Tag: North America

Post office fixes aren't without glitches

Posted by | Apr 27, 2007 | |

Huntington Station Postmaster Gregory Gallienne plugged his credit card into the Automated Postal Center and pressed a finger on the machine’s touch screen.

The display froze, and the machine wouldn’t dispense stamps. A clerk had to open the machine and fix it.

“It’s usually very reliable,” Gallienne said, chagrined.

More Long Island postal customers soon could experience similar situations as the U.S. Postal Service moves to replace the human touch with the touch screen.

In both Nassau and Suffolk, window-service hours are being adjusted and in some cases cut back, as the postal service nudges the public toward using the Automated Postal Centers — available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Twenty-four Long Island post offices have adjusted counter service hours for various reasons since summer, and 16 others will be doing so in the next five weeks, said Tom Gaynor, spokesman for the postal service in the New York region.

In Nassau and Suffolk, there are more than 20 APCs. They’re being relied upon to trim long lines and to provide customers with stamps, postage rates, insurance and receipts.

The most recent shift to APCs comes just as postage is set to increase: On May 14, first-class postage goes to 41 cents from 39.

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Serco wins US Postal Service contract

Posted by | Apr 25, 2007 | |

Support services provider Serco Group PLC said it has been selected by the US Postal Service (USPS) Engineering organization to provide engineering, technical, project management and IT services under a 2-year contract, extendable by a further four two-year options.

The group, which has provided a range of engineering services to USPS for more than 20 years, said that the contract has a potential value of 260 mln usd over the full ten years.

It said this latest contract marks a broadening of the previous role to include management services, quality assurance services and testing of mail processing equipment.

The award follows a number of other North American wins for Serco in recent weeks, including the 200 mln usd Sea Enterprise, the 225 mln usd LOGCAP and 64 mln usd Spectech defence contracts.

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DHL upgrades services for Global Shippers to US market

Posted by | Apr 25, 2007 | |

DHL announced a major service upgrade for international express shipments to the United States. US importers and international customers that use DHL’s International Express services to the US will now receive 12:00 noon delivery – an upgrade from the previous end of business day transit time.

The newly upgraded service will benefit customers of DHL Import Express, an all-inclusive, door-to-door service for expediting imports to the United States. With Import Express, shipments are handled by DHL from pickup outside the US to delivery in the US, with all tracking, invoicing and single-currency payment through DHL. International customers using DHL’s Worldwide Priority Express and International Document Service will also benefit from faster transit times to the US market.

International Express shipments destined for US locations that are within DHL’s AM delivery area footprint (which serves 77% of all US businesses) qualify for the new service upgrade. All International Express shipments that are cleared and delivered to U.S. service centers by 9:00 AM will be delivered by 12:00 noon to AM delivery areas.

A newly expanded primary air and ground hub in Wilmington, Ohio, state-of-the-art letter and package automation, optimized inbound flight routings, as well as an initiative which dramatically improved pickup and delivery efficiency have contributed to service enhancements across the United States.

DHL operates international gateways for import, export, and clearance of international express shipments in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, Wilmington, Ohio and Riverside, California.

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Strong international growth produces solid quarter for UPS

Posted by | Apr 25, 2007 | |

UPS today reported a 7.9% increase in adjusted diluted earnings per share to USD0.96 on a 3.3% revenue gain, thanks to a strong performance by its international operation and significant improvement by its supply chain and freight segment.

Those results exclude an impairment charge relating to aging jet aircraft and expenses for a voluntary separation program completed during the quarter. Including these charges, diluted earnings per share declined 12.4% to USD0.78 compared to the same period in 2006.

For the three months ended March 31, 2007, adjusted operating margin improved 30 basis points to 13.8%. The supply chain and freight segment reported adjusted operating profit of USD54 million, an improvement of USD79 million.

During the period, UPS took an impairment charge of USD221 million on certain Boeing 727 and 747 aircraft, including related engines and parts. In addition, the company realized a charge to expense of USD68 million to reflect the cost of a previously announced voluntary separation opportunity. The effect of these two items after tax was USD184 million, which reduced diluted earnings per share by USD0.18.

The aircraft impairment charge impacted the U.S. Domestic Package segment by USD159 million and the International Package segment by USD62 million. The separation charge impacted the U.S. Domestic Package segment by USD53 million, the International Package segment by USD7 million and the Supply Chain and Freight segment by USD8 million.

UPS ended the quarter with USD2.4 billion in cash and marketable securities. UPS also generated USD1.9 billion in free cash flow, purchased 8.9 million shares, paid dividends totaling USD828 million and invested USD675 million in capital expenditures.

Consolidated volume in the U.S. operation was flat for the quarter as a result of a slowing U.S. economy.

Export volume showed strong growth with a 10% gain, led by a jump of more than 20% from Asia and a double-digit increase from Europe.

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DHL partners with Sandler & Travis Trade Advisory Services

Posted by | Apr 25, 2007 | |

DHL and Sandler & Travis Trade Advisory Services Inc. (STTAS) have announced their partnership to provide customs and trade compliance services. STTAS will work closely with DHL to provide operational services, including overall business process enhancement, tariff classification, compliance with government supply chain security initiatives, free trade agreement optimization, and customs training, to DHL’s importer/exporter clientele.

Earlier this month DHL announced the completion of its DHL Global Trade Services suite with the formation of its Trade Advisory Services division. The mission of DHL Global Trade Services is to assist both first time and experienced international shippers with facilitating cross-border trading. By offering trade advisory services and working with STTAS to provide technical expertise and operational consulting services, DHL completes its vision of offering a complete package of services to meet the demands of an increasingly complex international trade environment.

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