Author: Archive

Postcomm review of UK Royal Mail break-up

Posted by | Aug 9, 2006 | |

The postal regulator Postcomm will confirm today that it is to consult widely on plans to split Royal Mail in two in a drive to increase competition in the letters market.

The proposal is contained in a strategy document being sent to customer groups, business users, suppliers, other postal operators and Royal Mail itself, canvassing views on how the regulatory system should evolve over the next five to 10 years.

Postcomm will also consult users on Royal Mail’s one-price-goes-anywhere universal service guarantee and whether the scope of the obligation should be narrowed to a smaller range of postal services.

The idea behind separating Royal Mail’s trunk network from its “last mile” delivery network of postmen and women is to make the business more transparent to rival operators.

Read More

Home shopping helps boost items sent through the post

Posted by | Aug 9, 2006 | |

The volume of items sent annually through the post soared by five billion over the past decade, the Royal Mail said today.

Alcohol and food was one of the fastest growing sectors, with deliveries more than quadrupling between 1995 and 2005.

An upturn in home shopping meant clothing and shoe deliveries more than trebled over the 10 year period.

The Royal Mail said its “Life through the Letterbox” study gave a unique insight into Britain’s changing consumer habits.

Its data comes from “mail diaries” kept by 100,000 households over the course of a decade.

The Royal Mail said it delivered 22 billion items of post last year compared to 17 billion in 1995.

Read More

TNT, DHL in Top 50 of Netherlands Favourite Employers 2006

Posted by | Aug 9, 2006 | |

Dutch mail and express deliveries group TNT NV and competitor DHL are among the top 50 of the Netherlands’ most favourite employers for 2006, according to a research of local consultancy firm De Intelligence Group released on August 4, 2006.

TNT (www.tnt.com) now ranks 14th, up a notch from the previous year.

DHL (www.dhl.com) trails far behind TNT with the 45th place in the 2006 ranking against 136th in 2005.

The rank list is topped by the police, followed by last year’s winner, Royal Philips Electronics NV.

De Intelligence Group conducted the survey among more than 8,000 people over the last half year.

Read More

DHL gets green light to start business in Vietnam

Posted by | Aug 9, 2006 | |

The Vietnamese government has given the green light for German DHL express group to establish a joint venture with a local delivery company, an official said Wednesday.

The government “agreed in principle for DHL to set up an express delivery service joint-venture with the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group (VNPT),” an official from the planning and investment ministry told AFP.

DHL will hold 51 percent of the company’s shares while the rest belongs to VNPT, the official said, adding that the 5.5 million dollar venture is scheduled to operate next year in eight cities and provinces.

DHL first came to Vietnam through a sales agent in 1988, a company source said without elaborating.

Read More

Post Office bosses face cull to stem £2m losses

Posted by | Aug 9, 2006 | |

The Post Office has written to 4,000 senior managers — a third of the workforce — asking for volunteers for redundancy as part of its drive to reduce losses of GBP 2 million a week.
The cutbacks, part of a shake-up of the Post Office, come on top of 30,000 redundancies announced by Royal Mail two years ago.
Three of Royal Mail’s four subsidiaries make a profit. Royal Mail Letters made GBP 344 million last year, Parcelforce has profits of GBP 5 million a year and overseas business makes GBP 100 million a year.
But they are being dragged down by the Post Office, which had a loss of GBP 111 million last year. It has lost 30 per cent of its business in the past five years because of internet banking and changes in the way benefits are paid.

Read More

Life through the letterbox : A snapshot of 21st century living

Posted by | Aug 8, 2006 | |

In the first study of its kind ever conducted, Royal Mail has delivered a unique insight into the nation’s social and consumer habits by analysing more than 20 million items of mail sent and received by UK households over a decade.

The ‘Life through the Letterbox’ study reveals the impact of changing demographics and social trends on the UK population and uncovers fundamental differences between the regions’ postbags.

