Tag: Mail Services

Itella and Kauko Group acquisition confirmed

Posted by | Mar 14, 2008 | |

Itella and Kauko Group have confirmed the acquisition of Kauko Group by Itella Corporation on Friday, March 14. Kauko Group is specialised in international freight. The acquisition was approved last week by Finnish Competition Authority.

The acquisition strengthens Itella’s position as one of the leading service logistics operators in Northern Europe. – In future we have even better chances to provide global delivery solutions to our clients, says Katri Sahlman, the Development Director of Itella Logistics.

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Royal Mail special delivery prices to go up (UK)

Posted by | Mar 14, 2008 | |

Royal Mail is to make changes to it’s Special Delivery service by reducing the insurance cover to GBP 500 maximum and introduce a Special Delivery High Value service for items of higher value.

Postcomm has responded to Royal Mail’s request that it be allowed to modify it’s current Special Delivery Next Day service by introducing a new ‘high value’ service and lowering the maximum compensation value on standard Secial Delivery items from GBP 2500 to GBP 500. The request was initially centered around the transit of jewellery items but has now been modified to appease concerns raised by Postcomm and others.

Postcomm organised a consultation based on the original proposal and 318 responses were received which included concerns from jewellery suppliers, the British Hallmarking Council, foreign exhanges suppliers, and even QVC the TV shopping channel. The biggest response was from those involved in the sale and supply of jewellery who felt that being forced into using the SDHV service would be costly and discriminatory.

The original application was made in 2006/7 and included a request to increase SDND from GBP 4.10 to GBP 8.90 but concerns by the jewellery industry that items requiring reworking and therefore posting numerous times would simply become unprofitable.

Royal Mail’s proposal that a Special Delivery High Value (SDHV) service be introduced that would still have the GBP 2500 compensation protection but a delivery target of 3pm, also raised concerns over postal workers safety in transporting such goods. Postcomm also felt that singling out jewellery would be unfair as other goods of similar value would effectively be on a cheaper tariff so Royal Mail was asked to look again at their proposal and come up with a less discriminatory scheme.

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Over USD 17 million wasted on FedEx planes

Posted by | Mar 14, 2008 | |

U.S. Postal Service facilities in California and three other Western states incurred USD 17.8 million (U.S.) in unnecessary costs by using FedEx Corp. aircraft to ship mail that could have been moved by truck, rail or passenger plane, auditors found.

The post offices, which account for 14 per cent of all U.S. mail volume, also paid FedEx to sort mail when they could have done so themselves or prepared the mail properly before giving it to FedEx.

Facilities in these states, including Arizona, Nevada and Hawaii, could save the Postal Service about USD 45 million over the next 10 years by minimizing use of FedEx planes and services, said the Feb. 19 report displayed this week on the agency’s website.

The report’s findings come as the Postal Service, a government agency required by law to set rates to cover costs, tries to cope with a possible USD 2 billion loss this year after a USD 5.1 billion deficit last year.

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U.S. Postal Service extends wireless vehicle management contract

Posted by | Mar 14, 2008 | |

I.D. Systems Inc. announced that the U.S. Postal Service has signed a contract extension to continue using its Wireless Asset Net industrial vehicle management system in postal distribution facilities nationwide.

During the initial three-year contract period, the system was installed in 80 facilities. The contract is set to expire at the end of the first quarter of 2008. The extension covers the period through Dec. 31, 2010.

The Wireless Asset Net consists of “intelligent” wireless devices (vehicle asset communicators) installed on powered industrial vehicles, such as lift trucks and pallet movers; a wireless communication architecture; and client-server software for access control, utilization analysis, real-time location tracking and other functions.

According to I.D. Systems, the system restricts vehicle access to trained, authorized operators and provides electronic safety inspection checklists. It also automatically uploads vehicle data, provides reports on vehicle utilization and alerts managers to vehicle problems in real time. This allows managers to schedule maintenance according to vehicle usage rather than on a calendar basis and determine the optimal time to replace equipment, said the company. The system also ensures equipment is in the right place at the right time.

“This contract extension reflects the significant economic benefits our wireless technology has generated—and continues to generate—for the U.S. Postal Service,” said Jeffrey Jagid, I.D. Systems’ chairman and chief executive officer. “We look forward to helping the Postal Service further achieve greater efficiencies, lower costs and a safer work environment as it continues to roll out our technology throughout its U.S. distribution operations.”

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