Author: Archive

Postal service given two-year extension to fix up its act

Posted by | Oct 4, 2007 | |

The Cyprus Postal Service could face EU fines reaching the millions if it doesn’t get its act together, Telecommunications Regulator Vasos Pyrgos has warned.

In its 2005 report, the Office of the Commissioner of Electronic Communications and Postal Regulation (OCECPR) said that while there is sufficient competition in postal services, mainly due to express courier services, the government service has failed to meet requisite quality levels.

In 2004, the OCECPR fined the postal service GBP 10,000 for delays in delivering letters; in 2005 the fine was GBP 20,000, and in 2006 it reached GBP 50,000.

Officials claim that Cyprus has fallen short of EU delivery targets because it is the only country in the EU where the postal services are not permitted to take independent decisions to upgrade their department.

Brussels has given Cyprus and Malta a two-year extension (2013) to open up their postal services sectors, but Pyrgos said that drastic steps were needed if the Cyprus Postal Service was to become competitive by that deadline.

Lack of flexibility and poor efficiency are said to be the post’s chronic weaknesses, with some saying that key managerial and operational posts are left vacant.

Parliament has drafted a bill proposing to make the postal service a semi-governmental organization that will be able to run its own day-to-day affairs. But any sweeping changes to the regime are almost sure to provoke reaction from civil servants.

The Cyprus Postal Service still has a virtual monopoly on the market. As a state service, it is obliged to provide services to remote and hard-to-reach regions that may even be unprofitable to serve.

However, if it is able to prove that by providing service to hard-to-reach areas it runs a loss, then it will be eligible for reimbursement from a special fund.

Moreover, current regulations give the government service an edge over private couriers.

Read More

USPS Postmaster General recognized for excellence in leadership

Posted by | Oct 4, 2007 | |

American University’s School of Public Affairs named U.S. Postmaster General John Potter as a recipient of the 2007 Roger W. Jones Award for Executive Leadership.

The university’s award, now in its 30th year, recognizes career federal government executives who carry out the public’s work and increase the quality of life for Americans while achieving outstanding organizational results.

Potter was nominated by James Miller III, chairman of the Board of Governors of the U.S. Postal Service, and by Vice Chairman Alan Kessler.

Potter, who was named Postmaster General in 2001, has been with the Postal Service since 1978. He has served as chief operating officer, senior vice president of operations, senior vice president of labor relations, and manager of Capitol Metro Operations, among other positions.

Jones, the award’s namesake, had a government career spanning six decades, during which he served as consultant and advisor to four presidents and supported the education of managers and executives as a means of improving the federal government.

Nominations for this year’s award were up more than 40 percent from last year, according to the university, making Potter’s award all the more significant. “An abundance of extraordinarily qualified candidates were presented for the 2007 award,” said William LeoGrand, dean of the university’s School of Public Affairs. “Potter’s selection is a credit to the ethos of public service at the U.S. Postal Service.”

Potter received the Roger W. Jones Award in an Oct. 4 ceremony on the campus of American University. Mark Everson, president and chief executive officer of the American Red Cross and past commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, was guest speaker.

Read More

DHL receives honours for employee engagement and recognition programs

Posted by | Oct 4, 2007 | |

DHL announced today it has been honoured with the third annual Carrot Culture(R) Award at the 2007 Executive Recognition Summit held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. DHL was selected over a number of other companies for its successful implementation of employee engagement and recognition programs in promoting a customer-focused culture.

O.C. Tanner Recognition Company, the world’s leading provider of employee recognition solutions, presented the award to DHL this year, citing the Company’s commitment to using rewards and recognition to enhance employee engagement, attract and retain employees, boost overall productivity, and drive successful business results. The Carrot Culture Award is based on the New York Times bestselling book “The Carrot Principle.”

DHL was citied for significant improvements in employee satisfaction, achieving best-in-class scores as measured by a 2007 employee opinion survey. DHL also raised overall awareness and utilization of its recognition programs, showing a 330 percent increase in program participation.

DHL was also recognized for using strategic recognition to:
– Reinforce its brand of responsiveness and customer-centric principles among its employees
– Help managers understand why recognition is important and creating meaningful tools to execute the strategy
– Successfully measure employee satisfaction, and
– Use shared best practices with other companies in support of the concept of recognition as a key aspect of the employee work experience.

