LLNJ Delivery Update #13

LLNJ Delivery Update #13
New Vendor for Statewide Delivery

LLNJ Delivery

Update #13

 

January 25, 2018

Please share this with all staff involved with ILL/delivery.

 

 

Our transition to Expak has not been going smoothly. We hear your protests and complaints, and acknowledge the seriousness of the problems.

We are working persistently with Expak, our Executive Board, and our legal team to resolve the situation.

We Have Two Goals:

  • Getting the delivery system to work as quickly as possible
  • Getting the best long-term solution for LibraryLinkNJ delivery

What is Expak Doing?

  • Working on reducing the size of routes that were too long and not being completed
  • Creating extra routes
  • Hiring extra drivers and additional backup drivers
  • Aiming to start having the drivers using scanners during the week of Monday, January 29th
  • Working through last weekend to sort and set up deliveries for this week
  • Deploying additional drivers for this week in addition to the regular drivers on busy routes
  • Deploying box trucks from a secondary subcontractor to do targeted pickups of backlogged items at high-volume libraries
  • Providing LibraryLinkNJ with daily route reports which we share with consortium directors
  • Adjusting pickup times on routes
  • Following up with drivers on correct procedures

What Is Happening to Our Materials?

  • There are three depots, in Cherry Hill (CHRY), Jamesburg (JBRG), and Rockaway (ROCK), where materials are stored for sorting and delivery
  • Jamesburg and Cherry Hill are able to sort and clear their volume each night.
  • Rockaway is the heaviest used depot and is working on reducing their backlog.
    • Expak did get a significant amount of volume out this week as compared to last week and continue to push through the sorting
    • Sorting for delivery is taking place from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM on a daily basis, including the weekends
    • While Expak continues to make progress on bringing all routes up to date, we are aware that there are libraries that are still being drastically under-served.
      • Please fill out an online Problems Report about missed stops, or no deliveries or pick-ups: http://librarylinknj.org/delivery/problem-question-supplies
        • It becomes part of our official, legal record of issues
        • It does impact on LibraryLinkNJ billing for delivery
        • LibraryLinkNJ reviews these daily and we look for patterns, as well as addressing individual problems
  • Today, Kathy Schalk-Greene and representatives from the LibraryLinkNJ Executive Board and the Delivery Task Force made a site visit to the Rockaway depot, to assess the situation personally
    • Rockaway services the heaviest-use delivery sites, including major consortia such as BCCLS, BELS, MAIN and PalsPlus

How do I know which depot my library material goes to?

  • This information is on each delivery label. Your depot/hub is listed after your library name as CHRY (Cherry Hill), JBRG (Jamesburg), or ROCK (Rockaway)
  • When Expak picks up materials from your library:
    • Packages go to your depot and every night these are sorted
    • If necessary, packages are sent overnight to the receiving library’s depot/hub
    • Packages are then sorted later at night for delivery to the receiving library by route number and library name for their next delivery day (when operations have normalized)

Help! I’m Running Out of Supplies!

Can’t we just go to another vendor for delivery?

  • LibraryLinkNJ has a contract with Expak.
    • The Executive Board and our attorneys are considering all legal options under the contract, with the goal of restoring regular delivery fulfillment as soon as possible
  • If we did select another vendor, that would trigger a new transition period lasting up to three months

The Next Steps We Undertake Will Be:

  • The LibraryLinkNJ Executive Board will continue to work with Expak and our legal team to fulfill the terms of the delivery contract
  • We will provide timely updates at least once per week as we continue to shepherd this process to a satisfactory conclusion
  • Kathy Schalk-Greene is updating the Executive Board regularly. The Executive Board will review all progress on this matter throughout the month and at their meetings on February 15 and March 15. These meetings are held online and are open if you wish to attend. If you would like to attend, please kathy [at] librarylinknj.org (email Kathy) and she will send you instructions on how to do so.

LibraryLinkNJ will keep you informed by sending weekly updates about the new delivery service during our transition. All information on the transition to Expak is available in the Delivery section of our website, updated regularly. 

Kathy Schalk-Greene, Executive Director
kathy [at] librarylinknj.org
732-752-7720