UPS will now offer CrossBorder Connect, a ground freight service between the U.S. and Mexico designed to ease heavyweight freight supply chain challenges for companies investing in cross-border trade.


The service bundles UPS's transportation and customs brokerage expertise north and south of the border to boost speed to market, drive cost efficiencies and reduce supply chain risk.

UPS CrossBorder Connect is a contractual service that uses the trucking network that supports UPS's North American Air Freight service. That network has been connected with trusted carriers in Mexico at eight important points along the U.S.-Mexico border. By integrating UPS's brokerage capabilities, the service helps companies with the complex brokerage process and is designed to help reduce customs delays associated with border regulations, inspections and lengthy paperwork.

UPS also provides the option of bonded movements through the border to help enable faster crossing of goods.

"With the global rise in fuel and labor costs, near-sourcing has become an increasingly viable option for many businesses looking to reduce their production and supply chain costs and expand their market share," says Steve Flowers, president, UPS Global Freight Forwarding. "For example, we're seeing more high-tech and automotive companies now moving production closer to consumption points in North and South America, and UPS CrossBorder Connect can help them navigate the complexities inherent in U.S.-Mexico trade while containing costs."

Prior to this service offering, cross-border heavyweight freight shipping options were limited to air freight or conventional less-than-truckload movements. UPS CrossBorder Connect offers transit times of three to four days between most major U.S. cities and Mexico.

As part of the company's global freight forwarding offering, UPS CrossBorder Connect provides extensive coverage through full transportation and brokerage services at eight major border crossings: Otay Mesa and Calexico, Calif.; Nogales, Ariz., and El Paso, Laredo, McAllen, Harlingen and Brownsville, Texas.