Read More

Postcomm welcomes appointment of Ulf Dahlsten as commissioner

Posted by | Oct 4, 2007 | |

The Secretary of State for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform has confirmed the appointment of Ulf Dahlsten as a commissioner at Postcomm for a three year term with effect from 1 January 2008.

Ulf Dahlsten replaces Simone Bos who stood down as a Commissioner on 30 September 2007 at the end of her term of appointment.

For the past three years Ulf Dahlsten has been a director DG INFSO at the European Commission in Brussels. Earlier in his career he served as chief executive of Sweden Post as well as Chairman of the holding company of TNT Express Worldwide at a time when the market in Sweden was being fully opened to competition. He has also first-hand experience of the deregulations of the railways, taxi and telecom markets in Sweden.

Read More

The Association of Pallet Networks

Posted by | Oct 4, 2007 | |

In the UK, the pallet service providers will be represented by their own dedicated industry body–the Association of Pallet Networks (APN, www.eyefortransport.com).

Formed at the end of last year, the APN has attracted membership from eight pallet networks in the UK: Palletforce, Palletways, Pall-Ex, Fortec, Palletline, United Pallet Network, Palletrack and The Pallet Network.

Together, these members represent more than 620 haulers, 24,000 vehicles and 11 million square feet of warehouse space.

The APN aims to raise awareness of the pallet network sector and to represent the interests of its members in the transport sector with media and government.

It provides a platform for discussion, analysis and the promotion of the pallet network sector to customers, prospective customers, network members and the public sector.

The APN has appointed logistics consultants to set up a detailed study of the sector, using on-line benchmarking to collect and collate information across the sector.

One of the first commercial tasks of the new body was to represent its members on the Countdown Forum for the 2012 Olympic Games, where it presented a detailed analysis of the advantages of using the pallet network approach to support the logistics of the Olympic Games.

Pallet networks are essentially co-operative organizations made up of groups of individual haulers who collect and deliver palletized freight in their own geographical area, consolidating loads destined for other parts of the country and Europe and trunking to a central hub for onward distribution. This significantly increases average vehicle fill, which, for pallet networks, is around 73%, compared with a national average of 51%.

Source: Newsdesk of www.eyefortransport.com

Read More

DP World lines up UAE's biggest IPO

Posted by | Oct 4, 2007 | |

Dubai ports operator DP World plans to raise up to USD 3.5 billion by selling shares in the company though what would be the UAE’s biggest initial public offering (IPO), sources have said.

DP World, part of state-owned conglomerate Dubai World, could sell as much as 30% of its stock as early as next month, listing on the Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX), newswire Bloomberg reported on Thursday, quoting people with knowledge of the proposal.

The proposal values the company at around USD 10.5 billion.
The listing would be the Middle East’s second-biggest IPO after Saudi Telecom’s USD 4.1 billion IPO in 2003.

Funds raised from the sale would be used to fund expansion and honour USD 3.5 billion of convertible Islamic bonds sold last year through DP World’s parent Ports, Customs and Free Zone (PCFC), the newswire said.

If the plan goes ahead, it will finally end speculation over what has been one of the most talked about listings in Middle East history.

DP World, the world’s third-largest container port operator, has been looking into selling shares through an IPO for some time now, and the company has always said a public listing is something it is considering, but that no decision has yet been made.

Since last year when the ports operator hired Deutsche Bank and Merrill Lynch to advise on a possible IPO, numerous stories have appeared in local and international media speculating about a possible listing.

Read More

Air France Cargo Network Now Live on Unisys-Operated Cargo Portal Services

Posted by | Oct 4, 2007 | |

Unisys announces that the Air France cargo network is now available through Unisys-operated Cargo Portal Services (CPS)*, a leading electronic booking and shipment management service for the air cargo industry. Freight forwarders around the world are now able to take advantage of the extensive Air France Cargo – KLM Cargo route network when booking and managing shipments.

“This development builds on KLM Cargo’s success with CPS over the last four years. As a merged company, we are committed to offering clients the most suitable electronic tools to do business with us, so it was natural to extend CPS coverage for all clients through our combined network,” said Michael Wisbrun, president, Air France Cargo – KLM Cargo.

“Unisys and the CPS community welcome the Air France Cargo network,” said Christopher Shawdon, vice president and partner, Logistics Solutions for Unisys. “KLM is already a big part of CPS and it will be a natural step for users to book on the combined AF-KL Cargo network.”

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