Tag: Europe

Disenchanted companies desert Royal Mail (UK)

Posted by | May 12, 2008 | |

Business customers are deserting Royal Mail and most firms do not find the postal group an efficient organisation to work with, a study by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) for The Times has revealed.
The BCC sought the views of nearly 1,000 businesses throughout the country about their use of Royal Mail and their experience of the organisation.
Sixty-eight per cent said that they did not find the postal group to be a “professional, efficient organisation to do business with”; 55 per cent said that Royal Mail was less reliable than it was five years ago and only 8 per cent thought that it had improved.
In a striking example of how much electronic communication has hit the use of postal services, nearly 86 per cent of businesses said that they used the internet and e-mail for transactions that they would have put through Royal Mail five years ago.
The BCC survey comes as the National Federation of SubPostmasters (NFSP) gives warning today that 3,000 more post offices may be forced to shut if the Government withdraws post offices’ rights to handle benefits and pension payments through the post office card account.
Royal Mail is in the middle of a programme to shut 2,500 post offices in its loss-making network.
Subpostmasters will press the Government to renew the contract for the post office card account when it comes up for review next year.

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ABX Holdings reports first quarter results

Posted by | May 12, 2008 | |

ABX Holdings, Inc. reported first-quarter net earnings of USD 3.8 million, or USD 0.06 per common share, on strong revenue growth to USD 382.1 million, driven both by its acquired airline and air services businesses and its expanded charter fleet of Boeing 767 freighters. In the first quarter of 2007, ABX Holdings earned USD 4.3 million, or USD 0.07 per share, on revenues of USD 288.1 million.
ABX Holdings acquired the businesses of Cargo Holdings International (CHI) at the end of last year. The principal businesses of CHI include two independently certificated airlines, Air Transport International (ATI) and Capital Cargo International Airlines (CCIA), and a leasing company, Cargo Aircraft Management (CAM). Collectively, the CHI businesses contributed approximately USD 75.4 million, or 80pct of the year-over-year increase in ABX Holdings’ first-quarter consolidated revenues. Growth in ABX Air’s businesses, principally its air charter operations, provided the remainder of the revenue gain. The CHI businesses also contributed approximately USD 1.7 million in net earnings during the quarter, net of acquisition-related interest expense.
ABX Holdings’ pre-tax earnings declined to USD 6.2 million in the first quarter from USD 6.9 million a year ago. The decline principally reflects a USD 4.6 million increase in net interest expense associated with financing of acquired businesses and additional aircraft. EBITDA (Earnings before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) increased 78pct to USD 36.8 million in the first quarter, compared with USD 20.7 million in the year-earlier period (see Reconciliation of EBITDA to GAAP Net Earnings at the end of this release). EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure of financial performance that management believes better reflects the cash-generating performance of asset-intensive, financially leveraged businesses such as ABX Holdings.

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TNT delivers world's largest zero emissions fleet (UK)

Posted by | May 12, 2008 | |

TNT launched the world’s largest fleet of zero emission vehicles, enabling it to reduce its carbon footprint by 1.3 million kg of CO² a year.

TNT’s new 100-strong fleet of unique battery-powered ‘Newton’ style delivery trucks will replace diesel equivalents over the next 18 months. The amount of CO² saved by the environmentally-friendly 7.5 tonne lorries will be enough to fill Wembley Stadium.

The Newton models, manufactured by Smith Electric Vehicles in Tyne and Wear, are the first ever pure electric vehicles in their class that can compete in performance terms with diesel equivalents and, at the same time, deliver a 100 pct reduction in CO² emissions and exhaust air pollutants at the point of use.

The first tranche of 50 trucks will initially operate from TNT locations in London, Basildon, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Durham, Edinburgh, Enfield, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Luton, Northampton, Oxford, Paisley, Preston and Wolverhampton. In addition, TNT is also piloting other Smith Electric battery powered vans and trucks in the Netherlands, with a view to rolling them out across its wider European operations.

In 2007, TNT topped the prestigious Dow Jones Sustainability Index achieving an overall rating of 91 out of a possible 100 – the highest recorded score of any company on the DJSI. The feat was all the more remarkable given the nature of TNT’s business.

TNT Express Services, in partnership with vehicle manufacturers, Smith Electric Vehicles, is unveiling the first trucks in the GBP 7 million ‘green fleet’ at the London Wetland Centre.

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DHL opens new terminal in St. Petersburg (RUS)

Posted by | May 12, 2008 | |

DHL opened a new terminal in St. Petersburg to handle the rapidly growing volume of DHL customers in the North West region of Russia. The new terminal, located on Pyaty Predportovy Proezd in close proximity to Pulkovo airport, will serve as a central sorting, processing and transit facility for international and domestic shipments in St. Petersburg and the North West region.

The terminal occupies 13,000 square meters, of which 9,500 are designated for operations and 3,500 for office facilities. One of the most advanced facilities operated by DHL in Russia, the new terminal is aimed at handling and sorting goods for DHL customers not only in St. Petersburg, but in cities including Murmansk, Arkhangelsk, Syktyvkar and Velikiy Novgorod.

The terminal is capable of handling 500 tonnes of material daily, and is equipped with its own emergency power supply to ensure uninterrupted service in the event of a power failure. There are 80 parking spaces for DHL vehicles next to the terminal. In addition to the terminal and office facilities, DHL is opening a new Service Point in Pulkovo to add to its existing network.

DHL Express opened in Russia in 1984 with a head office in Moscow. It currently has over 130 offices and 12,000 customers in Russia, and serves more than 500 towns and cities within Russia.

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Axis optimistc about UK growth

Posted by | May 12, 2008 | |

Axis Intermodal, the European transport equipment contract hire group, increased turnover and profits last year, and remains confident of further growth within its UK operations. Preliminary results for the year ending 31 December 2007 show turnover increased by 32 pct to GBP 12m, with pre-tax profits and share-based payment increasing to GBP 646,000, compared with GBP 601,000 in 2006.

Early indications show that the December launch of its marine containers lease business, SeaAxis, has been successful and allowed penetration into the Far East and US markets. Its UK performance was in line with expectations its contract hire fleet grew by 93 pct for the year and its customer base by 43 pct.

Axis Intermodal was established in 1995 to take advantage of the growing market for intermodal swapbodies. Its customers include DHL Exel, Geopost and Kerry Logistics.

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