EVALUATION OF SERVICE SELECTION FACTORS AND FREIGHT COST COMPARISON OF AIR COURIER PROVIDERS FOR AIR IMPORT OPERATION: A CASE STUDY OF ABC COMPANY

Abstract

            This study aimed to: 1) evaluate the factors influencing the selection of air courier services for import operations at ABC Company; 2) analyze and compare the freight costs of Air Courier A and Air Courier B based on actual import data and alternative cost scenarios at ABC Company; and 3) integrate service selection factors with freight cost data to develop guidelines or standards for selecting the appropriate service provider for each country zone and weight range. The study used data collected from questionnaires administered to five logistics practitioners selected using purposive sampling, together with 195 actual shipment records. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, including mean and standard deviation, along with cost analysis and opportunity cost evaluation.
            The results showed that reliability had the highest mean score, followed by responsiveness, while cost had the lowest mean score, indicating that the organization placed greater emphasis on service quality than on cost. However, the cost analysis revealed an opportunity cost of 204,580.88 THB, representing 15.98% of the total cost, suggesting potential for cost reduction through price comparison prior to decision-making. The findings indicate that Air Courier A should be selected as the primary service provider for shipments to Asia and Europe because it had relatively lower costs for most shipments. For shipments to North America and the Caribbean, the selection of the service provider depended on the shipment weight range. Therefore, freight rates between Air Courier A and Air Courier B should be compared before making a decision for each shipment.