Author: Archive

UPN partnership expands European offering

Posted by | Feb 9, 2008 | |

UPN has launched a range of new European services, following the announcement of a new partnership with Signet International, covering 12 European countries.

The new partnership allows UPN depots to cost effectively transport palletised freight to France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. It is expected that the partnership will see further countries in Europe added to the UPN network in coming months.

David Brown, UPN Commercial Director, explains, “Europe continues to grow in importance and we are delighted to be working with Signet.

It has a well proven track record and has a real focus on service, just like UPN. Our reputation has been built on quality and it is vital that our partners are able to help us maintain our reputation. This offering allows us to step ahead of other pallet networks who do not offer the same levels of coverage. We have seen significant business growth over the last year and by continually finding new ways to add value we are confident that we can maintain the same levels of growth through 2008.”

Richard Newport, Managing Director at Signet, adds, “We have worked with pallet networks in the past and UPN’s focus on quality does help to set it apart from the rest. We have now been trading for nearly 25 years and have been working across Europe since 1992. I have met with many of the UPN depots already and I look forward to working closely with them in the future.”

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Motor Transport Awards 2008

Posted by | Feb 9, 2008 | |

Pallet-Track has submitted their second successive entry to this year’s Motor Transport Awards.

Following on from last year’s entry and subsequently the only pallet network to be short-listed for Network of the Year the Pallet-Track board felt that a refreshed entry for 2008 was appropriate due to another successful year in the network.

A year which has seen growth of over 37 pct, the network complimented by a further thirteen shareholder members, successful implementation of a central transit insurance scheme, both IT and operating procedural enhancements which have added to increased efficiency, investment in new management teams and significant purchases in plant and machinery.

This year’s event is again being held in the Great Room of the Grosvenor House Hotel, Park Lane, London.

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La Poste's plans to enter Indian market blocked

Posted by | Feb 8, 2008 | |

La Poste’s plans to enter the Indian market have run into a roadblock due to opposition from the postal department. GeoPost Group, the express parcel arm of La Poste, plans to tap the Indian market through a joint venture with Continental Air Express.

The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) has put the joint venture proposal on hold due to objections from the department of posts. The postal department’s opposition adds yet another twist to the moves to restrict foreign ownership in this segment.

Apart from France, GeoPost has business interests in the express parcel and logistics segment in various countries including the UK, Germany, Russia, Spain, Poland, Greece, Romania and Bulgaria.

In Asia, the La Poste arm has business interests in China and South Korea. GeoPost’s was to take 60 pct stake in the proposed subsidiary while Continental Air Express was to hold the rest.

During recent deliberations at the FIPB, the department of post argued that La Poste is also a member of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) and is required to fulfill universal services obligations (USO) like India Post. Therefore, La Poste cannot poach on the creamy territory of the other, FIPB was informed.

The department has also pointed out that La Poste was a state-owned entity and investment by no such entity has been permitted in India so far. India Post, also a member of UPU, handles low-priced items like post cards and inland letters to fulfill its social obligations. GeoPost, on the other hand, plans to enter courier services like express parcel delivery which command a premium.

The postal department’s argument is that La Poste should also be ready to fulfill social obligations like the USO carried out by India Post. In any case, the department has been threatening to make small letters the monopoly of India Post and impose restrictions on foreign ownership in this sector.

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Spanish Correos sign agreement with Mailhouse and Zaybe

Posted by | Feb 8, 2008 | |

Correos signed an access deal with Mailhouse and Zaybe, giving them access to the public postal network for final deliveries. The agreement was signed by Jose Antonio Amelibia, Correos’s Commercial and Marketing Director, Antonio Ordonez Mallarino and Miguel Jesus Rodriguez from Mailhouse and Zaybe respectively.
The Spanish state postal group signed its first access deal with the private mail company Cartes Lleida last July and with Norecorreo in January 2008. The company said there are negotiations for similar contracts with other private postal operators.
The access deal signed with Mailhouse and Zaybe comprises different requirements that the private operators have to meet to be able to access the Correos network taking into account legal transparency and objectivity regulations and avoiding discrimination.
Access to the postal network is governed by a Spanish law passed in November 2006. According to this law, the companies with regulatory approval to provide postal services are legally entitled to access the public postal network managed by Correos.

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DHL awarded Sun deal

Posted by | Feb 8, 2008 | |

DHL has been selected by Sun Microsystems to manage all of the company’s supply chain activities including after-sales logistics. Under an agreement signed between the two companies, DHL will manage the spare-and-repair logistics operations for Sun’s network infrastructure in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and Egypt.

With DHL serving as the sole point of contact between Sun customers and suppliers, the network infrastructure solutions provider will be able to increase productivity, reduce cost and ensure faster spare parts turnaround.

In the UAE alone, DHL will be shipping all of Sun’s urgent deliveries in the country, with a delivery time ranging between two to four hours.

