this route, and I don't really want to be out that late if I can avoid it. I don't run, I don't cut corners. I just get it done and bring it in.

I tried to raise issues with the glaringly obvious sequencing errors to PDS, the zig-zagging across busy traffic, the residential sections that are sequenced backwards and are at the front of the 1000 shelf when they should be on the back shelves. Nothing happened, so I just kept running it the right way. They threatened to discipline me for not following it, I kept running it my way, and nothing happened. And on and on this went for several more months, still with no follow-through on the discipline.

Haven't heard anything about ORION for a couple months now. My guess is they've moved on to something else, or they're just biding their time. Again, if push comes to shove and they hand me that big, scary piece of paper, that's when I'll let it burn.

When they come bitch to me about why my "over-allowed" has suddenly shot through the roof, I'll just tell them it's what they wanted. And if they want to write me up for some made-up bull like "malicious compliance", I will ask them for a copy of it so I can frame it and hang it up in my office at home, right next to all my years of safe driving awards.

 

[Just A UPS Guy]

I love when trace is the flavor of the month. I’ll run straight Orion and work three hours over for a couple of days. Collect OT and a 9.5 bonus and they leave me alone for a year. I saw a guy fired for being scolded about trace, followed it the next day 100% and needed to be helped. They said he was “following orders with malicious intent”

"Malicious obedience" they said. Lol

"Hey, you were at 73% yesterday."

I can get you 100%

"I need you at 90%."

I can get you 100%

"Get me 90%."

I can get you 73%

"Jesus man, just get me 80%?"

I can get you 100% and some triple-time.

"Go run your route"

Which way?

"I'll take 73% and get someone to make up for it."

 

[Just A UPS Guy]

I got wrote up twice for following Orion 100% for “not having the best interest of the company in mind”

Who do we write up for spending a billion dollars on Orion? Or was that in the best interest of the company?

 

[KearsargeCoop]

Where the hell are you located that you was working Memorial Day?

Lol.
What ing day was it? Some bank holiday last spring. Seemed like memorial Day in my head, but you are correct.

 

[RetiredIE]

Mandate came down two weeks ago, we need to follow 90% trace or better for whatever reason. That includes following itinerary updates.

Stretched out Monday route had an on-demand pick-up come through that jumbled my whole list, put one of my post offices as the third-to-last stop.

I've been to this PO before but never this late, meaning I've never encountered a situation where I needed to know when they close. Approached the stop today and it was closed. Made a phone call and now I'm looking forward to a meeting in the morning with the center manager and a steward.

I feel like I have nothing to worry about. This missed stop resulted from the directive not to stray from trace and to follow itinerary updates so as to keep our trace numbers up. It could've been avoided had I known this stop's hours of operation, or if there were even a note in the DIAD with their end of day. Moving forward, now I know and will be able to avoid this in the future, but as it stands I just don't know what I don't know, to the point where I don't even know that I should make a call until I pull up to the stop and notice that they're closed.

Any advice, old timers? As it is I'm kind of pissed off but the more I think about it the less this feels like it's truly my problem.

Do you mean trace, as in deliver in sequence order within the loop, or follow ORION order?

I worked on the ORION project early on. If I were driving now, I would follow ORION order 100% unless instructed in writing to stop doing so by management. The center team is responsible for the map data, the settings for each route and contingency plans. If you break trace you are giving them an out. Make them stare their problems right in the face. One of them might actually get fixed....

I was management, but I think UPS needs to own up. Really, really crappy ORION solutions are common and they are almost always not due to bad software, but rather crappy management and lack of knowledge.

 

[DOK]

I would rather they throw me in the office for trace first because I would be able to apply much more pressure before-the-fact and set a precident for having alerted them of incoming service failures. Whatever it takes to draw blood on a decision that alledgedly does not negatively impact them.

Besides, common sense would have it they would need to drag me kicking and screaming before I change my well-estsblished business delivery and pickup timetable. And this does not at all add in the extra issues of public and personal safety concerns that arrise from operating a mcstepvan through town especially after pickups.

And fair warning. Missed packages are piece-by-piece even the bags, if you had a post office stop with 50 plus pieces that probably made you enemy #1 in the district and they will come down hard on you no matter what no matter why. If you sheeted closed after 1700 like some folks panic and do, expect them to have ammunition to try and fire you outright.

I’ve been told sheeting closed between 12-1 and after 5 was no longer a “thing”, it’s ok to do, anyone have any experience with that?

 

[Brownsocks]

"Malicious obedience" they said. Lol

"Hey, you were at 73% yesterday."

I can get you 100%

"I need you at 90%."

I can get you 100%

"Get me 90%."

I can get you 73%

"Jesus man, just get me 80%?"

I can get you 100% and some triple-time.

"Go run your route"

Which way?

"I'll take 73% and get someone to make up for it."

Pretty much how it goes for me. I use the word unsafe a few times too.

 

[Brownsocks]

Do you mean trace, as in deliver in sequence order within the loop, or follow ORION order?

