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UPS offers new shipping options for healthcare customers

Posted by | Jun 2, 2008 | |

UPS announced a significant expansion of its capabilities for handling and managing the shipment of temperature-sensitive medical items, including around-the-clock intervention when necessary to utilize refrigeration or replenish dry ice.
The new suite of time- and temperature-sensitive capabilities has been developed for the pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device industries. Targeted particularly to global clinical trials, UPS is facilitating the quick movement of test medicines, specimens, supplies, testing kits and accompanying documents to locations worldwide along with convenient UPS Returns® processing options for international shipments.
The latest answer to the industry’s unique needs involves UPS Proactive ResponseSM, which provides a powerful monitoring engine for proactive, around-the-clock attention to help ensure product integrity. The contract service, available in 72 countries, includes dry ice replenishment or refrigeration at select air gateway facilities and intervention in the event of unexpected delays.
The Proactive Response service can automatically compare data on where a package is against where it should be and direct pre-arranged actions to avoid problems or speed recovery. These integrated processes, particularly when applied to healthcare, take advantage of recently simplified UPS dry ice standards that meet IATA or 49CFR requirements.

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Better standards and harmonized laws will promote e-commerce

Posted by | Jun 2, 2008 | |

In a meeting held on 22 May, government experts and representatives of non-governmental organizations and international organizations joined members of the Action Line on e-business, established following the World Summit on the Information Society in 2005, to find solutions to help e-commerce prosper in developing countries.

The UPU, the International Trade Centre (ITC), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the International Labour Organization lead the Action Line on e-business.

High-level executives from UNCTAD and ITC, as well as the UPU Deputy Director General, Guozhong HUANG, highlighted the opportunities offered by the rapid progress in the use of new technologies around the world. The UPU led the session about challenges, opportunities and concrete solutions for SMEs wanting to start e-commerce activities. A presentation of the Alibaba.com e-marketplace, for business to business (B2B) e-commerce, showed how this platform has helped several small businesses expand their online activities. China Post also described its e-commerce activities and strategic partnership with Alibaba.com in the areas of logistics and online payments. They also highlighted the new opportunities provided by “m-commerce” (or commerce through a mobile phone) as a starting point for e-commerce activities, particularly because mobile technologies facilitate access to information and its distribution.

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Japan Post looking to switch fleet to electric cars

Posted by | Jun 2, 2008 | |

Japan’s postal services system is looking to switch its entire fleet of about 21,000 short-distance delivery vehicles to zero-emission electric cars starting this business year, it said on Monday.

Depending on how fast the cars and necessary infrastructure such as recharging stations could be ready, the company may use some gasoline-electric hybrid cars in the interim, he said.

Among Japanese automakers, Mitsubishi Motors Corp, Subaru maker Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd and Nissan Motor Co are aggressively developing electric cars, which emit little to no harmful emissions but require large loads of batteries to drive relatively short distances. The time required to recharge the batteries is also a hurdle with current technology.

All three automakers have said they aim to commercialise electric cars by 2010.

Shares of vehicle-use battery makers surged after the Nikkei business daily reported Japan Post’s plan on Monday. Furukawa Battery Co surged 16 percent, GS Yuasa Corp., which has a battery joint venture with Mitsubishi Motors, jumped 7 percent, and Sanyo Electric Co put on 5.6 percent.

Hitachi Maxell Ltd gained 6.5 percent. A spokesman there confirmed a Nikkei evening edition report that it is aiming to commercialise a longer-lasting, cheaper lithium-ion battery in the next three to four years that substitutes expensive cobalt with manganese.

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Japan Post distributes ING insurance products

Posted by | Jun 2, 2008 | |

Selling life insurance products is the third new service that the Japan Post Group has been allowed to undertake since its privatisation started in October last year.

The Japan Post Group has started distributing ING Life Japan’s life insurance products, the latest service that it has been allowed to do following its privatisation last year.

Japan Post Bank and Japan Post Network are selling ING Life Japan’s single premium variable annuity products. Japan Post Insurance sells the firm’s corporate-owned life insurance products.

The partnership will allow ING to increase top line growth in the hard-to-penetrate Japanese market, which is one of the world’s largest life insurance markets. It will extend ING’s existing distribution network of 50 banks and securities houses for SPVA products and nearly 6,000 independent agents for COLI products.

ING Life Japan, a unit of Netherlands-based ING, launched its business in 1986 as the first European life insurance company in Japan and was the first company to introduce variable annuity products to the Japanese market.

Japan Post Bank, Japan Post Network and Japan Post Insurance are all part of the Japan Post Group, and are privatised entities formed following the privatisation of the former Government postal service.

Japan Post Network and Japan Post Bank have also started selling variable annuity insurance products for Sumitomo Life Insurance, Mitsui Sumitomo MetLife Insurance and Alico Japan. The products will initially be sold at 161 outlets across the country, which will expand to about 320 by October.

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Emirates Post opens new post offices at Dubai Silicon Oasis and Al Barsha

Posted by | Jun 2, 2008 | |

Emirates Post has opened two new post offices in Dubai: Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO) and Al Barsha.

The Dubai Silicon Oasis Post Office will be open from 8 am to 3 pm. Apart from offering all regular services, it will have 500 P.O. Boxes.

