Bike smart
Last June Post Danmark won the Technology Award at the World Mail Awards 2013 in Madrid. Post & Parcel spoke to Senior Project Manager Ib Larsen and Development Consultant Laila Malekides to find out how rolling out an innovative e-bike scheme helped the company land the top prize. What service was the company recognised for in this award?
Ib: We developed a distribution solution called the e-bike system that has increased our productivity rapidly. All Post Danmark’s manual bikes for mail distribution were replaced by high load capacity e-bikes, mainly three wheelers able to handle up to 130 kg of mail. The previous manual bike was able to carry 40-50 kg of mail. The bikes also have 10 per cent higher average speed than manual bikes even with a much higher pay load. We have enabled a considerable cost reduction in distribution as well as employee benefits and a smaller carbon footprint.
Our solution was urgently needed because of the increased bike delivery route length and the much reduced manual sorting time for mail personnel.
This was a strategic move by Post Danmark to meet the challenges of mail decline and the further automation of mail sorting.
What did winning the award mean to the business?
Laila: Getting recognised for your hard work is always a good feeling. It boosts the energy of the business, the company and the employers involved. We have managed to increase our productivity and our employers are very satisfied with their new work tool. Our image has been pushed forward and we have shown other postal organisations the way forward.
For those involved in making the product, we feel very proud of having contributed to making a product that benefits so many people in different positive ways. We have received a lot of praise for our work and received a very nice cake too!
How did you feel when you found out the company had won?
Ib: We were very surprised. I thought we had really tough competition as there was some incredibly innovative projects in our category.
Why do you think it is important for Triangle to run these awards?
Laila: They promote innovative solutions and developments within the postal industry and recognise innovative solutions from lesser known organisations in the market.
Did the award lead to any new business opportunities?
Ib: The e-bike concept has led to other business opportunities for us such as using the bikes to deliver small parcels on our postal routes instead of being delivered in more expensive motorised vehicles such as vans. This allows us to remain competitive in the marketplace.
Our concept has also gained a lot of interest from other postal organisations.
Why would you recommend that others put their company forward for the World Mail Awards 2014?
Ib: Companies that win gain greater recognition from their peers and a sense of pride in being part of an innovative elite.
Nominations for the awards will be open until the 28th February. To enter the awards visit the World Mail Awards website – www.mailawards.com
