Thursday, January 10, 2008
phones are tie me to youI’ve started work again~
This is really annoying, I’m really nervous about going to work because there are so many procedures and things to do that I have to memorise!
I tell you, I never knew that shipping stuff overseas was so difficult! I can see the worker that I am replacing biting her fingernails in horror and fear already. Each mistake you make in documentation can cost you USD 50 (average) or USD 80!
I love this picture of Bleach. Though Kubo Tite’s English is skewered, the idea is there. I find it very meaningful.
The next part of my blog is basically for me to memorise my work better. You really don’t have to read it. It’s pretty boring.
I’m at UPS, where I’m at this little branch/segment for one of UPS customers (a big one) called EQUATE Petrochemical something. They’re like producers of plastic stuff – all I read about is plastic, plastic, plastic and more plastic – linear low density polyethylene HDPE EGDA-6888 (see I can memorise entire product quotes already – oh my goodness – I have no life) – gets boring after a while.
There’s like basically four main steps… but in these four main steps there are tons of other tiny little steps that are annoying…
Anyway, first you get the Booking Advice, which tells you who’s sending what, where, when and how.
From there, you get the Order Confirmation which basically confirms the booking advice, and there’s also Shipping Instructions which are pretty self explanatory.
There are like three types of shipments, one with a Letter of Credit (L/C), DP which I don’t know what it means, and TT which has something to do with the customer. For L/C and DP, you have to send to the bank for confirmation and stuff and for TT you have to send over to the customer.
Then you’ve got to update stuff in the system, SAP, before opening a new file and recording it down on the black file. Must write shipping date and other random little stuff.
From the L/C or the shipping instructions, you will know what kind of documents to prepare for the shipment. This part’s a bitch as many companies are extremely particular over some items and some countries have a certain way of doing things – like how shipments to China and Hong Kong demand Certificates of Origin regardless of whether they’re mentioned or not, or how Philippines and Thailand want breakdown commentary on what they’re paying for.
After a while, the shipping company will send you a Specimen Bill of Lading, which is this uber pro document which has everything and it’s the thing that basically solidifies the entire contract.
What we’re actually doing is like preparing documents and stuff for the customer as well as the bank that’s getting money. We’re telling them look, this is where your stuff went, who it went to, why you’re paying this amount, here’s your insurance incase you don’t get your shipment and (indirectly) this is who to go to if everything goes awful with your shipment.
After you get the specimen B/L (ah I’m lapsing into work lingo here…) you send the people who prepare the actual B/L (the main office in Kuwait) a request for the draft for you to check… again and again.
Then! The Shipping Confirmation comes. This is pretty straightforward, and it’s for cases like when the ship doesn’t sail on the date that’s specified in the booking advice.
Somewhere along here, you start to prepare documents that the L/C or shipping instructions specified – stuff like Certs of Origins, Certs of Analysis, Insurance things, Commercial Invoices (abbreviated CMI – cannot make it – an ODAC thing), Packing Lists etc that the fussy little piece of paper has asked for. Because the main office somewhere in Kuwait (yeah… wow really far) will immediately spam your inbox with all the required documents and stuff.
Then you retrieve them and amend them furiously within 3 days, asking for the actual B/L somewhere here because you need to prepare and send everything to the bank within three working days. Not to mention that you have to prepare a personal copy for yourself to keep as record.
End shipping procedures.
I will not go on about things like using the system. It’s annoying.
You do this again and again – with different documents and everything. Ah but I think It should be a good working experience! It’s teaching me to be detailed – something which I really need.
I think I’m really freaky. The first thing of the year I talk about on my blog is work.