White glove delivery training and safety as well as ways to minimize damage were the talking points on this episode of White Glove Residential Briefing: presented by AIT Worldwide Logistics.
FreightWaves Director of Freight Intelligence Zach Strickland welcomed back John Hagi, AIT’s Director of Residential Delivery and Special Services, who recently appeared as a panelist on a FreightWaves final mile webinar, to further discuss the factors affecting the white glove sector.
The coronavirus pandemic has restricted face-to-face interactions across multiple transportation sectors. Although June saw white glove deliveries resume in many markets, final-mile service providers have scaled back or suspended service in areas where infection counts are spiking.
“Recently, there’s been a correction where COVID-19 cases have resurged in many markets, Miami in particular, in which white glove deliveries have shut down yet again,” said Hagi.
Hagi urges drivers to continue following their companies’ safety procedures to minimize the risk of viral exposure when making residential deliveries. Likewise, consumers must also do their part to curb the spread of COVID-19.
“From a precautionary standpoint, it’s incumbent on the drivers and customers to work together to establish six feet of social distancing and to wear PPE [personal protective equipment] to protect both parties in every delivery,” Hagi said.
Providing comprehensive training to delivery personnel is a prerequisite to any successful white glove delivery.
“Training white glove personnel in general assembly practices is critical to setting up a good program,” Hagi said.
Hagi explained that a solid training program requires collaboration between manufacturer, seller and service provider to ensure drivers have a clear understanding of the requirements as it relates to the specific commodities being delivered.
“The ‘MyAIT University’ platform provides drivers with downloadable assembly instructions to familiarize them with the process ahead of the assembly work. It’s efficient from a timing standpoint as well as thorough and complete for a good customer experience,” Hagi said.
When asked about the prevalence of damages in final mile deliveries, Hagi asserted that providers should work closely with their customers and manufacturers to identify specific products that are more susceptible to damage. He added that reviewing both the manufacturing and shipping stages of the process can help reveal opportunities for improvements that minimize the risk of damages.
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