Author: Archive

New agreement ensures continuation of free frontline parcels service for British forces

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

A free parcel service for the families of troops serving in Afghanistan and Iraq is to be extended, it was announced today.

The free service has proved extremely popular with families of those serving overseas in the frontline since its launch in September. The current arrangement was due to expire in December but under a new deal agreed today between the Ministry of Defence and Royal Mail, it will now continue after Christmas and is expected to last as long as British forces are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Lieutenant Colonel James Swift, Commanding Officer of the 2nd Battalion The Royal Welsh based in Basra, stressed how important it was for personnel serving in Iraq to receive letters and parcels from home.

Over the past few weeks, in the run-up to Christmas, around 100,000 parcels a week have been sent free of postage to around 14,000 frontline personnel, providing them with gifts, non-perishable food items and home comforts.

Under the new deal, the costs of continuing the free frontline parcel scheme will be shared jointly by Royal Mail and the BFPO. Relatives and friends can take parcels weighing up to two kilograms to any of the UK’s 14,150 Post Office branches for onward posting to troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as to a Royal Navy ships in the region.

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DPWN addresses shareholders to calm rumours

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

Deutsche Post World Net’s (DPWN) senior managers have been energetically defending the strategic direction of their company, after the publication of their nine-monthly results last week which saw revenue rise by 5.3pct and EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Tax) after exceptional items fall by 2.5pct.

In particular, the new chief financial officer, John Allan, has been thrust forward to help articulate the new ‘capital markets programme’. Entitled a “Road Map to Value” this is designed to underline DPWN’s commitment to better returns to shareholders. It also emphasises what is an important change in direction for DPWN’s corporate strategy. DPWN’s CEO Klaus Zumwinkel articulated this as “following an expansion phase to build the leading logistics company worldwide, we’re now entering a new era…… We are implementing a series of long-term measures in order to raise profitability, generate more cash, increase payouts to shareholders and improve transparency.”

For a company as acquisitive as DPWN this is an interesting statement, indicating that the strategy of global expansion is being reigned-back, although targeted acquisitions are still being made.

Underlying DPWN’s concern is disenchantment amongst institutional investors outside Germany over the performance of the company’s shares. This is leading to mutterings on stock markets about the merits of a break-up of DPWN, particularly through a buy-out from a private equity house.

From the remarks emerging from Bonn, it does appear that DPWN is feeling the capital markets breathing down its neck. For example, John Allan commented that he didn’t think a private equity bid was a big risk “but I think one can never be complacent and the best way of stopping it even being a small risk and protect the future of our company, the jobs of our employees and so on, is really going to be to carry through very aggressively the programme we have announced today, which should make our shareholders happy”.

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UPS Soars Into 100th Holiday Season, Expecting More Than 22 Million Deliveries on Busiest Day

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

UPS is dusting off its Santa hat for its 100th holiday season and is expecting deliveries on its busiest day to soar 40pct to more than 22 million.

On UPS’s Peak Day, Wednesday, Dec. 19, the company will deliver more than 250 packages every second through its worldwide air and ground network. Just two days later on Friday, Dec. 21, UPS will handle its largest volume of air express packages, delivering some 5.6 million air packages or nearly two-and-a-half times its normal air volume.

To accommodate the intense holiday surge, UPS once again will become one of the season’s top employers of choice, adding more than 60,000 seasonal employees, enough to staff some Fortune 500 companies.

The UPS network is designed to handle the needs of all shippers, including procrastinators. Indeed, UPS will accept Next Day Air® packages on Friday, Dec. 21, for delivery on Monday, Dec. 24, just in time for the big day. UPS recommends that shippers with questions about shipping options and proper packing techniques rely on the experts at their neighborhood The UPS Store® and Mail Boxes Etc.® locations.

More than 5,900 The UPS Store and Mail Boxes Etc. locations worldwide offer access to specially trained and certified packing experts who can make gift-giving easier and more efficient. To underscore this fact, participating The UPS Store locations in the U.S. are offering the Pack & Ship Promise, which will reimburse customers in the event a center-packed item shipped via UPS is lost or damaged.

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TNT and Hongkong Post join forces to tap Indian market

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

TNT has signed a strategic partnership agreement to provide express services in India with Hongkong Post, the postal service provider in Hong Kong. The companies are also likely to tap into the emerging markets in the Middle East in the next couple of years.

The companies will together provide the Speedpost FreightPlus service, which enables Hongkong Post to deliver items to India in two to three days instead of five to six days as in the past. Shipments can also be handled in multiple pieces under one consignment, leading to greater flexibility.

Under the partnership agreement, Hongkong Post will provide collection and customer services for items to be delivered overseas by express. TNT will collect the items to be delivered to India. The items would be delivered through the Indian logistics company Speedage, which has an established network in India and was acquired by TNT in 2006. Hongkong Post will provide customer service support and manage item tracking and tracing requests.

TNT and Hongkong Post is also considering co-branding initiatives to provide time-definite and premium services for existing customers.

