Inventory that does not arrive at Amplifier in a condition that is ready to ship to end-customers must be “made ready”. Items that need to be made ready include products that:
Cannot be dropped in a shipping container
Must be folded
Must be bagged
Must be barcoded
Must be rolled before shipping
Requires prep or assembly
Must be opened in order to identify it
And other variations
Amplifier already performs and bills Make Ready work whenever a Client’s inventory arrives in an unshippable state. If this were not so, inventory would not be deliverable to end customers.
For example, when a Client delivers glass drinkware to Amplifier that is not packaged for individual shipping, Amplifier must perform a one-time value-added service to put those breakable products into a protective container to prevent breakage. Typically, with glassware, this is a corrugate box to prevent glass from bouncing around inside a larger shipping container. Historically, this work has been invoiced as hourly Assembly or Warehouse fees.
This allows further automation of billing and provides more granular cost information to our clients. This may also result in an increase in costs to Clients who deliver inventory in a state that is not ready to ship. Itemized Make Ready rates will include Packaging Materials (where required) and where applicable also include applying an Item Barcode.
In addition, inventory that does not arrive in a Ready to Ship state necessitating Make Ready also is subject to potential receiving delays as additional labor must be scheduled to perform this unexpected work.
In the event that a Client needs non-compliant inventory received on an expedited basis, Amplifier may elect to grant an exception to Make Ready work requirements. (e.g. we might receive your inventory without barcodes.) But in the event that this exception is granted, the Client will be assessed a per/unit fee equivalent to the unperformed Make Ready work for receiving non-compliant inventory.
* Poster Make Ready cannot be performed upon arrival because multiple posters are picked and rolled into a single tube during a picking event to reduce client packaging costs. Therefore, Posters are subject to an additional Poster Handling Fee.
*Vinyl/Album and Book items are not considered "made ready" but are shipped separately from other item categories using specialized packaging so as to not require Make Ready work.