In addition, some 300 strategic parts in the two UAE-based spare parts centres will be shipped as same-day orders to over 75 premium customers, and supporting over 15 Sun engineers in the Emirates.

All parts deliveries originating from the main Sun Microsystems warehouse in Venlo, Netherlands, will be transported to the region using various DHL services, such as air freight and Express.

The DHL spare parts centres in Dubai, Muscat, Riyadh, Dhahran, Kuwait City and Abu Dhabi will make sure that these parts are delivered to Sun’s end customer, within two to four hours of placing the order.

DHL’s extensive network, warehouse facilities and services across the Middle East will allow Sun to have total control over, and visibility of, their product stock.

DHL Express product and business development manager Dirk van Doorn said that utilising DHL’s advanced technology and global expertise will help Sun to achieve and maintain an optimal supply chain for delivering important parts to its end customers.

“By outsourcing its inventory and distribution functions to DHL, Sun Microsystems will be able to focus on its core strengths, increase visibility, reduce cost and improve the overall efficiency of its supply chain in the Middle East. DHL will act as a single supplier managing all aspects of Sun’s supply chain including customs clearance,” said van Doorn.

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DHL Express expands network and services in Asia

Posted by | Feb 8, 2008 | |

DHL Express has unveiled a number of moves to expand its network and services in Asia over the past few weeks.

In Taiwan, DHL has announced a 17pct rise in operating profits for 2007 based on a 10pct rise in import volumes and 5pct rise in exports. Revenue figures were not disclosed. Expansion of the operations centre at the Farglory Free Trade Zone near Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in northern Taiwan is scheduled for completion in October and operational start in early 2009. This will triple cargo handling volumes at the site. DHL also won the Taiwan Ideal Brand in the ‘ International Express & Logistics’ category for the seventh consecutive year in an annual survey conducted by Taiwan’s Management Magazine.

In Bangladesh, DHL has launched an Airport to Door Express service for local customers importing from overseas suppliers under Free Carrier (FCA) Incoterms (International Commercial Terms) that do not require door-to-door transport.

In Malaysia, DHL extended its presence in the hi-tech Klang Valley region by opening three more Servicepoints in partnership with retail partners to offer express services to small companies and private individuals.

Meanwhile, Malaysian newspaper The Edge Financial Daily has reported that DHL is giving local cargo airline Transmile, with which it has a strategic cooperation alliance, time to restructure and build its reputation following financial problems last year.

DHL Asia Pacific chief executive officer Dan McHugh told the newspaper DHL has a “good, open relationship” with Transmile, and the two companies were in regular talks on network issues. Transmile was still a component of its global aviation strategy, operating routes such as Bangkok-Singapore, Singapore-Jakarta and Beijing-Hong Kong for DHL, he noted.

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DHL Express reported interested in Romanian parcels firm Cargus

Posted by | Feb 8, 2008 | |

DHL Express is interested in acquiring one of the leading domestic parcels companies in Romania to strengthen its business there, according to a recent media report.

The Romanian business newspaper Ziarul Financiar reported that DHL is in talks to buy a stake in privately-owned Cargus, citing market sources. The information was not confirmed by company officials. Cargus is owned by two low-profile business people, Augustin Plesea and Carmina Dumitrescu, the newspaper said.

The Romanian company, with turnover of EUR 29.7 million in 2007, is valued at EUR 50 million and aims to grow by 50 pct this year, the newspaper wrote.

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DHL signs national agreement with grocery chain ICA

Posted by | Feb 8, 2008 | |

DHL and the ICA Group have signed a framework agreement covering all retailers in the country. The agreement means that individual retailers can now offer their customers the facility to post and collect DHL parcels of various sizes.

DHL continues herewith to invest in the private market. DHL Express can already offer private individuals and companies over 1,150 posting and collection points across the country, the so-called SERVICEPOINTS. By the end of the year, DHL expects to have almost 1,500 outlets.

“ICA is Sweden’s largest grocery chain, and now that we are increasing our cooperation, we expect to achieve a denser geographical coverage for our SERVICEPOINT concept”, says Lars Jordahn, CEO of DHL Express (Sweden).

DHL Express launched the SERVICEPOINT concept at the end of last year, providing private individuals and companies with a simple way to send domestic parcels at times that suit them.

There are posting and collection points in shops of various kinds, from gas stations, kiosks and video stores to grocery stores, Pressbyran and 7-Eleven outlets. A common feature of all SERVICEPOINTS is that they are located in places where a lot of people pass by and that they have generous opening hours.

As well as posting and collection in the stores, DHL Express also allows transport to be booked and goods to be tracked over the Internet, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The entire flow of information is handled electronically.

The packaging is included in the total price and is available in the following sizes: 0.5, 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20 kg. All boxes can be reused and recycled.

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