UPS is gearing up for the Paralympics which start on Wednesday (29th August), following the end of the Olympics two weeks ago.
Since the closing ceremony, UPS has been involved in helping prepare the venues for the Paralympics, moving a vast inventory between two dedicated London 2012 warehouses and 20 competition venues.
As official logistics and express delivery supporter, UPS is responsible for virtually all the distribution and logistics services required to produce the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. It estimates that by the end of the games, it will have handled 30 million items, including one million pieces of sporting equipment.
For the Paralympics, it will handle, among other things, 4,850 eye patches for Goalball, 10,000 rifles for Shooting, 1,626 assorted weights for Weightlifting, and 4,312 court surface mats for Table Tennis.
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UPS will also be involved in converting venues between sports. For example, the Basketball Arena has to be converted from Wheelchair Basketball to Wheelchair Rugby in ten hours.
Paul Deighton, Chief Executive, LOCOG said: “The transition to what will be the largest Paralympic Games ever is a huge operation in a short time period. We need to get everything right for the athletes, spectators and media alike and UPS has been a key partner in helping us ensure the process goes smoothly and that we are ready to stage a spectacular Paralympic Games.”
Other aspects of the Olympic Games infrastructure which require adaptations include the athletes’ coaches. To increase wheelchair capacity, 3000 seats will be removed from coaches and UPS will store them in such a way so that they can be inventoried and returned to exactly the same coach and position they came from.
“London 2012 has been a tremendous success by any measure and our employees delivered a logistical performance worthy of these Olympic Games,” said Dan Brutto, president UPS International.
