INfoExpress questions from D2D-VII

4/7/2017

  • Should we call or email and request special pickup for miss-shipped items?
  • We prefer that you send an email to or any changes or problems. That way we have a record of all requests and can follow up on them.
  • What about ‘Hey, my dock is blocked’ email? (How do I notify the driver of local problems?)
  • We prefer that you send an email to or any changes or problems.
  • What updates are you looking for in the future?
  • The goal is to always improve the service and reduce the number of problems. Currently NOW Courier is switching from a large separate scanner to a cell phone app. We hope that this will tighten the tracking of the parcels.
  • It seems like we no longer have the ability to print just one shipping label when entering items into the manifest. If you can, how do you do it?
  • No, you do and always have had this ability. Mike Hicks ()canprovide more detailed instructions, but on the screen where you can view the daily manifest: Uncheck all of the labels except the one you want to print, thenclick on Print Standard Label.
  • Any way to make it more difficult to accidently send items to the wrong, similarly-names libraries? (i.e.- Huntington/Huntingburg?)
  • We thought that the maps would help, but we are still having a number of mis-addressed parcels. The other thing you can try is to limit your search by library type (Academic, Public, Institutional, School, or Special). This will limit the results in any search to just that type.
  • We are also looking at adding an interrupt message for the frequently mixed up libraries, like “Did you really mean to ship this to Butler Public Library?” We hope to have this feature added to InfoExpress by the end of the year.
  • Why can’t the Terre Haute area keep drivers? We have lost another driver.
  • All of the drivers for NOW courier are independent contractors, and as such, there is a lot of turnover.
  • Can we visit the hubs as a group? I understand that this happens in Michigan.
  • Good suggestions. Since the Indianapolis hub is that largest, we will try to set up a field trip to visit them during ILF or along with the next D2D.
  • How long does it really take for bags to arrive to their destination?
  • Bags are picked up from the shipping library and taken to that region’s hub. If they delivery library is in the same hub, it should go out the very next day. If the delivery library is in a different hub, then the bag will be shipped to that hub and then get sent out for delivery the next day.
  • How many drivers do you really have? It seems like the drivers are different every day.
  • NOW Courier employs several hundred drivers. Part of what you are seeing is caused by the fact that InfoExpress is not a dedicated, library-only courier system. If it was, the cost of the service would be many times more than it is now. Your deliveries are being delivered to you by couriers who may be carrying a wide variety of different items. You see different drivers because today’s driver may be the one coming closest to your location on that day.
  • Why aren’t drivers not really trained in their areas, especially where they take bags in their areas?
  • NOW Courier constantly tries to train their drivers carefully, but there are almost 400 library stops so errors and lapses are made. More and more of the information the drivers need is being loaded into their manifest on their phones.
  • Can Library codes be added rather than having to type the name or part of the name when printing labels? (Please check the Jasper Co and Jasper Dubois aren’t the same.)
  • When constructing your labels and manifest on the InfoExpress screen, you should be able to type in any part of the library name, city of short code to identify the correct library.
  • I am having a problem with a library in the South Bend area. (3 weeks transit) Items are overdue before I receive it. Is it the library or the hub?
  • We have had reports of this before, and we are investigating.