UPS ready to handle the big holiday rush

Procrastinators can ship as late as Friday and have their packages arrive in time for Christmas

MISSISSAUGA, ON, Dec. 22, 2011 /CNW/ - UPS (NYSE: UPS) kicked off its busiest week of the year on Monday, prepared to help retailers and shoppers by delivering more than 120 million packages worldwide this week.

Today will be the busiest day of the year for UPS when almost 26 million packages will be delivered, which equates to almost 300 every second.  The company expects to deliver almost 25 million packages on several other days during its Peak Week - Monday, Dec. 19, through Saturday, Dec. 24.

The UPS Airlines will add more than 400 additional flights per day and on its busiest day, process 3 million express shipments in a 24-hour period through its Louisville Worldport facility. Procrastinators can ship as late as Friday, Dec. 23, benefiting from an extra delivery day on Dec. 24 with Saturday Delivery service options to select areas using:

• UPS Express Early A.M.^®, UPS Express^® and UPS Express Saver^® to many destinations within Canada
• UPS Express Early A.M. or UPS Express to many destinations in the U.S.
• UPS Worldwide Express^™ to Germany and the UK
• Go to UPS.com or call 1-800-PICK-UPS for details and to ensure Saturday Delivery is available to your destination.

UPS also managed more than 58 million online requests during the busiest tracking day of the year, Tuesday, Dec. 20. For a quick summary of holiday stats, see UPS's peak week Infographic.

Consumers looking for shipping information can visit ups.com for do-it-yourself holiday shipping solutions and to prepare shipping labels.  Packages then can be picked up by a UPS driver, placed in a UPS drop box or dropped off at a UPS Customer Centre, The UPS Store^® or other authorized shipping outlets.

For more information about the holiday shipping calendar and to learn more about the holiday surge, visit these online resources:

• The UPS holiday season media resource site - pressroom.ups.com/holiday
• The UPS blog - blog.ups.com/holiday
• Twitter - @UPS_Canada and @TheUPSStore
• Facebook - facebook.com/ups and facebook.com/theupsstore
• YouTube - youtube.com/ups
• UPS Mobile - m.ups.com

UPS (NYSE:UPS) is a global leader in logistics, offering a broad range of solutions including transporting packages and freight; facilitating international trade, and deploying advanced technology to more efficiently manage the world of business.  Headquartered in Atlanta, UPS serves more than 220 countries and territories worldwide.  The company can be found on the web at ups.com and its corporate blog can be found at blog.ups.com.  To get UPS news direct, visit pressroom.ups.com/RSS.

Video with caption: "Video: Gearing Up for Holiday Shipping Season". Video available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/cgi-bin/playback.cgi?file=20111222_C8691_VIDEO_EN_8458.mp4&posterurl=http://photos.newswire.ca/images/20111222_C8691_PHOTO_EN_8458.jpg&clientName=UPS%20Canada%20Ltd%2E&caption=Video%3A%20Gearing%20Up%20for%20Holiday%20Shipping%20Season&title=UPS%20CANADA%20LTD%2E%20%2D%20Gearing%20Up%20for%20Holiday%20Shipping%20Season&headline=UPS%20ready%20to%20handle%20the%20big%20holiday%20rush

Audio with caption: "Audio: Signed, sealed and delivered". Audio available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2011/12/22/20111222_C8691_AUDIO_EN_8460.mp3

Audio with caption: "Audio: How to properly seal and deliver your packages during holiday shipping season". Audio available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2011/12/22/20111222_C8691_AUDIO_EN_8461.mp3