Total Visibility Manager – Skillweb
Total Visibility Manager – Skillweb
Read MoreTag: Courier/Express/Parcels
20/20 ePOD Skillweb
20/20 ePOD Skillweb
Read MoreAn Post gets the stamp of approval and delivers profit
For a service provider that was on its knees just a few years ago, An Post has engineered a remarkable reversal of its financial fortunes.
Between 2001 and 2003 it made accumulated losses of EUR 67m, having reported a loss of almost EUR 43m in 2003 alone. There was little doubt the organisation was fit for intensive care.
By late 2003, it was selling assets simply to meet its wage bill. For the first time in its history, it resorted to an overdraft, using the facility during the final weeks of that year. An Post had become a financial basket case.
In early 2004, the then chief executive, Donal Curtin, said the company was on a “knife edge”. He sold off the loss-making SDS delivery business and, in the process of shaking up An Post, alienated the unions. But in 2004, An Post returned to the black, making a profit of over EUR 11.6m from continuing operations. In 2005, that rose to EUR 16.2m, but in 2006 it slipped to EUR 14.6m before exceptional items.
However, the overall profit figures were skewed in 2005 and 2006 by the sale of a site on the Naas Road in Dublin, which resulted in a net gain of EUR 94.7m, and by a further EUR 59.3m gain from the company’s Post TS UK and An Post Transaction Services businesses, which were sold to Alphyra. An Post accounts have yet to be released for 2007.
For years the organisation, faced with the prospect of a completely liberalised market from 2011, has been hatching plans to reduce overheads and boost revenue.
That has resulted in its joint venture with Belgian-Dutch bank Fortis, but also in other attempts to revamp the traditional notion of the service.
Among the ideas previously floated has been the elimination, in some areas at least, of direct-to-door postal delivery. Customers might instead be expected to collect their post from the local post office.
None of this has happened yet, and it could an unemployable strategy as An Post gradually reduces the number of rural post offices, in particular, with a view to streamlining the organisation and preparing for a tougher environment.
But part of its plans to shrink its footprint and save money has incensed some interests, particularly some so-called postal contractors, who provide services in mainly rural areas.
There are currently just under 1,300 such outlets, typically located in local shops such as newsagents.
Read MoreSwiss Post International strengthens its presence in Sweden
Swiss Post is continuing to pursue its international niche strategy. Its international unit, Swiss Post International (SPI), has acquired the Swedish letters processing company IMS Europe AB. It is thus expanding its presence in Scandinavia and will become a key provider in the Swedish postal market. IMS Europe AB, which has a staff of five, generated sales of around CHF 3.6 million in 2007.
The takeover of IMS Europe AB by Swiss Post International (SPI) took place with effect from 1 January 2008. IMS Europe AB is an independent letters processor based in Limhamm, near Malmö in southern Sweden. The company operates with the product groups marketing mail, business mail, business to consumer as well as press and packaging, and generated sales of around CHF 3.6 million in 2007 with five employees. With the takeover, SPI has gained a second foothold in Sweden in addition to its branch in Stockholm. SPI is thus strengthening its position in southern Scandinavia and is advancing to become a key provider in the Swedish postal market. It was agreed that the purchase price will not be disclosed.
With the acquisition, Swiss Post is continuing its strategy of generating growth in international niche markets, in line with the strategic objectives set by the Federal Council. In the meantime, Swiss Post already generates 20 percent of its sales abroad and in its cross-border business. Swiss Post International is a wholly owned subsidiary of Swiss Post and currently employs 1,200 people in eleven European countries, four countries in Asia and the USA. For 2007 SPI is predicting sales of over 1.1 billion Swiss francs. SPI is now number five on the cross-border letters market after Deutsche Post, United States Postal Service, Great Britain’s Royal Mail and France’s La Poste.
1 US Dollar = 1.09657 Swiss Franc
TNT applies for EU's new AEO status for priority treatment at customs
TNT NV said it will apply for EU authorised economic operator (AEO) status, which will allow it to receive priority treatment at European customs when agents inspect shipments.
The new standard, launched Jan 1, is accompanied by increased border control, with the aim to increase security in the international supply chain and to modernise EU customs procedures.
The status gives companies the right of access to simplified procedures.
TNT said: ‘The AEO standard is to express carriers what the green ‘nothing to declare’ line is to individual passengers: a fast-moving and formality-light solution. The officials may inspect your luggage, but normally they won’t.’
The company says it is the first of the main express-services companies to apply for the status.
It said its TNT Post unit applied for the status as a pilot in the Netherlands in December, and now its flagship air hub in Liege is applying for AEO status with the Belgian customs authorities.
The European Commission said although each company must apply for the status with each individual country, it only has to complete the paperwork for the first application. The other countries are expected to grant the status without requiring the process to be repeated.
TNT said it will soon apply for the status for its main operations in the Netherlands as well as in Germany, Ireland and the Czech Republic, with all other EU countries to follow by the middle of the year.
The company said it is providing the authorities with a comprehensive self-assessment, which should allow them to process the application within 90 days instead of 300, and expects to receive full EU-wide accreditation by mid-2009.
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