Neil - You sound like me, I was in Purchasing for 30 years, have been responsible for tens of thousands of shipments. The absolute best carrier, "When it ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY has to be there TOMARROW" is Fed-X. And once they burned me at work. DELIVERED my parts to a machine shop down the street a block, the name on the delivery receipt wasn't anyone I'd heard of. The delivery driver picked it up and delivered it to us an hour later.
I had a supplier in California ship an electric motor to me on Friday, I told him ONLY ship Fed-X. The IDIOT tried to save a couple Dollars, shipped it via L.E.Profit International Air Cargo Express. Took me about an hour to find out that California to Wisconsin was a 2 day at best delivery for them. I spent most of Saturday on the phone finding out they somehow got it to Chicago O'Hara. I actually talked to someone who had seen and touched my package, I told him to stay right there, I'd drive the 3 hours and pick it up. He said I couldn't do that. I REALLY hate being told no. The airline Stewardesses had gone out on strike, nobody would cross their picket lines. FINALLY a air freight delivery service called me Sunday night about 7 PM, I ran the 6-7 miles to the airport, found their warehouse, the guy wheeled the little box onto the dock, I THREW the box into my truck. Monday morning I carried it into the entryway of the plant, called our floor supervisor to have somebody pick it up, I had recieving receive it. Then I called the supplier in California and politely asked him to call me back. He knew I was mad as heck Friday night. They guys around my desk would gather round and watch as I ripped suppliers a new butt hole, I had most of our department that day. I EVEN got a call from the CEO of the air freight company. I assured him that He could go back to sleep, that I would NEVER bother him again. About NOON the owner of the company that shipped the company finally called. He asked "Have you cooled off yet?" I laid into him again, that when I specify an expedited carrier you do NOT deviate from My instructions. My instructions are based off 15 years of keeping huge manufacturing plants running, I ended up with 30 years total when I retired.
Last place I worked, an assembly supervisor panicked, said he was out of parts. The supplier was in Kentucky, had parts in stock, if I'd known YESTERDAY, would have been no problem. According to the supervisor we couldn't wait for a piston powered airplane, had to be a JET, twin engine. So in about 3 hours the parts were in the plant. MY son was working in the plant for a couple weeks. He comes up to my cubicle at quitting time and says, " when you walk out tonight your going to be SO MAD" MY old Boss that hired me was now Plant Manager. The next day I paid him a visit, closed his office door, sat down, and explained ALL the flaming hoops one of his Supervisor's made me jump through and I trip over the danged part he absolutely positively had to have ASAP, as I walk out of the plant at 5 PM. I just wanted Him to address the issue with his supervisor, and reminded him, if the situation repeated itself I would fly more parts again. But they might be on a slower cheaper plane.
I had heavy gear motors shipped via truck from Chicago that the truck driver had my home phone number in case something happened, flat tire, breakdown, the driver could let ME know. That was actually a fun situation. I tried to reach out to ANYBODY at the Reliance/Dodge Manufacturing plant after hours, the Materials Manager called ME the next morning at 6;30 as I walked in the plant, she promised me a gearbox and to NEVER run me out again. We talked 4-5 more times after that day, if a machine in her plant broke down She'd check if she had Parts for Denny. I got a couple job offers but didn't want to move to South Carolina, now I might say yes.
That's just being lazy and sorry in my book. Takes how much time? Half a second?
