Tag: North America

UPS Freight launches reliability guarantee

Posted by | Nov 5, 2007 | |

Starting with the new year, UPS Freight will back its on-time performance reliability with the same type of service guarantee that long has been enjoyed by UPS’s small package customers.

The on-time service promise will be available Jan. 2 to less-than-truckload (LTL) customers who ship using the current UPS Freight 560 tariff in the continental United States. This new guarantee promises that customers can request a waiver of their freight charges if their shipment doesn’t arrive on time.

Since acquiring the former Overnite Transportation Co. in 2005, UPS has enhanced UPS Freight’s service portfolio and reliability, optimized its delivery network and invested significantly in assets, people and technology. As a result, the LTL and truckload carrier (TL) is aligned with the global operations and performance standards of UPS’s small package and supply chain services.

New in 2008 will be enhancements to UPS WorldShipTM and UPS Internet Freight Shipping that address the specific needs of freight shippers. UPS WorldShip is a software suite that integrates customers’ existing databases, eliminating the time-consuming task of re-entering names and addresses, while providing access to all the functions of UPS.com including delivery verification and tracking.

In 2008, in addition to being able to create a Bill of Lading (BOL) for LTL shipments, UPS WorldShip users will be able to send e-mail notifications, save BOLs for later completion, import commodities and view their negotiated rates. UPS also will make it easier for non-technical staff to integrate their business systems with WorldShip through a new ‘wizard’ feature that guides customers through the integration process using step-by-step instructions.

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DHL introduces industry's first prepaid, flat rate shipping box

Posted by | Nov 5, 2007 | |

The ShipReady Box brings added convenience to the small business and occasional shipping customer.

DHL has introduced the express delivery industry’s first prepaid, all-inclusive flat-rate box, designed to minimize time, paperwork, and expense for U.S. shipping customers.

Just in time for holiday shipping, DHL’s new ShipReady Box provides 2nd day delivery service, without any weight restrictions, for one inclusive fee to and from all points within the 48 contiguous states.

The ShipReady box can be filled with as much material as can be safely transported. To use the box, the shipper completes an affixed DHL ShipReady address label, and may drop off the package at any of DHL’s more than 25,000 convenient locations, including DHL drop boxes, OfficeMax locations and DHL Authorized Shipping Centers. The nearest drop off locations may be found at www.dhl-usa.com. All DHL ShipReady products have total tracking visibility, with guaranteed on-time delivery.

The ShipReady box is currently available in 11″ x 8.5″ x 5.5″ size. Shippers can order DHL’ s ShipReady products, including ShipReady Box, Letter Express, Legal, and Express Pack, by ordering supplies at www.dhl-usa.com, and at the “ship” tab select “Get prepaid shipping.”

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Letters extinct in digital age

Posted by | Nov 5, 2007 | |

In the old days, it went something like this: personal letter, electric bill, L.L. Bean catalog.

Now, it goes like this: credit card offer, credit card offer, L.L. Bean catalog.

About the only thing that made walking to the mailbox in any way an anticipated experience, a hand-addressed envelope from a friend or relative, has largely vanished.

In the age of ubiquitous personal computers, BlackBerrys and PDAs – that’s personal digital assistants for the technologically unfamiliar – such communications are most often digital and rarely on paper.

And to make matters worse, the volume of so-called standard mail, including catalogs and other advertising, is on the increase.

Postal Service research found that the average household now receives just one personally addressed letter a week, including such things as holiday cards and wedding announcements, McKiernan said.

According to the Postal Service, first-class mail, including personal letters and bills, peaked in 2001, when there were 103.6 billion individual pieces delivered. In 2006, there were 97.6 billion pieces delivered.

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Marshall Islands: Return to Domestic Mail Services a

Posted by | Nov 5, 2007 | |

The United States Postal Service’s restoration of domestic mail designation is a “great victory in many ways” for the people and businesses of the Freely Associated States (FAS), according to Marshall Islands Chamber of Commerce President Jack Niedenthal.
In September 2005, the United States Postal Service announced the change from domestic to international designation for the Republic of the Marshall Islands and Federated States of Micronesia, Within six months of implementation, the private sector, which relies heavily on letter and package service from the United States, reported that the loss of domestic services was causing severe hardship and confusion.

The Chamber of Commerce, in addition to the RMI Government, wrote letters to U.S. officials asking them to reconsider the continuation of this policy. Last Wednesday, the USPS announced reversal of its policy, and the return to domestic mail treatment on November 19.

It also represents progress in the broader arena of the relationship between the US and the FAS in that we now know that the Compact is not cast in stone; it is a living document that can be changed if both parties see the need to do something different.”

During last July’s hearing before a U.S. House subcommittee, RMI Foreign Minister Gerald Zackios said that the current Postal Services Agreement was not consistent with the “mutual desire to promote private sector development.”

In August, representatives from USPS informed postmasters and post office managers attending a two-day workshop in Palau, of the plan to revive the zip code and domestic rate services in Federated States of Micronesia and Republic of the Marshall Islands.

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Canada Post Launches Virtual City in Second Life with Retail Partners

Posted by | Nov 5, 2007 | |

Canada Post aspires to hit Second Life in a big way: By launching a virtual city, where users can come and shop.

The virtual city of Maple Grove has a distinctly Canadian feel, according to DM News. Virtual residents can send packages or buy stamps, cards and gift cards and convey them anywhere in Canada.

Additionally, Maple Grove will include a collection of stores offering discounts to virtual residents.

Stores include North American retailers like Everything Olive and Toys “R” Us, which partnered with the Canadian post office on its lookbook catalog.

Further, instead of creating its own island like many other brands, Maple Grove has opted to join the Second City mainland, since the post office “is the center of many communities across Canada,” CP’s SVP Laurene Cihosky told DM News.

The city launched on Saturday with a six-hour virtual live music festival.

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