subject: Protection Matters - Shipping Methods And Packaging [print this page] Protection Matters - Shipping Methods And Packaging
When you buy network equipment from a reputable supplier there's more to consider than just the quality of their equipment, the warranty, and the timeliness with which they get your order out the door and have a tracking number to you. You should also ask how the products are packed.
This may seem trivial at first but it's extremely important. You don't want to spend money on a great deal only to find out that the product arrives on time but is physically damaged, or, from the jolts involved in shipping, it just doesn't work properly.
Most companies ship using the usual suspects: FedEx, UPS, DHL and an assortment of quality trucking and international freight carriers. It's usually best to let your supplier use their preferred shipper since they will tend to know more about how that carrier handles boxes in their region. Although the various carriers have overall positive reputations the quality of their employees can vary from location to location.
Products should be packed in a double walled boxes, adequately wrapped and protected. Some companies prefer a foam machine (which works great but is not environmentally friendly), some use bubble wrap (which is generally accepted as effective and easy to recycle) and some use the dreaded foam peanuts (which work well but create a mess). Products, should never be shipped in single walled boxes; they are not safe to ship in and will not adequately protect your order.
In addition, for example, NetworkEquipment.net has an internal policy that requires all larger chassis (like a the Cisco 6500 series switches: WS-C6509, WS-C6509-E; and Cisco 7600 series routers: 7606, 7609, 7613; and the Cisco 4500-E series, etc. ) to ship in a wooden crate that is specifically measured and built to hold that chassis. And, if ordered together, we encourage customers to allow us to pre-install all blades, network modules, port adapters, network processing engines, power supplies, etc., into the chassis. This not only allows the various components to be tested as a complete unit, it also protects the components since they ship inside the chassis.
Ask your supplier what their RMA (return merchandise authorization) percentage is. Choose a network equipment supplier that has a track record of less than one-half of one percent returned merchandise. This will assure you that 99.5% of the time, or better, what they ship arrives to their customers in good working order and does not need to be returned for any reason. It's a sign of their efficiency and attention to detail. It adds an important trust factor when dealing with them.
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