Tag: Mail Services

Free recycling through the mail. U.S. Postal Service starts service in 1,500 Post Offices

Posted by | Mar 17, 2008 | |

Free and green. Those are the goals of a pilot program launched today by the U.S. Postal Service that allows customers to recycle small electronics and inkjet cartridges by mailing them free of charge.

The “Mail Back” program helps consumers make more environmentally friendly choices, making it easier for customers to discard used or obsolete small electronics in an environmentally responsible way. Customers use free envelopes found in 1,500 Post Offices to mail back inkjet cartridges, PDAs, Blackberries, digital cameras, iPods and MP3 players – without having to pay for postage.

Postage is paid for by Clover Technologies Group, a nationally recognized company that recycles, remanufactures and remarkets inkjet cartridges, laser cartridges and small electronics. If the electronic item or cartridges cannot be refurbished and resold, its component parts are reused to refurbish other items, or the parts are broken down further and the materials are recycled. Clover Technologies Group has a “zero waste to landfill” policy: it does everything it can to avoid contributing any materials to the nation’s landfills.

It was this philosophy that won Clover the contract with the Postal Service, besting 19 other companies, said Anita Bizzotto, chief marketing officer and executive vice president for the Postal Service.

The free, postage-paid Mail Back envelopes can be found on displays in Post Office lobbies. There is no limit to the number of envelopes customers may take.

The pilot is set for 10 areas across the country, including Washington, D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles and San Diego, but could become a national program this fall if the pilot program proves successful.

The Postal Service recycles 1 million tons of paper, plastic and other materials annually. Last year, USPS generated more than USD 7.5 million in savings through recycling and waste prevention programs. The nation’s environmental watchdog, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded the Postal Service eight WasteWise Partner of the Year awards, the agency’s top honor.

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Royal Mail confirms that industrial action harmed services

Posted by | Mar 17, 2008 | |

Figures recently released by Royal Mail confirm that industrial action during the second quarter of 2007-08 damaged services for postal customers.

78.4 per cent of First Class letters reached their destination the working day after posting, compared with an on-target performance of 93 per cent in the first quarter of the year.

Royal Mail Marketing Director Alex Batchelor said, ‘We are very aware that our customers simply didn’t receive the service they deserve as a result of this year’s strike action by the Communication Workers Union —and we’re very sorry that they were let down.

‘Customers are all too aware that strike action continued during the third quarter of the year which means that targets will also be missed for the autumn period. The recent vote in favour of our pay deal is good news for customers —it’s a green light for Royal Mail to invest in new technology and modernise our operations so that we can return to the record highs in quality of service reached in the last two years and build on that success for the future.’

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Go west! Home movers fall for the charm of the West Country

Posted by | Mar 17, 2008 | |

UK home movers are flocking to the West Country, a unique study of over half a million address changes by Royal Mail revealed today.

Devon, Dorset, Wiltshire and Somerset all make appearances in the top ten most desirable areas to live in the UK. Calculated by net moves*, they claimed fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth places respectively.

The study of mail redirection data revealed that, between them, the four counties attracted 10,847 new householders who travelled more than one million miles to relocate from other parts of the UK.

Kent tops the table with an impressive 5,068 moves into the area. Only London and Surrey achieved higher move-in levels, but because they have also experienced significant moves out, neither makes it into the top 10.

Other counties to appear include West Sussex (2nd), Suffolk (9th) and Essex (10th). Hampshire (3rd) and Lincolnshire (7th) also performed well.

Royal Mail’s Home Movers Barometer is managed and compiled by data value management specialist DQM Group, based on 0.6 million mail redirection requests over a 12-month period. It also shows that, while not making it into the top 10, smaller regions have been successful in attracting new residents.

Most significant are the Scottish Isles (not including the Shetland or Orkney Islands), which welcomed 289 new households, who moved an average of 217.82 miles each to relocate.

Additionally, existing residents of Hampshire, Kent, Essex and Devon have been proved extremely loyal, all demonstrating a high level of moves within their respective county. People from Kent were most fond of their “Garden of England”, clocking a substantial 12,646 internal moves and an average of just 5.39 miles per relocation.

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Cash-strapped holidaymakers could lead to city breaks explosion

Posted by | Mar 17, 2008 | |

Eastern Europe’s emerging city break destinations could be set to benefit from the UK’s economic downturn, just as Barcelona, Prague and Dublin did after the stock market crash 20 years ago – according to a new report by Post Office® Travel Services.

The report, which examines the growth of city breaks over the past two decades, concludes that demand for city breaks may explode in 2008 as it did after Black Monday in October 1987.

Cities like Krakow, Tallinn, Riga and Dubrovnik are among those predicted to grow in popularity this year – for many of the reasons that people flocked to Barcelona, Prague and Dublin in the late eighties and nineties, according to the Post Office².

Short breaks to eurozone cities still dominate – taking eight of the top ten places – but the Post Office® warns holidaymakers to be prepared for the pound in their pocket to buy less in these cities. Sterling has slipped by 11 per cent against the euro since last March. However visitors to Prague will feel the pinch even more, because the pound has fallen by 22 per cent against the Czech koruna. Only in New York – a new entrant to Superbreak’s cities top ten – will the pound stretch further – by five per cent

Of the Eastern European cities, Budapest is likely to offer best value to UK visitors this year as its currency, the forint, has strengthened least – by eight per cent – against sterling. In Krakow, which has benefited from the biggest increase in the number of flights from UK regional airports, the pound will buy 19 per cent less than a year ago.

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Empost Continues The Success Of Ezimail Service

Posted by | Mar 16, 2008 | |

Ezimail is a unique mail service introduced by Empost that entails the personal delivery of mail directly from the central mail room to any location at the convenience of the customer. The leader in express courier and cargo and logistics in the UAE, Empost introduced Ezimail to ensure the arrival and delivery of mail to customers daily and regularly, without the need to visit the post office.

Elaborating on the benefits of the service, Empost’s CEO, Mr. Sultan Al Midfa said: “Ezimail affirms Empost’s unique capability of offering quick, integrated and functional solutions to small and large businesses alike. Our objective has always been to become the unmatched, premium, complete end-to-end service provider in the distribution, focusing on the needs of our customers at all times. Ezimail is an extension of Empost’s initiative in consistently delivering cost-effective solutions that will offer greater value to our customers helping them save on the most important resources of time and money.”

Through Ezimail, the mail is delivered in a sealed satchel to ensure safety and high confidentiality. Ezimail also offers customers added convenience by collecting mail for delivery to the post office besides the option to purchase postal stamps. Some of the features of Ezimail are the collection and delivery of ordinary postal items, registered letters, EMS/Mumtaz items and other normal mail contents.

Empost accredits its consistent growth through innovation and refinement of services, which have been the company’s primary strengths for over a decade. The company has evolved over the past decade to cater to growing and diverse business needs through a host of value-added services such as Total Mail Management, Heavies Express Service, Economy Express, Ezidox, Track and Trace, and a stream of other services including insurance on all dispatches. A reliable, comprehensive logistics solutions provider, Empost’s multi-pronged approach is put into practice by a team of 1,000 specialised staff members to make it the UAE’s fastest growing integrated freight forwarding and logistics solutions provider.

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