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September, 2005
To the Publishers we serve:
Every so often we
like to remind publishers about adequate preparation and identification
of products being shipped into inventory at PSSC. Please pass these
specifications and suggestions along to your production department and
then on to your suppliers.
- All books
should be cartoned. If you expect to have us ship carton-sized
orders of a title via USPS, UPS, FedEx etc. the cartons need be 275
test or 44 ECT single wall at a minimum. Boxes of only 200 test or
32 ECT are not strong enough.
- All boxes
should be packed solidly either full of books or filled-up with firm
packing material so that the boxes on the bottom of a pallet do not
sag or collapse under the weight of those above. Books should never
be packed “on end” in cartons. Particular care needs to be taken
with publications with protrusions such as tabs or wiro/GBC binding.
We find frequent instances of damage when such publications are
boxed standing on end.
- The weight of
cartons should in general not exceed 40 pounds. However printers
must use common sense on the weight limits. E.G: A full carton holds
8 books but it weighs 45 pounds. DO NOT just put 7 books in the
carton to get it under 40 pounds – resulting in a poorly filled
carton and a weird number for calculations. The heavier carton in
this situation is generally a better solution unless you frequently
re-ship to foreign or domestic distributors with 40 pound limits.
- All cartons
must be clearly marked on at least 2 contiguous sides in letters at
least ½ inch high (the bigger the better) with the following
absolutely essential information (see Example 1):
|
Name of publisher |
|
Title and code of
publication |
|
ISBN in both print
and barcode (code 39) please leave hyphens out of the ISBN barcode |
|
Quantity in carton
in both print and barcode (code 39) |
|
Gross weight of carton and contents |
Also include, if
significant,
|
Type of
binding |
|
Edition
and/or printing |
The use of
barcodes with the ISBN, Quantity and Weight on the carton labels is very
important to all parts of the supply chain.
Example 1

We suggest that
publishers with any appreciable sales to major vendors such as Ingram
Books, Barnes & Noble Dist. Center and Baker & Taylor should use the
Book Industry Study Group (BISG) suggested carton labeling
specifications (Appendix C, Figure C-1, )http://www.bisg.org/docs/Shipping_Label_Guidelines_04-2004.pdf
.
The barcodes all incorporate field identifiers that help the vendors in
their automation processes. These vendors threaten non-compliance charge
backs ranging from punitive to outrageous if these specifications are
not used.
Example 2

Do not leave the
selection of wording or numbers for the title and code up to the manufacturer. Publishers should specify on their manufacturing orders
exactly the description
that must be imprinted. Choose the same words and numbers that you plan
to use on
invoices. Manufacturers, left to their own imaginations, are endlessly
inventive and frequently
bizarre.
-
Cartons should be securely fastened to pallets (not skids) that
are 48” long by 40” wide and no more than 55” high overall. All
titles with multiple pallets should stack layers as close to the
55:” limit as possible, thus keeping the number of total pallets
as small as possible. A high quality hardwood 4 way entry
pallet is required with full sides and not EURO type corner
blocks. Too many printers ship on flimsy pallets that
collapse during transport or are not strong enough to suspend in
warehouse racks
-
Extra hourly charges will be
applied to shipments that come in bedloaded or that have to be
stripped and re-stacked due to excess height or poor stacking
from the manufacturer.
-
Extra charges will also be added
when products come in lacking key information on the carton,
such as no book code/ISBN code. The cartons will all have to be
re-marked and handled to include this information.
-
Please be sure that all shipments
are prepaid that come into PSSC. PSSC cannot accept collect
freight unless specific previous arrangements have been made
well in advance of receipt.