Author: Archive

USPS prepares mailers for new postal law effects

Posted by | Feb 23, 2007 | |

The diligence the U.S. Postal Service is taking to interpret the new postal law and communicate its effects to its customers became clear at the quarterly meeting of the Mailers’ Technical Advisory Committee.

On Dec. 20, President Bush signed into law the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act, the first major change at the USPS since 1971. The law benefits customers by ensuring predictable price increases tied to the Consumer Price Index and lets the agency continue its transformation efforts and cost-cutting measures.

Linda Kingsley, the new vice president of strategy and transition at USPS, announced that the agency is working closely on the bill and has published a new Web page at www.usps.com/postallaw. It will give visitors updates on any changes the agency has made to the new law.

Ms. Kingsley and the strategy and transition group will also have a lead role in identifying, planning and managing the timely implementation of the new law’s provisions. In this regard, the group will serve as the primary liaison among all functions with roles in this process, with the ultimate goal of having maximum levels of integration, cooperation and success.

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Nightfreight invests for future growth

Posted by | Feb 23, 2007 | |

Leading specialist delivery business Nightfreight, has announced the next stage of its multi million pound investment programme in customer service and operational developments designed to continue to radically improve the business and prepare it for further development.

This year Nightfreight is investing in excess of GBP 2million in a comprehensive rollout of track and trace technology to all sites, building on the infrastructure that was put in place last summer. The company is updating its fleet and taking delivery of more than 200 new vehicles in the next 12 months, including a range of 7.5 tonne, 18 tonne and artics. Satellite navigation systems will be fitted to all vehicles.

Nightfreight is also undertaking a relocation programme across a number of its sites to increase its capacity and improve on existing standards. Its site at Swanscombe has relocated to a new depot in Dartford whilst its site at Welwyn Garden City has relocated to Hoddesdon. Both new facilities are significantly larger and boast improved dock space with state of the art facilities for the vehicles. In addition there is a planned move from the company’s site in Middlewich to a new site in Crewe. Other relocations are planned for later in the year.

Steve Allen, CEO, Nightfreight Group, said:” Our ongoing investment in this business includes new vehicles, new sites, new technology and new working practices which are all designed to enhance the customer experience. This investment is all part of our transition to becoming a logistics and solutions business. It enables us to offer our customers new and innovative integrated services that will meet their changing requirements. Our home delivery solution is a good example of this because by utilising the backbone of our network we can offer retailers a wide range of service propositions, which in turn enables them to meet the delivery and price requirements of their customers. We believe this is one of our key growth area for us.”

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Post Fiji begins selling e-tickets

Posted by | Feb 23, 2007 | |

Post Fiji outlets across the country have begun selling Pacific Blue flights to and from Fiji from today giving locals easier access to the airline’s fares.

Low cost carrier, Pacific Blue launched flights to Fiji in September 2004 and until now the only method of purchasing flights was via the Internet using a credit card or from GSA (Air Fiji) travel agents or Pacific Blue team members at the airport.

The new arrangement means locals will now be able to visit Post Fiji and book and pay for their Pacific Blue flights to Australia with the option of using cash notes and coins or a credit card.

Post Fiji says that in Fiji currently, only 10 per cent of business is by credit cards while 90 per cent is cash.
Pacific Blue says feedback from customers were that many were disadvantaged as they didn’t have a credit card or a computer.

Pacific Blue’s chief executive Brett Godfrey says that due to low Internet and credit card usage in Fiji, they were confident that their new relationship with Post Fiji will allow locals to take advantage of the affordable fares the airline has to offer.

The airline says that since its entry, the number of people traveling between Fiji and Australia and vice versa has grown by 142,000 passengers, marking an increase of 36 per cent.

Launching the Post Fiji/Pacific Blue Partnership, Finance Minister Mahendra Chaudhry described the arrangement as resourceful and creative business techniques.

Post Fiji introduced airline ticketing as a part of its diversification when it undertook ticketing for Air Fiji in 2005.

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Brussels investigates claims of unfair subsidies to Royal Mail

Posted by | Feb 23, 2007 | |

The European Commission began an in-depth investigation yesterday into Pounds 2.6 billion of government funding received by the Royal Mail over the past six years.

The inquiry was triggered by complaints from some of Royal Mail’s competitors, including TNT and the Deutsche Post-owned DHL. They claimed that the government finance amounted to illegal subsidies and gave Britain’s main supplier of postal services an unfair competitive advantage in the recently liberalised sector.

The Commission is focusing on three individual loans to Royal Mail: Pounds 500 million (2001), Pounds 1 billion (2003) and Pounds 300 million (2007). It is also examining the conditions of the Pounds 850 million that has been placed in an escrow account to reduce the contributions the company will have to make to address the deficit in its pension fund.

