Author: Archive

Poste Italiane ready to privatise banking services next year – chairman

Posted by | Nov 16, 2007 | |

Vittorio Mincato, chairman of the Italian post office Poste Italiane SpA, said the group is ready to list on the stock exchange its banking unit Bancoposta by the end of next year.

‘The decision obviously lies with the government,’ Mincato said in an interview with the weekly Il Mondo.

He added that two obstacles still have to be removed for the listing.

The first one regards an EU investigation in the sale of bonds for the state financial group Cassa Depositi e Prestiti SpA. The other one is the legal separation between the post office and Bancoposta, it said.

The weekly said the IPO could represent 25-30 pct of the banking unit’s capital.

Mincato’s mandate expires next year and he said he would be ‘very happy’ to accept another term.

He added that he does not believe that the Poste Italiane can be privatised until postal services are liberalised in 2010.

Read More

Doors open on new jobs at TNT's GBP 3m Swansea depot

Posted by | Nov 15, 2007 | |

TNT has established a dynamic presence in South Wales in the shape of a new GBP 3 million depot facility in Swansea.

The state-of-the-art 36 loading bay facility operates in tandem with the existing depot at nearby Llantrisant – giving Wales two fully integrated TNT depots – offering local, national and international express delivery services.

First Minister Rhodri Morgan said: “This state of the art £3 million facility is another example of how Wales is attracting internationally renowned businesses. The speed at which Swansea’s commercial sector is growing is remarkable and the fact that the UK’s biggest courier operator has decided to make this investment to serve this growing market better is a massive testament to that growth

“Freight logistics is a vital sector in Wales – accounting for around 6 per cent of employment and contributing GBP 2.5 billion to the Welsh economy.

“We also have to recognise that freight transport has a huge environmental impact in terms of greenhouse gas emissions. The Assembly Government is keen to help road freight operators meet this key challenge. That is why our Wales Freight Best Practice programme aims to reduce carbon emissions – and help Welsh road freight operators improve their operational efficiency.”

Employing up to 65 people – including more than half-a-dozen new positions – the new facility, equipped with all the latest mechanical handling technology, is located just three miles away from the previous ‘satellite’ depot on the Garngoch Industrial Estate.

Read More

KEBA lands DHL order for over 1,500 additional PACKSTATIONs

Posted by | Nov 15, 2007 | |

KEBA, the package logistic solutions company lands the largest individual order in the history of the company.

“KePol SB parcel machines are the package logistic solution with the world’s largest installation base. KEBA is now supplying an additional 1,500 DHL PACKSTATIONs to the 900 already installed in Germany. For KEBA, this follow-up order represents the largest order in the more than 30 year company history”, delights Gerhard Luftensteiner, President of KEBA AG.

The delivery of the 1,500 KePol SB parcel machines was recently fixed at the Post-Expo in Barcelona. Better known under the brand “PACKSTATION”, the KEBA parcel machines will be installed throughout Germany by the end of 2009. This will again improve DHL service for private customers significantly.

According to Andrej Busch, member of the group executive management Marketing DHL Paket Deutschland: “The positive reaction to the PACKSTATION by our customers beat all our expectations. In the age of Web 2.0, flexibility and free choice with regards to time, location and logistic channel are in demand. With the future country-wide service, 90 pct of the population will be able to reach one of the 2,400
PACKSTATIONs within 10 minutes.”

Today already, over 700,000 registered customers use the 900 PACKSTATIONs currently installed in Germany. Especially singles and professionals appreciate the convenience.

A classic win-win situation especially for the mail order business and internet sellers and their customers. Moreover, the KEBA system makes a significant contribution to reducing CO2 emissions and thus helps to protect our planet.

Read More

TNT (UK) blowing up book delivery deal

Posted by | Nov 15, 2007 | |

TNT has secured its first major venture into the wholesale book market by winning a distribution deal with the UK’s largest book wholesaler.

The three-year contract between TNT Express Services and Gardners Books will see the former collect and deliver about 13,000 cartons of books a week.

TNT, which employs 2,200 at its UK headquarters in Atherstone, will transport the books from Gardners headquarters in Eastbourne to book stores in England, Scotland and Wales.

The deal is part of a growing number in Dutch-owned TNT’s new Media and Entertainment division. Danny Geach, general manager, TNT Media and Entertainment, said: ‘Gardners is a long-standing and highly influential player in the independent book wholesaler market and we are delighted to have been chosen to help them further strengthen their supply chain.

‘We will be utilising our widespread expertise and knowledge to ensure the supply to retailers is the quickest and most efficient it could possibly be. It’s nice to know that we’ll be playing a small part in making sure the latest blockbuster novels, celebrity biographies and thousands of fiction and non-fiction titles are in stock as soon as they’re available.’

