Optimisation plan revealed by bpost
Belgian operator bpost is to restructure its sorting and distribution operations over the next five years. The move forms a part of the company’s ‘2011-2015’ strategic plan, put into place as a result of falling mail volumes.
Five current sorting centres (Antwerp, Brussels, Charleroi, Ghent and Liege) will be transformed into Industrial Mail Centres (IMCs). Operations at the IMCs will be expanded considerably.
The five IMCs will ensure the regional sorting addresses are put in order of the rounds of the postal workers. Regular mail will thus be ready for delivery, as soon as the deliverer leaves the IMC.
The strategic plan is aimed at safeguarding bpost’s commitment to the Universal service, whilst optimising efficiency in logistics in light of the drop in mail volumes, without reducing quality of service.
In a conservative forecast, bpost said that addressed mail volumes are likely to drop 20% by 2015, with costs rising around the EUR 200m mark. This is likely to have a negative impact of EUR 600m upon the business, bpost confirmed.
Under the plan, postal workers – who currently sort mail at more than 400 distribution centres – will only be responsible for sorting parcels, registered mail and pensions.
Besides the national and regional sorting of the letters, Brussels will also act as a single parcel sorting centre, with more than 1,400 employees. Currently, 679 are based there.
The company will also boost employee numbers at the other centres: Antwerp numbers will rise from 576 to more than 600; Charleroi, from 387 to more than 600; Ghent, from 446 to more than 800; and Liege, from 343 to more than 350.
As a part of the strategy, the current 416 distribution centres will be streamlined into 60 Mail Centres (MCs) throughout Belgium.
The cost of the optimisation plan is EUR 200m, which includes the cost of establishing the new MCs.
The restructuring will be implemented gradually over several years, largely finished by 2015, but fully completed by 2017.
bpost confirmed that it intends to reduce employment levels – as a result of efficiency improvements – through natural attrition, and not through compulsory redundancies.