The Al Barsha Post Office will be open from 8 am to 10 pm. It will house 700 P.O. Boxes.

‘The post offices are being opened in two of the fastest developing areas in Dubai. Dubai Silicon Oasis is attracting global companies specializing in technology-related areas.

With residential complexes and offices, Dubai Silicon Oasis is set to become a vibrant business and residential hub,’ said Mr. Abdulla Al Daboos.

Commenting on the inauguration of Emirates Post post-office at DSO, Dr. Juma Al Matrooshi, Sr. Chief Corporate Services Officer, Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority (DSOA), said: ‘In our goal to develop an integrated community dedicated to technology, it is quite important for us to ensure that engineers and their families living in Dubai Silicon Oasis have access to day to day utilities. The launch of postal services by Emirates Post at DSO represents a vital component of DSO’s integrated city concept.’

Commenting on Al Barsha Area office, Al Daboos said: ‘Al Barsha area is already humming with a lot of activity and has witnessed huge population growth over the past years. We are pleased to bring postal and related services to the residents of this booming area.’

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After the Network Change Programme the future of the post office network

Posted by | Jun 2, 2008 | |

Select Committee Report Published

The NFSP has welcomed today’s publication of the report by the House of Commons Business and Enterprise Committee on Network Change.

The report concludes that it is vital that the Post Office win the contract for the successor to the Post Office Card Account (POCA2) and that the Independent Review of Mail Services and Postcomm must take full account of the effects of reform to mail services on the post office network.

It also calls for a renewed commitment by the Post Office that it will not allow the network to shrink below the 11,500 outlets that will remain after the Network Change Programme has been completed.

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NFSP Welcomes Report on the future of the Post Office Network

Posted by | Jun 2, 2008 | |

The NFSP today (June 2) welcomes a report from the Business & Enterprise Committee which acknowledges the threat to the post office network if subpostmasters lose the right to handle state pensions and benefits.

The Committee’s report on the future of the post office network backs claims by the NFSP that the loss of the Post Office Card Account (POCA) would have a devastating impact.

The Federation has warned that up to 3,000 post offices could be forced to shut if the contract to run the successor to the current POCA contract is lost. A decision on who has won the POCA 2 tender is expected this summer.

Of the 24 million visits made to post offices every week, 6.5 million are made by POCA customers, highlighting the importance of the POCA contract to subpostmasters.

Commenting on the report, George Thomson, General Secretary of the NFSP, said: “Today’s report strengthens our warning that the Government must act to protect post offices left in the network following Network Change by awarding the POCA 2 contract to Post Office Ltd.

“As the Committee’s report accepts, failure to do so would have a devastating effect on the viability and sustainability of the network.”

The NFSP today also backs concerns raised by the Committee on the threat to the post office network from proposals to break up Royal Mail Group.

With income from Royal Mail transactions making up the largest part of subpostmasters pay, the Federation is concerned about the effect this break up would have on this vital source of income.

Mr Thomson said: “It beggars belief that separate reviews of the industry by Postcomm and the Government’s independent review panel have yet to assess the post office network and its integral role within Royal Mail Group, yet both are nonetheless considering separating the Post Office from Royal Mail.

“Under current circumstances, the NFSP believes it is inconceivable that Post Office Ltd could be withdrawn from Royal Mail Group.”

In addition, the NFSP supports the Committee’s demand for the need to safeguard against further post office closures after Network Change.

The Federation has reluctantly accepted the closure of up to 2,500 post offices under Network Change in order to achieve a viable network, but states that there should be no further closures.

Mr Thomson said: “The Government and Post Office Ltd must now focus their efforts to deliver the investment and new products and services required to make sure that the new post office network is given the best possible chance to survive and thrive in the future. With a population of 60 million people, the Federation believes it must be possible to support 11,500 post offices in the UK.”

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Deutsche Post may seek USD 18.6 Billion for Postbank

Posted by | Jun 2, 2008 | |

Deutsche Post AG may seek about 12 billion euros (USD 18.6 billion) in its sale of Deutsche Postbank AG, Germany’s biggest consumer bank by clients, three people with knowledge of the transaction said.

Deutsche Post may aim for 70 euros a share for Postbank, 17 percent more than yesterday’s closing price, the people said. Postbank is drawing interest from German financial-services companies Allianz SE, Commerzbank AG and Deutsche Bank AG as well as Spain’s Banco Santander SA, said the people who declined to be identified because the matter is confidential.

Postbank, with more than 14.5 million customers and 850 branches, will give potential buyers an opportunity to grab a bigger share of Germany’s USD 1.6 trillion consumer-lending market, which is dominated by state-owned lenders and savings banks. Shares of the Bonn-based bank have risen 40 percent in the seven months since Deutsche Post, Europe’s biggest postal service, said it’s considering a sale of the unit.

Postbank has almost 5 million more retail customers than its second closest rival Deutsche Bank, according to a report by Sal. Oppenheim. The lender posted a pretax return on equity of 19.3 percent last year ahead of Commerzbank’s 18.7 percent and Dresdner Bank’s 8.5 percent, it said.

Postbank extended gains and rose 4 percent to 62.10 euros in Frankfurt electronic trading, valuing the company at 10.2 billion euros.

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