David Brewster, Customer Care Manager at Gardners Books, said: ‘All customers who at present get a Parcelforce delivery will be switched to TNT Express.’

Read More

TNT Express offers paperless invoicing in Germany

Posted by | Nov 15, 2007 | |

TNT Express Germany has launched a new internet-based mode of paperless invoicing called ExpressInvoice providing invoice data in all common data formats and transmission routes to keep up with customers’ needs.

Customers can use a password-protected online platform to manage and receive their invoices in different formats and according to legal requirements by different transmission routes without having to adapt their IT infrastructure. The new offer is designed for both large and small customers, TNT Express Germany said in a statement.

The advantage of the web-based application is that there is no software installation necessary. ExpressInvoice provides not only PDF or Excel files but also the formats CSV, XML, EDIFACT und IDOC without any additional charges which are especially suitable for customers who have a lot of invoices to manage.

Invoices can be electronically transmitted by a number of methods, including FTP, SFTP, E-Mail or X.400, and integrate them easily into their accounting systems. A digital signature is available on demand.

Read More

DHL wins prestigious regional award for its Flu Pandemic Preparedness Handbook

Posted by | Nov 15, 2007 | |

DHL has won the top award for ‘Corporate Publications’ at the ‘Asia Pacific PR Awards’ for its pioneering employee publication, Be Informed – Be Prepared: DHL Employee Flu Pandemic Preparedness Handbook. The Certificate of Excellence was bestowed on DHL – the only winner in the category – at a ceremony in Hong Kong on 14 November 2007.

The ‘Asia Pacific PR Awards’ is one of the foremost events in the Public Relations calendar in the region, rewarding work across all the disciplines that are essential in the PR process. A panel of leading PR and communications specialists and clients are responsible for judging the Awards.

Anita Gupta, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications and Sustainability, DHL Asia Pacific, said, “DHL is extremely honoured to receive this award. The Preparedness Handbook is a ground-breaking initiative to educate DHL employees across Asia Pacific. The safety of our employees and customers is of utmost importance to us; hence this recognition as a corporate leader in raising awareness of a potentially global health threat is very gratifying.”

Read More

Business Post strikes new blow to Royal Mail with demand for split

Posted by | Nov 15, 2007 | |

One of Royal Mail’s rivals is to petition the Government to break up the state-owned postal group, in an escalation of pressure for change from its competitors.

Business Post made the call as sales at its mail division, which competes with Royal Mail, rose 59 per cent. The company argues that last month’s Royal Mail strikes have made more people aware that there is a competitive postal market.

Guy Buswell, Business Post’s chief executive, is to make a formal request to the Department for Business for Royal Mail’s network to be separated from its sales operation in January. By then it intends to produce a detailed paper with outside consultants.

Mr Buswell said: “The Government must be wondering what to do with Royal Mail. If the network were separated from sales, it would end the questions of what is Royal Mail’s future. We want to help start the debate.”

The call for change will come as the term of Allan Leighton as chairman draws to a close. The Government could use the change to make substantial changes. Rivals want the business to be split so that there is no conflict of interest between Royal Mail’s sales operation – their competitor – and its network, which they have to use for the final mile of the delivery of post.

The postal regulator is considering the implications but has no powers to order a split. Royal Mail may offer to present separate sets of accounts, but that is unlikely to satisfy its rivals.

Read More

USPS new system will peg postal rate increases to inflation

Posted by | Nov 15, 2007 | |

The U.S. Postal Service today announced that postage costs for nonprofit and other mailers will be set using a new approach pegged to inflation.

The new system enables the Postal Service to increase postage rates
annually — more frequently than it has in the past — but requires the increases to be no higher than the rate of inflation. To determine inflation, postal officials said they will rely on the most recent monthly average compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Organizations that represent charities welcomed the news.

Previously, new rates were the result of a cumbersome process in which an independent body spent months in hearings, deliberating over research and comments submitted by charities and other organizations that send a large volume of mail. That process will no longer take place.

With the new system, nonprofit organizations are likely to see significantly lower postage increases than in the past, albeit more frequent ones. For example, postal officials noted that a recent monthly inflation average was 2.3 percent, much lower than the 6.7 average increase in postage for standard mail, the class of mail used by charities most frequently, that took place last spring.

While the law authorizing the new rate-making system requires the Postal Service to give a 45-day notice before postage costs go up, postal experts said that a longer notice is more likely, because the service and mailers need more time to adjust their mail-processing and printing schedules. Mr. Conway speculated that a 90-day notice is likely.

Read More

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

P&P Poll

Loading

Have you noticed a decrease of non-EU inbound parcel volumes since the implementation of the new €3 charge?

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