Analysis of 40 different categories of mail received between 1995 and 2005 reveals, i.e.:
• The nation’s appetite for the good things in life resulted in deliveries of alcohol, food and hampers to homes in the UK increasing from 9.5 million to 39.7 million
• Sales of clothing and shoes were subdued on the High Street*, but home shopping boosted deliveries from 52.5 million to 173.5 million
• People were more likely to speculate to accumulate than a decade earlier, with mail regarding shares increased from 32 million to 40 million
• The DIY generation took to their gardens with gusto as deliveries of gardening equipment and plants soared from 24.8 million to 67.4 million
• Deliveries of sports equipment were up from 4.1 million to 11 million as efforts to stay active increased

Read More

OneSite(SM) Postal Tracking and Reporting System

Posted by | Aug 8, 2006 | |

R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company announced that the United States Postal Service(TM) (USPS) has recognized its OneSite(SM) postal tracking and reporting system with an Innovation Award. Postmaster General Jack Potter at the August 2, 2006 meeting of the Mailers Technical Advisory Committee presented the award, and stated, “I want to recognize RR Donnelley’s efforts to make our vision of end- to-end transparency a reality.”

RR Donnelley’s OneSite is the first product to combine post-production shipment tracking and USPS network tracking into one synchronized report. OneSite connects RR Donnelley’s transportation tracking network with USPS Planet Code(R) and FAST(R) scheduling data to provide a diverse new range of tracking and reporting tools designed to maximize opportunities for customers to capitalize on mailing campaign effectiveness. Using OneSite, mailers can track their mailing campaigns as the finished mail pieces leave the production facility, travel through our logistics network and are processed by the USPS.

Read More

RedRoller, Inc. Chooses Internap to Launch On-Demand Shipping Solution; Performance IP(TM) Service Provides 100% Uptime; Optimizes First Free Price-Comparison Shipping Site

Posted by | Aug 8, 2006 | |

Internap Network Services Corporation, a leading provider of performance-based routing solutions over the Internet, has been selected as the exclusive provider of Internet connectivity services for RedRoller.com, a free, Web-based shipping solution that lets users compare shipping carrier services and real-time prices to ship packages anywhere in the U.S. RedRoller customers, which include small businesses, e-retailers, catalog companies and consumers, can ship packages on-demand using a number of leading carriers including the U.S. Postal Service, DHL and FedEx, among others. RedRoller, Inc. chose the Internap(R) Performance IP(TM) service for optimized network connectivity to support its new service that launched in June 2006.

The Internap intelligent route control technology, a proprietary component of the Internap Performance IP service, identifies the best path across up to 8 of the leading Tier 1 Network Service Providers (NSPs) to optimize access to RedRoller’s website and avoid congestion points on the Internet. As a result, RedRoller’s customers get a fast, reliable online experience when they log on to the RedRoller.com website. This technology minimizes latency and packet loss, which often results in slow page loads, error messages and timeouts. RedRoller is also supported 24x7x365 by the Internap team of certified network engineers who monitor and proactively manage their Internet connectivity.

Internap plays a critical role in RedRoller’s ability to deliver a positive end-to-end shipping experience and overcome the de-facto standard of “best efforts” routing across the Internet. Performance issues such as slow upload times, extended order processing and site downtime can lead to missed sales opportunities or the inability to meet advertiser click-thru rates. In addition to affecting customer satisfaction levels, site performance is also tied to brand image. According to a recent study by Boston Consulting, nearly 30% of users do not return to a site if they encounter poor or non-existent performance. Harris Interactive also reported that 34% of users would turn to a competitor if they experienced problems completing a transaction.

Read More

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

P&P Poll

Loading

What's the future of the postal USO?

Thank you for voting
You have already voted on this poll!
Please select an option!



View ResultsHide Results

Post & Parcel Magazine


Post & Parcel Magazine is our print publication, released 3 times a year. Packed with original content and thought-provoking features, Post & Parcel Magazine is a must-read for those who want the inside track on the industry.

Subscribe to the Magazine

 

Pin It on Pinterest