I worked on the ORION project early on. If I were driving now, I would follow ORION order 100% unless instructed in writing to stop doing so by management. The center team is responsible for the map data, the settings for each route and contingency plans. If you break trace you are giving them an out. Make them stare their problems right in the face. One of them might actually get fixed....

I was management, but I think UPS needs to own up. Really, really crappy ORION solutions are common and they are almost always not due to bad software, but rather crappy management and lack of knowledge.

Resi routes are ok until that random on-demand pops up. I honestly don't think it will ever be effective in some areas until it can account for the traffic jam coming at 1600 and 100 other things.

 

[Brownsocks]

Brother, I'm a cover driver. I sheet closed whenever I pull up to a business and it's closed.

If you think time-of-day matters then L-O-friggin'-L.

12- 1300 is out the window here, If it's after 1700 I'm sheeting it missed.

 

[Red Devil]

Um OK, so no air and pickups on time either?

Cover driver is regular driver. Here anyway.

They usually don’t say anything about late air either unless it’s a Monday

 

[PPH_over_9000]

Um OK, so no air and pickups on time either?

Cover driver is regular driver. Here anyway.

Air and pick-ups have a commit time in the board.

 

[Over70irregs]

Mandate came down two weeks ago, we need to follow 90% trace or better for whatever reason. That includes following itinerary updates.

Stretched out Monday route had an on-demand pick-up come through that jumbled my whole list, put one of my post offices as the third-to-last stop.

I've been to this PO before but never this late, meaning I've never encountered a situation where I needed to know when they close. Approached the stop today and it was closed. Made a phone call and now I'm looking forward to a meeting in the morning with the center manager and a steward.

I feel like I have nothing to worry about. This missed stop resulted from the directive not to stray from trace and to follow itinerary updates so as to keep our trace numbers up. It could've been avoided had I known this stop's hours of operation, or if there were even a note in the DIAD with their end of day. Moving forward, now I know and will be able to avoid this in the future, but as it stands I just don't know what I don't know, to the point where I don't even know that I should make a call until I pull up to the stop and notice that they're closed.

Any advice, old timers? As it is I'm kind of pissed off but the more I think about it the less this feels like it's truly my problem.

Their company their xtra OT. File and make 100k by October.

 

[MECH-II]

BACK TO SATURDAYS JUNIOR RPCDS!!

 

[Brownwind]

Do you mean trace, as in deliver in sequence order within the loop, or follow ORION order?

I worked on the ORION project early on. If I were driving now, I would follow ORION order 100% unless instructed in writing to stop doing so by management. The center team is responsible for the map data, the settings for each route and contingency plans. If you break trace you are giving them an out. Make them stare their problems right in the face. One of them might actually get fixed....

I was management, but I think UPS needs to own up. Really, really crappy ORION solutions are common and they are almost always not due to bad software, but rather crappy management and lack of knowledge.

Appreciate the response. You nailed it Lack of knowledge is the key factor.
Can’t understand why the program doesn’t follow and work with the H I N numbers on the shelf. It worked decades for me. Instead it’s a hide and seek delivery option

 

[anonymous23456]

What knowledge "ORION" managers are lacking?

Do HIN numbers must change when there is a new subdivisions and roads show up?

 

[PPH_over_9000]

Do you mean trace, as in deliver in sequence order within the loop, or follow ORION order?

I worked on the ORION project early on. If I were driving now, I would follow ORION order 100% unless instructed in writing to stop doing so by management. The center team is responsible for the map data, the settings for each route and contingency plans. If you break trace you are giving them an out. Make them stare their problems right in the face. One of them might actually get fixed....

I was management, but I think UPS needs to own up. Really, really crappy ORION solutions are common and they are almost always not due to bad software, but rather crappy management and lack of knowledge.

Delivering stop-by-stop by the itinerary dispatch puts together is my understanding of trace. Pick a different stop than the next one at the top of your list and you take a hit to your trace percentage.

I may have misunderstood that, but I know for sure they don't want us delivering shelf-by-shelf according to HIN-- even though when you do that it's feasible to scratch 95% of the routes in my center. The day I did that they posted the numbers and my trace dropped to 34% but I beat the miles and scratched the route by half an hour. Still found myself in a discussion with an on-road.

 

[Staydryitsraining]

How can that be eliminated? You can sheet closed at 8:30 at night?

Same here. No missed unless approved. If not approved you will be written up for it.

 

[PPH_over_9000]

Same here. No missed unless approved. If not approved you will be written up for it.

Them's the rules in my building as well. That's what started the argument with my supe, because I wasn't asking permission-- I just wanted to know if he preferred it sheeted as closed or missed.

 

[PPH_over_9000]

What knowledge "ORION" managers are lacking?

Do HIN numbers must change when there is a new subdivisions and roads show up?

Not necessarily, but in the event that it makes sense to change the sequencing up I kind of expect the guys who work with ORION day-in and day-out to recognize that, or at the very least have an open ear whenever it's apparent that they simply missed the problem.

Also, I had no idea there were such a thing as ORION managers. Does that just mean dispatch?

**Apologies for the multiple posts, guys, I'll try to clean it up going forward