About

On March 11, 1985, a startup company called Roadway Package System (RPS) put a label with 33 precisely spaced black lines on the outside of a package. By doing so, it changed the direction of the small-package industry. The black lines were a bar code. 

In the hands and minds of RPS’ innovative employees, this emerging technology made it possible not only to track a package’s movement, but also to sort it using automation to get it to its destination more efficiently — and to bill it more accurately. RPS was a division of Roadway Services, which became Caliber System Inc. in 1996. By creating competitive advantages in the form of an independent contractor pickup and delivery workforce, flexible pricing, package tracking that provided customers with relevant information about their packages, and many more “firsts,” the company quickly expanded and gained market share. In 1993, just nine years after its creation, RPS exceeded $1 billion in annual revenue — the fastest growth of any ground transportation company in history. By 1996, it offered 100 percent coverage of North America.