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UPU Council of Administration ends 2007 session

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

The UPU’s Council of Administration (CA) ended its 2007 session on Friday. The CA is the UPU body that approves the UPU’s programme and budget, sets the strategic direction of the worldwide postal sector and looks at policy issues such as universal postal service and the reform of the Union, among others. Among the highlights of this session:

– The draft of the Nairobi Postal Strategy 2009–2012 (four major objectives and 18 programmes) was approved in principle. The strategy is to be officially adopted at the 24th Congress (Nairobi, Kenya – 13 August to 3 September) and will act as a four-year road map for UPU member countries in bringing improvements to the worldwide postal sector

– The draft of the Postal Payment Services Agreement intended to replace the current agreement when it is presented at the Nairobi Congress was approved. The Agreement includes general operating principles and clarifies the role and responsibilities of governments and postal operators that provide postal payment services, including electronic ones

– Quality of service measurement targets were agreed upon for the 29 countries participating in the UPU programme linking quality of service to terminal dues, the payments countries receive for processing incoming international mail

The UPU will hold its next and last sessions of the Postal Operations Council and the Council of Administration before the 24th Congress from 24 January to 1 February 2008 and from 4-8 February 2008 respectively.

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SMEs in danger of postal strikes (UK)

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

VARs are feeling the bite of the postal strike as the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) warns further strikes could force small companies out of business.

The strike in October is believed to have cost the London economy alone more than GBP 300m after several thousand postal workers took part in the dispute, causing a backlog of 12 million letters and parcels in UK sorting offices.

Simon Briault, representative for the FSB, said: “It is not just about sending a few letters or parcels, it is about the whole economy. Research conducted by the FSB found that 94 per cent of SMEs use Royal Mail exclusively and 89 per cent of them use the company every day.

“SMEs do not really have an alternative to Royal Mail. Due to privatisation, alternative services have cherry picked the larger organisations, for example government bodies, and do not see SMEs as a business opportunity,” added Briault.

He continued, saying that SMEs are under severe pressure and the strike could cause businesses to close due to financial difficulties: “The FSB is trying to raise awareness of the issue and attempting to get Royal Mail to realise the position SMEs now occupy within the economy and the market. If SMEs are not receiving the cheques they need to stay buoyant, then they have to borrow money from banks and pay interest rates.”

Mike Gammie, IT services development manager at online VAR Misco, said: “Many businesses post us cheques – if we do not receive them then we cannot bank them.
“Royal Mail has not done itself any favours. Misco was looking at alternatives to Royal Mail before the strike and we are now opting for these,” added Gammie.

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UK MP's warning over business post prices

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

Proposals by Royal Mail to charge business customers higher prices for delivering their post in rural areas must be fought, an MP has warned.

Last night North Norfolk MP Norman Lamb said that the prospect of “zonal charging” for business mail – which will see rural and urban areas treated differently – represented “the start of a slippery slope”.

Royal Mail has applied to the postal regulator Postcomm for permission to charge more to business for delivering mail in rural areas to reflect the higher logistical costs.

The proposals are currently being consulted on with a final decision expected next month.

Mr Lamb said: “The implications of this are potentially very serious once we break the principle that you are treated equally wherever you live. It is a very slippery slope.

“The postal service treating all equally is a policy that we have got to fight for.

“Even if this is rejected Postcomm appear to be leaving the door open for Royal Mail to come back again. This issue should be kept in people’s minds and campaigned against.”

Postcomm has already declared it is mindful to reject Royal Mail’s application but has said it is not opposed to the principle of cost reflective pricing – where the price of postage reflects accurately how much it will cost to deliver.

A spokesman for Royal Mail refused to confirm or deny whether the company would apply again if its application is rejected saying the company would await the details of Postcomm’s decision.

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Survey reveals four-day wait for An Post to deliver

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

Ireland has one of the slowest postal services in Europe, with standard letters taking up to four days toarrive, Irish Examinerresearch reveals.

Over two months the Irish Examiner posted more than 100 letters from 10 city and rural locations. Only 73 pct came on time, indicating An Post is likely to break its promise of achieving a next-day delivery rate of 80 pct by the end of the year.

Since 2003, An Post’s next-day delivery rates have averaged about 72 pct of all mail, in breach of the 94 pct target set by the official postal watchdog ComReg.

Consumers’ Association of Ireland chief executive Dermott Jewell called for an overhaul of An Post.

“We are looking at a postal system in chaos and with Christmas on the way it’s An Post’s busiest time of year. This problem has got to be addressed by ComReg, who should either guarantee a service or a system of refunds,” he said.

In the Irish Examiner survey, a batch of 10 letters posted in Dublin all arrived the next day but another batch posted a month later took up to four days.

Letters posted from Co Offaly to Cork arrived the next day in one part of the city but took two days toarrive to other parts. Letters addressed in Irish took up to four days to reach Co Tipperary, yet one sent to England arrived sooner.

Yesterday An Post said performance figures for April to June showed next- day delivery rates had risen to 78 pct from 73 pct during the same months in 2006.

Head of communications Anna McHugh said: “We are fully committed to reaching our interim target of 80 pct next-day delivery this year and to achieving the target of 94 pct within three years.”

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