Tag: Germany

GLS to offers real-time tracking in Germany and Austria

Posted by | Feb 5, 2008 | |

GLS is now enabling its customers to track their parcels in real-time in Germany and Austria. The service is planned to be rolled out at other European subsidiaries in the next phase.

The parcels company said it has equipped its delivery staff with bluebooth-enabled mobile phones for data exchange with their hand-held scanners. On delivery GLS collects the digital signature and scans the individual parcel ID.

The delivery confirmation is then transmitted from the mobile phone directly into the GLS central tracking and tracing IT system. Customers can thus check their shipment status about 15 minutes after delivery. Up to now, the data was first transferred when the delivery van returned to the depot, meaning customers had to wait several hours for tracking availability.

Recipients not at home at the time of delivery can also check where their shipment has been held: at a neighbour’s, at a GLS parcel shop or back at the depot.

GLS said that the next step will be to extend real-time tracking to further European subsidiaries.

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Logistics News: Are Reports of DHL’s Possible US Exit Premature?

Posted by | Feb 5, 2008 | |

Rumors that have been circulating for awhile that DHL might leave the U.S. parcel market were given a boost recently from a couple of stock industry analyst reports and an interview with the CFO of parent company Deutsche Post.

CFO John Allan said Deutsche Post intends to retain “a significant presence in the U.S.,” but that the company is exploring many options for the business, such as giving up a controlling stake in its U.S. express division (DHL Express US).

Allan is the former CEO of Exel Logistics, which Deutsche Post acquired in 2005.

There have been reports that Deutsche Post has been in discussions with FedEx for some type of transaction. A few transportation industry stock market analysts have been lauding the potential for such a combination.

For example, in a research note to clients, UBS analysts called the potential deal “win/win on paper,” thought it warned, “Antitrust could be a major stumbling block with such a proposal, therefore an agreement doesn’t signal a done deal.”

Allan told a German newspaper, however, that a total sale of DHL in the U.S. is “very, very unlikely.” Many believe if any sort of deal is done, it is more likely to be with FedEx than UPS, since DHL compete globally with UPS more so than FedEx.

DHL had big aspirations for its parcel and express business in the U.S. after it acquired Airborne Express in 2003. The company has made major investments in sales, marketing and infrastructure in an attempt to penetrate the U.S. market, the world’s largest. It had to spend heavily to upgrade its ground assets in the U.S., which were modest compared to those of FedEx and UPS.

Today, however, DHL’s share of the express and parcel market in the U.S. remains about 9 pct, according to most estimates. Deutsche Post recently reported that is writing down the value of its U.S. assets by USD 887 million, and that its U.S. package-delivery business has incurred annual losses of nearly USD 1 billion.

There have been some successes, however. For example, DHL recently announced an agreement with Walgreen’s, in which it will set up shipping locations for small businesses and consumers at more than 6,500 Walgreens locations by the end of this year, similar to what FexEx offers at its Kinko’s print stores chain.

The U.S. experience is an exception for Deutsche Post, which in general has enjoyed solid growth and profits in the rest of the world. DHL enjoys strong positions in Europe and Asia. However, its stock price has lagged the market. The Wall Street Journal reports that Allan, relatively new to the CFO spot, is taking a look at DHL Express US in part to “mend ties with investors who criticized the company for focusing too much on empire-building at the expense of profits.”

The researchers at investment firm Bear Sterns believe Deutsche Post may shed its domestic U.S. express and parcel business, while continuing to serve U.S. shippers for goods going to international markets. That could argue for a hybrid strategy in which it sells a controlling interest in the U.S. operation, but maintains a stake to help feed its international services.

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DHL Express Netherlands offers online shipment bookings

Posted by | Feb 4, 2008 | |

DHL Express Netherlands has expanded its online services with the launch of DHL Ship Now enabling business and private customers to book a shipment without needing a DHL account number.

DHL Ship Now is an online programme offering a fast and seamless method for sending parcels to any destination inside or outside the country, the company said. Customers can get a quote, check transit times, select their preferred service and start the pick-up and delivery process. The shipment is pre-paid online by credit card or via the iDeal system. After collection, the parcel’s status can be monitored through DHL’s track & trace system.

Jan Engels, Managing Director for Marketing & Sales with DHL Express Benelux, said: “Both businesses and private individuals are making more and more purchases over the Internet, which is also an increasingly important sales channel for DHL. Thanks to DHL Ship Now, we are catering as effectively as possible for the online shopper’s growing need for ease and flexibility.”