Both Royal Mail and the Government insisted yesterday that the financial arrangements were perfectly legal and could not be considered unfair state subsidies.

If the Commission agrees that the loans have been made on commercial terms and satisfy market investor conditions, it will close the investigation. It pointed out yesterday that the inquiry could help Royal Mail if it removed any suspicions about the status of the loans.

The main complaint was lodged last October by the Mail Competition Forum, an association of seven licensed competitors to Royal Mail. The group, which includes TNT Post, approached the Commission to protest at the measures put in place to tackle the company’s pension fund deficit.

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The Postal Regulatory Commission to announce recommended decision on postal rate hike

Posted by | Feb 23, 2007 | |

The Postal Regulatory Commission said yesterday that it would announce its recommended decision on the U.S. Postal Service’s request to increase postage rates to the agency’s board of governors on Feb. 26 at its offices in Washington.

The USPS filed May 3 with the PRC for an average 8.5 percent rate increase. The PRC was expected to make a recommendation to the agency’s board of governors on the case in March, although lately insiders had said that the decision most likely would be made earlier.

The decision will include recommendations on postal rates and fees affecting all mail users. The decision will also address the request to establish a “Forever Stamp” that would allow consumers the opportunity to purchase a non-denominated, non-expiring stamp that would be valid regardless of future rate changes.

After the decision is announced, the board can either accept the decision and the recommendation, protest it and implement the rates, or protest it and go back to the commission and ask for a second decision. Historically, the board of governors has tended to accept the PRC’s decisions, though on occasion they have made small changes to them.

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European ''emerging markets'' come into focus

Posted by | Feb 23, 2007 | |

Against the background of moderate growth and increasing consolidation in mature Western European markets such as Germany, Britain and France, “emerging markets” such as Spain, Poland, Russia and Turkey are increasingly coming into focus for international express and parcel operators. In contrast to the moderate single-digit growth rates in core European markets, the continent’s smaller markets are growing at high single-digit or double-digit rates and offer attractive areas for expansion. More acquisitions can be expected in these markets during 2007.

Germany, France and Britain jointly account for over half of the total European express and parcel market, according to CEP-Research data. The “Big Three” are the home markets or major regions for carriers such as DHL, TNT, GeoPost/DPD, GLS and UPS. But the market growth rates have slowed significantly in recent years, mostly due to low economic growth, and operational costs are rising. The inevitable result is tougher competition between the market leaders and a clear trend towards market consolidation.

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Blue Dart appoints new Managing Director & Sales up by 24.51%

Posted by | Feb 23, 2007 | |

Blue Dart Express Limited today announced the appointment of Anil Khanna as Managing Director of the company with effect from February 21, 2007. Anil Khanna will replace Malcolm Monteiro who has moved to DHL Express, Asia Pacific, as Senior Vice President and Area Director for South Asia.

The Company posted Rs 50.23 crores profit after tax for the year ended December 31, 2006, compared to Rs 43.41 crores for the nine-month period ended December 31, 2005 of the previous year. Income from operations for the year ended 2006 was 668.02 crores. Blue Dart, last year, moved to a financial reporting for the calendar year from the earlier fiscal year.

Anil Khanna has 27 years of experience in various industries and has been with Blue Dart for over 14 years. He moves to the position of Managing Director from his earlier position as Senior Vice President – Western Region. As the Head of the Western Region, he has been responsible for developing business potential, driving strong growths in the region, which contributes to a third of the company’s revenues, and enhancing service quality. Anil is a graduate from St Stephen’s College, Delhi and holds anMBAdegree in Marketing and Finance fromUBS, Chandigarh

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Snail mail, still the champion of our hearts

Posted by | Feb 22, 2007 | |

E-mail’s pokey cousin – the old fashioned letter – is still most people’s preferred way to receive important information

In a competition that is right out Aesop’s fables, the ease and speed of electronic communication is proving no match for the seriousness and persistence of letters, IT news website comon.dk reported Thursday.

More than half of those participating in a poll taken by Epinion for national postal service Post Danmark say they prefer paper to electronic when it comes to receiving information from public institutions or private businesses.

Some 75 percent said they preferred communication from doctors to wind up in their mailbox rather than their inbox, and more than half said they felt communication from businesses by post was more ‘serious’ than electronic communication.

Not all forms of communication are equal, however. Most felt that routine information such as bank statements were low priority enough to be sent as email.

Part of the reason for the difference, according to the study, is the immediacy of written communication – not on the sender’s part, but on the recipient’s part: 83 percent said they open letters as soon as they get they get home from work. Only 35 percent read their e-mail first.

As the piles of email mounts up and number of letters decline, written communication increasingly signifies something important, while electronic communication is associated with ease and speed.

When it comes right down to it, however, people just want to be able to choose how companies contact them. Some 84 percent said the recipients should be able to indicate their preference.

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