The Rate of Freight
At Express Metal Products the standard pallet and per parcel freight rates have remained unchanged for over a decade.
As you are aware, there are currently extreme pressures on supply of transport fuels and other input costs.
From a review of EMP’s freight offering I can see that while freight charged to customers has not increased in 10 years, the cost to Express has been steadily rising. Since 2015 there are 17 major revisions to the freight management system (FMS) which have delivered process improvements, cost efficiencies, and allowed our team to keep freight prices stable over the last decade.
Unfortunately this morning (23/03) an increase in the fuel levies of both our major carriers in addition to an Extraordinary Fuel Levy came into effect. Already this morning we have delivered jobs to customers on all sides of Brisbane at a loss.
Rest assured all quoted freight prices will be honored.
Going forward your freight pricing may change in line with changes to input costs.
All FIS agreements remain unchanged at this time.
You may not receive a freight option on your quote unless you request it or your account is coded to request it automatically.
What’s the damage?
Please see the freight pricing summary below:
** Pricing only available to customers who have an active credit account at Express
| SKU (ItemCode) | Description | Old Pricing | New Pricing |
| FREIGHTOUT.0** | Book best available at time of dispatch and charge to credit account | TBA | TBA |
| FREIGHTOUT.1 | Brisbane Metro: 20kg | $35 | $40 |
| FREIGHTOUT.2 | Freight Charge Other | Quoted at time of dispatch | Quoted at time of dispatch |
| FREIGHTOUT.3 | Brisbane Metro: 1 tonne or 1 pallet spaces | $70/pallet space or per tonne | $80/1T utility Up to 2 pallet spaces but maximum 1T |
| FREIGHTOUT.4 | Book on customer account | $0 | $0 |
| FREIGHTOUT.5** | FREE INTO STORE | $0 | $0 |
| FREIGHTOUT.6+ | Custom freight rates to particular locations | FIXED RATE | Now quoted at time of dispatch |
We encourage you to consider specifying the above item codes on your purchase orders to assist our estimating team in identifying your preferred option.
No changes have been made to your standing instructions regarding delivery, packing, or freight, at this time.
While some rates are increasing we have negotiated an improvement on the rate for pallets – now FREIGHTOUT.3 can carry two pallets under 1T total weight whereas previously it was per pallet.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact your account manager via our CRM at sales@expressmetal.com.au or via phone on 07 3200 4488.
Further Changes to the EMP Freight Management System (FMS)
Express is continually improving the FMS to deliver effective and economical tansport options for our customers. We are working right now with four major carriers to integrate their quoting and allocation systewm API’s into our own bespoke FMS.
In future we will be able to instantly obtain freight quotes from multiple carriers, ensuring the lowest cost option is selected for our same-day courier services and providing options for cheaper next-day services.
Customers will retain the ability to capitalise on their own cost efficiencies by booking their own transport or they can choose to leverage the work we are doing in this area by requesting a real-time quote from our four major providers.
Please standby as this improvement is tested and validated prior to release.
What impact does extreme fuel scarcity potentially have on my deliveries from Express?
If fuels were to become increasingly scarce, there are a number of impacts you can expect from our carriers:
- Compulsory Route Optimisation – Dispatchers and allocators will be instructed to heavily optimise delivery routes. This means that more consignments will be multi-leg with multiple pick-ups and multiple drop-offs along an efficient route. As the volume of consignments available for allocation to couriers increases so too does the efficiency of that route. It is likely that at a potential diesel price of $4/L ,all consignments in most industries will move to next-day delivery to facilitate route optimisation.
- Increased Freight Price Volatility – If fuel levies change more frequently than once per week Express will need to immediately move to quoting freight upon dispatch, not at the quoting or order entry stage.
- Supply Chain Shortages – As transport slows for efficiency the availability of some items may be degraded.
- Reduced Service Windows or Optimal Service Windows (RSW/OSW) – As the transport industry is incentivised to increased productivity there may be times of the day where pickup or delivery of freight is not available or charged at a premium. If more cost effective transport options present themselves outside of our standard dispatch hours, we will extend dispatch opening hours or 24 hour dispatch.
- Priority Service Windows (PSW) – As the utilisation of domestic freight increases carriers may choose to prioritise certain industries, customers, or cargo. Express has a strong relationship with local carriers with which to leverage in this situation.