The main customer benefits are the ability to send a parcel without needing a DHL account number, transparent information about transit times and prices, and simple payment, the company said.

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DHL Leipzig hub to go into full operation end-March

Posted by | Feb 4, 2008 | |

The new EUR 300 million DHL Express European air hub at Leipzig/Halle airport will go into full operation at the end of March at the start of the summer 2008 flight schedule. The express operator is also planning to launch rail cargo feeder services between Leipzig and Frankfurt in the summer.

DHL has built up its intra-European flights to and from Leipzig over the last two years, and transferred its intercontinental flights from Cologne to Leipzig last October. In the final step, most of the Brussels hub flights will be moved there, leaving just a small number of services at the Belgian capital.

Once the Leipzig hub is fully operating, more than 60 DHL own or contracted planes will take off and land at the airport every night, and up to 2,000 tonnes of cargo will be handled daily. At present, about 1,800 staff handle some 35 flights and up to 800 tonnes of cargo daily.

Reinboth also disclosed that DHL Express plans to run daily cargo trains with up to 16 container wagons between Leipzig and Frankfurt Airport from the summer to transfer shipments between DHL-controlled flights at Leipzig and commercial flights at Frankfurt.

Leipzig will be the third intercontinental hub in the DHL Express worldwide air network alongside Wilmington (USA) and Hong Kong.

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FedEx + DHL Isn't Necessarily Bad for UPS

Posted by | Feb 4, 2008 | |

Rumors have been flying that DHL’s United States operations are up for sale. With the recent announcement that Deutsche Post’s DHL business unit lost 600 million Euros (USD 879 million) last year, the company is seeking strategic alternatives.

The leading candidate to purchase DHL is thought to be FedEx. While some may think that a FedEx acquisition of DHL could spell trouble for UPS, the new FedEx/DHL could actually provide some much-needed relief for both of these transportation companies.

Airborne no more

DHL hasn’t been a player in the American express delivery business for very long (that is, if it ever really was one). Deutsche Post’s DHL Worldwide Express purchased express carrier Airborne Inc. for USD 1.12 billion in 2003. Airborne Express was the low-cost carrier in the express shipping marketplace, often undercutting FedEx and UPS prices without the service guarantees that the bigger shippers provide.

DHL decided to rebrand the Airborne operations using the DHL name while keeping the low-price shipping position. DHL also scrapped the previous Airborne logo and colors, moving to bright yellow trucks and uniforms that couldn’t be missed even in one of those blinding snowstorms hitting the West Coast lately.

Considering that Deutsche Post paid USD 1.12 billion for an investment in the U.S. express shipping marketplace, last year’s loss of USD 879 million is significant, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they were looking to offload the U.S. DHL operations ASAP. But what does this say for the marketplace if the “low-price carrier” can’t compete in an economy that continues to echo “recession?” Wouldn’t you think that consumers would be looking to cut costs wherever possible in this economic climate?

The price is right

The answer may lie in the fourth-quarter earnings report that UPS delivered last week. Beyond the losses that it took because of pension write-offs, UPS stated that revenue per piece was up 2.3pct on “firm” pricing. UPS’ 2007 increase in list rates was 4.9pct (not including the additional increases in individual surcharge amounts), so growth in discounts given to corporate and individual customers must have made up the difference between increase in base shipping rates and realized revenue per package (assuming that weight per package stayed the same).

As background, to keep up in a competitive transportation marketplace, UPS, FedEx, and DHL give special incentive pricing programs to key clients. Actually, everyone seems to qualify as a “key” client today, and customers can gain discounts for simple tasks like using FedEx Ship Manager or by belonging to an organization such as the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

So, even though UPS raised base rates by 4.9pct in 2007, they gave clients increased discounts such that the average actual rate increases only came out to 2.3pct. UPS and FedEx price competition means trouble for DHL since low-price is DHL’s key claim to fame. Combine this with a recent USPS advertising campaign touting no surcharges and low rates, and it’s easy to see how DHL could run into serious issues.

Yellow and blue make green

If FedEx does buy DHL’s U.S. operations, it wouldn’t be to boost its express or ground network. After all, those gaudy bright yellow trucks and planes aren’t necessarily an asset to anyone. No, FedEx’s potential purchase of DHL would be an easy way to stave off price pressures in a competitive shipping marketplace. In effect, FedEx would be taking one for the team: getting rid of the public competitor who fought on price alone.

That’s not to say that FedEx is going to buy DHL, or that the government would OK such a move. But if the yellow DHL trucks were to move on, that could mean green for both FedEx and those brown guys at UPS.

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