Faster transit times, wider service footprint, and extended collection hours for export shipments across the company’s Smart Logistics Network.

The series of service enhancements UPS revealed today impact almost 1.4 million postal codes in 41 countries and territories across the Asia Pacific region, enabling worldwide connectivity for over 22 million businesses.

“At the root of the investments in our Smart Logistics Network is a simple desire to make global commerce easier for Asian businesses—because when they grow, we grow too,” said Ross McCullough, President, UPS Asia Pacific Region.

“More UPS customers in the region will now be able to have their shipments sent and received in less time; they’ll be able to find us easily in more cities and towns, and they’ll be able to send shipments later in the day than before—all of which will open new opportunities for businesses in the region to trade more efficiently with the rest of the world.”

In the first half of 2019, UPS completed the following as part of its strategy to bolster economic development in the region, which is projected to account for 63 percent of global GDP growth in 2019:

• Shenzhen Asia Pacific Air Hub upgrades increase the hub’s processing capacity by nearly 50 percent in preparation for volume gains in the coming three years.
• Transit times reduced across 2,300 trade lanes: Intercontinental transit times reduced by up to 4 days, while shipments with destinations in Asia see transit times improved by up to 2 days. Customers shipping from Ipoh to Europe and intra-Asia benefit from shipments arriving 1 day faster.
• Improved the geographic reach of UPS Worldwide Express services, offering international shipping with time-definite deliveries in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, and South Korea
• Extended pick-up times by up to five hours for export shipments from China, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea, widening production windows and giving businesses additional time to fulfil customer orders.
• Strengthened supply chain flexibility with Saturday pick-up services in the U.S. enabling import shipments destined for eight markets in Asia – including Malaysia – to be delivered 1 day earlier than before.

“We’re enthusiastic about the opportunities that global trade brings to customers in Malaysia, and the service expansions provide businesses the opportunity to benefit from enhanced logistics services and greater geographical reach in a market where e-commerce is increasingly a key growth factor across industries” said Lim Tze Hsien, Managing Director of UPS Singapore and Malaysia.

This seems to be promising news for Malaysian businesses and the like, and it creates a more suitable environment for e-commerce. I mean, who doesn’t like deliveries getting faster? And with this, maybe our couriers and logistics boys might want to see how they can improve their own operations.