Tag: Mail Services

Consultation starts on changes to post office network in Cumbria

Posted by | Mar 18, 2008 | |

Post Office Ltd opened a six-week local public consultation on its Area Plan for Cumbria with the criteria and factors set by the Government in its Response Document (DTI The Post Office Network, Government response to public consultation May 2007 – www.dti.gov.uk/consultations/page36024.html).

The Area Plan proposes future provision of Post Office services through a network of 226 branches across the area, including 10 outreach outlets, while 35 existing branches would close.

Under the proposals, 98.5% of the area’s population will either see no change, or will remain within one mile of an alternative branch.

The 10 outreach services would use innovative ways to continue to provide Post Office services- particularly in smaller communities – where the existing branch is proposed for closure.

Possible types of outreach outlet could include a mobile service visiting small communities at set times, a hosted service operated within a third party premises for restricted hours each week, or a partner service within the premises of a local partner such as a pub landlord.

The detailed Area Plan proposal is now available from Post Office Ltd at www.postoffice.co.uk/networkchange, by emailing: [email protected] or by writing to: Post Office Ltd, Freepost Consultation Team (no stamp required).

Post Office Ltd is now seeking views on the proposed future service provision in the area, in particular views on access to Post Office services, the accessibility of alternative branches to those proposed for closure and the appropriate form of outreach to be provided.

The Government has already undertaken a 12-week national consultation before reaching a decision to reduce the UK-wide network of Post Office branches by up to 2,500 from its current level of over 14,000, while continuing to provide funding to support a more sustainable network in the future. The proposals now published support the national accessibility criteria introduced by the Government.

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USPS contract postal units now running Escher Group’s point-of-sale software

Posted by | Mar 18, 2008 | |

Escher Group, Ltd. today announced that 1,027 Contract Postal Units running RiposteEssential™ are now “live” in the United States.

The USPS Contract Postal Units (CPU) offer additional access to postal services in areas that may not have a physical post office branch. The CPUs currently offer mailing services and stamp sales at more than 900 sites throughout the United States.

Escher Group’s software and managed services were selected in January 2007 to automate the USPS CPUs as part of a consortium led by Innovations Group, Inc (IGI) of Fairfax, VA. Other partners in the consortium include Hewlett-Packard (hardware), Pitney-Bowes (postage meter and implementation services), and CODEplus (quality assurance).

The new system, known as CARS (Contract Access Retail System), went to pilot in October 2007 and national rollout began on January 8, 2008. More than 900 stores were converted within 15 days. Typically, a CPU was converted to the new system, employees were trained and the store was open for business and serving customers that same day – a testament to RiposteEssential’s ease of use and reliability.

In addition to the RiposteEssential retail application, and a full stock management suite, Escher Group is providing managed services – operating a data center and communications network for the complete CPU retail network.

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La Poste targets parcels and services growth in new five-year plan

Posted by | Mar 18, 2008 | |

France’s La Poste aims to grow its international express and parcels business, build up new mailstream flows and offer new services under a five-year strategic plan unveiled yesterday, French media reported. The group is also apparently interested in troubled German mail operator PIN Group.

As part of the 2008-2012 plan “Performance and Confidence”, La Poste aims to increase its turnover by 2% a year on average and reach revenues of EUR 23.2 billion by 2012, reported Les Echos. It is targeting an operating profit of about EUR 2 billion and a profit margin of 8.5% in 2012.

Growth would be driven by the parcels and express business, which expects average annual growth of more than 5%, and by La Banque Postale. But most investment will go into the mail business which is mid-way through a major modernisation programme, the newspaper wrote.

La Tribune cited La Poste president Jean-Paul Bailly as saying that La Poste was increasingly “a service group” in which each division should focus on what it can do best. He was not questioning the postal group’s public service obligations, including the universal mail service and the loss-making newspaper distribution, but wanted their financing transparent and clarified, the newspaper said.

The AFP news agency cited Bailly as saying that the parcels and express market would be “much more of a driver in terms of development and growth”. Marc-André Feffer, strategy director, pointed out that e-commerce would generate parcels growth.

Paul-Marie Chavanne, head of parcels and express unit GeoPost, said the group, which was number two in Europe, wanted to become a “global player”, AFP reported. La Poste had last year sealed an important alliance with Air France-KLM to transport parcels in the airline’s fleet, he noted. In future, La Poste would invest in “domestic networks outside Europe”, and had recently acquired companies in Russia, South Africa, the USA and set up businesses in China and the Middle East. India and South America were also on the map.

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