Central Receiving
The Facilities and Operations’ Material Services unit is responsible for the Central Receiving function at the University of Michigan – Flint campus.
The following should be used in expediting the delivery of packages received for all departments on campus:
- An example of a proper package shipping label would be:
- The University of Michigan – Flint
- Department name Contact name
- PO #3000123456 (if applicable) 602 Mill St.
- Flint, Michigan 48503
We receive packages into Central Receiving with little to no identifying information on whom or where the package should be delivered. These packages cause unnecessary investigative work through Procurement and Contracts, the vendor, etc. in order to find out who the package belongs to.
- Notify Material Services, in advance, of any critical or time sensitive packages that will be delivered. We can be on the lookout for the package and ensure a timely delivery.
- If a package is needed quicker than it can be scheduled for delivery by Material Services, the package can always be picked up by the department directly from Central Receiving located in the Hubbard building.
- If a package has not been received by the expected delivery date that the vendor has provided, contact Material Services. At that time, a package tracking number will be required from the vendor in order to track the package via the transportation company’s web site. Using the information provided by the package tracking number we’re able to determine what day the package was delivered to the University and who signed for the package.
Packages are delivered daily, Monday through Friday, at Central Receiving via UPS, FedEx, OfficeMax, etc. Packages are signed for by Material Services staff as they are received. Each package received is logged in to our package tracking program for delivery purposes. Information includes:
- Shipper number
- Room number and building where the package is to be delivered
- Department’s employee signature who signed for the package
All packages delivered by Material Services staff require a signature on our Intellitrack scanner from the department verifying that the package was received. Important: departments should always confirm that what they’re signing for is actually what they’re receiving.
Scheduled deliveries are performed to all campus buildings by Material Services. Packages are sorted by building to streamline the delivery process. Packages using “Next Day Air” or “Priority” services are delivered the same day they are received. These packages generally contain items that are extremely important to the department, require refrigeration, etc. All other packages received are typically delivered to campus departments the following business day.
Larger items such as furniture and equipment are not always received at Central Receiving. It may be easier to receive those items at the department’s building loading dock where the items will be used. Deliveries may be delivered directly to the ordering department also. When this occurs, Material Services or the ordering department will be required to sign for the delivery. As with all packages received, each package should be expeditiously opened and reviewed for accuracy of the order and inspected for possible damage.
Package Shortage or Missing Items
Some shipments may be received in multiple packages, such as 1 of 4 to 4 of 4, etc. If one of the packages is missing, contact Material Services at 766-6671 or 762-3223 after waiting a few days. It’s possible that the transportation company separated the multiple packages and may deliver some packages one day and the rest the next day or following days.
If there are any missing items, check the packing slip provided with the package by the vendor to determine if the total order was shipped and there are no backordered items. It’s possible that a partial shipment may have been sent with additional items on backorder to follow. If there are missing items that were ordered when compared to the packing list that the vendor has provided, you should contact the vendor immediately.
Damaged packages
Once a package is received by the department from Material Services, an authorized representative of the department should expeditiously open the package, review the accuracy of
the order and inspect the contents for any damage to the items shipped. If there is any damage to the package contents, Procurement and Contracts should be notified. Coverage for damage is provided by most transportation companies for up to seven (7) days after the package is received.
If damage is reported after seven (7) days, the transportation company may request an investigator to take a look at the package, including all packaging materials used for packing, and the contents of the package to determine if the transportation company was actually at fault. It’s in everyone’s best interest to inspect the packages received and report any damage or shortage immediately.
Packages that are delivered with obvious external damage to the packaging material are identified by the Material Services at the time of delivery. If the Material Services staff can determine that the items inside the package have been damaged, we’ll refuse the shipment. The transportation company will return the damaged package to their shipping hub for replacement determination. If damage cannot be determined immediately, the Material Services staff will have the transportation company’s delivery driver note the damage on the “Bill of Lading” that we sign to accept the delivery. By noting the damage to the “Bill of Lading”, at the time of the delivery, helps to validate a damage claim when it is made against the transportation company later on. Upon further inspection, we may discover that no damage has taken place to the item shipped and the package will be delivered to the department.
If damage is discovered after inspection, it’ll be necessary to contact the transportation company and place a claim against the transportation company to have the item replaced. Damaged packages will be opened by Material Services and inspected for damage to the packages’ contents. If damage to the contents is identified, a “Damage or Shortage” report will be filled out by Material Services staff for documentation purposes. A copy of this report will be sent to the ordering department, Procurement and Contracts and we’ll keep a copy on file in Material Services.
There are situations where a package may appear damaged when we received it, but the items in the package had not been damaged. There are also situations where a package does not appear to be damaged, but because of the handling of the package, internal parts of an item may have been damaged. These packages should be brought to the attention of Material Services and Procurement and Contracts. Material Services staff will fill out a “Damage and Shortage” report for the damaged package, as required. If Material Services has already noted possible damage on the transportation company’s “Bill of Lading” it’ll be easier to deal with getting a replacement shipped out. If Material Services has not already noted possible damage on the transportation companies’ “Bill of Lading” it may be necessary to have a transportation company’s inspector take a look at the package for claim determination.
The visual inspection of a package may not always show evidence of physical damage that has occurred to some items in the package. In the transportation industry, this is known as “concealed damage” and should be identified as soon as possible in order to make a claim against the transportation company. If there is concealed damage to any item, Procurement and Contracts should be notified immediately to report the damage.
If you have further questions please contact:
Annette Holt – 810-766-6671 (holta@umich.edu)
Michael Malik – 810-424-5471 (mmalik@umich.edu)