Friday 28 March 2014

Obama to provide $20 billion in financial aid for USPS

President of the United States of America, Barack Obama, has introduced a new Budget that acquires more than $20 billion in regards to financial and operational help for the US Postal Service.

The new Budget will offer to return $5 billion in pension surpluses to the US Postal Service over a period of 2 years. This will see the company's health benefits pre-funding system to likely contribute up to $9 billion in relief by 2016.

Obama's Budget proposes also operational changes with regards to the US Mail. Initial changes will start with a removal of Saturday mail delivery, moving to a five day schedule during the week instead.

The White House, Washington, USA
The Budget may see USPS move forward with curbside delivery, moving away from the delivery of mail to the doorstep. It has been said this will be applied "where appropriate" in the bid to save costs. Additionally to this, the Budget will also see the company able to associate more with both local and state governments to produce more revenue.

The White House is also preparing to permanently extend demanding and above-inflation postal rate increase which was introduced in December of last year by the Postal Regulatory Commission. It has been said by the White House that the postal company has "enormous value" in relation to the society's business communications and commerce, therefore there is a need for improvement to secure its future.

"The Budget proposals specific authorities to improve USPS efficiency and net revenue, along with financial relief measures, grounded in principles of fiscal responsibility as well as sound financial management," the White House has said.

Postal reform advocate, Senator Tom Carper, has commented on the proposed Budget saying: "I appreciate the president's continued support for postal reform, and welcome his budget's inclusion of a number of key principles." Carper appeared positive regarding the accurate calculation of postal retirement costs, the restructuring of the postal service's health benefits, as well as the decision to permanently expand the exigent rate increase.

Customers of USPS have conveyed unsure feelings towards the idea of the Budget forcing the company to make extreme cut backs to their "essential services." This thought has been agreed with by Vice President of Postal Affairs, Rafe Morrissey, who has described the move as potentially leading to a "weaker Postal Service." However, Morrissey has also said while this causes disappointment, "such a move offers much greater savings potential while maintaining a competitive level of service."

Monday 24 March 2014

Logistics can benefit from smartphone and PC tablet use, reports DHL

DHL has reported a trend that shows technologies initially designed for consumer use can also be incorporated into logistics. A study conducted by the Trend Research team at DHL has shown that low-cost sensor technology, such as Microsoft’s video-game camera Kinect and smart watches, can be used in logistics.

Logistics could see a future involving lost-cost technologies
Dr. Markus Kuckelhaus, Director of Trend Research at DHL Customer Solution and Innovation, explains “The success of Smartphones and tablet PCs has created a situation in which employees have better technology for personal use than they do for [their] business needs.” Kuckelhaus also goes on to say: “But they expect to have the same standard of technology at work. For this reason, we think companies have to step up and put Smartphone sensors in particular to work in logistics.”

The introduction in the use of Smartphones and PC tablets in the logistics industry could prove highly beneficial to logistics. The technologies involved could help aid in the processes of delivery. It has been possible for aspects such as acceleration, position and light to be monitored using these types of devices. These technologies could be applied to include the recording the arrival time of a shipment for example, as well as being used as a tracking or tracing feature, with the results then being uploaded onto an on-line viewable platform.

DHL has also invested time into testing several other application areas. Concepts have been developed to measure pallet volumes. The testing proved that measurements made by technologies that have the ability to detect depth were 50% faster when compared to using older technologies. Further to this, other benefits include the fill measurements of containers and trucks, in addition to the monitoring and tracking of damaged freight.

In terms of costs, sensibly priced technologies bear particular appeal within the logistics industry. While network development investments are usually accompanied with high costs, the mass production of sensor technologies could counterbalance this theory.

Customers are due to advantage from this new method as volume measurement will utilise networks of transport. Additionally, the emissions of CO2 would lower as a result.

Friday 21 March 2014

FedEx is ranked at 8th place in business magazine's "World's Most Admired Companies" list

Fortune, a popular business magazine, has recently published the results of a survey titled the “World’s Most Admired Companies”, with FedEx being ranked at number 8. The results of the survey portray a comprised list of the most prestigious and well thought of businesses.

Being featured in this list is not a first for FedEx, with the Memphis founded company having being highlighting on previous years editions. Since 2001, FedEx has been positioned among the top 20 companies as decided by Fortune magazine.
Fortune's edition including the "World's Most
Admired Companies" list

The survey takes into account nine separate characteristics and elements with regards to both financial performance and corporate reputation of companies when deciding the position of each within the list. Before arriving at their top 50, both Fortune, and consulting company, Hay Group is forced to eliminate from the starting from approximately 1,400 companies. After much elimination, the two deciders create an industry list of 57 companies. Analysis is given to rate the companies on nine separate criteria, from investment value to social responsibility. To make it successfully onto the list, a company must score within the top half of its industry.

To arrive to their top 50, the Hay Group asked approximately 3,800 respondents to choose the ten companies they admired and respected the most. The list at this stage is made up of the companies that ranked in the top 25% from the previous year’s survey.

The finalised list shows other similar parcel delivery companies, such as UPS, narrowly missing out, with them coming in at position 32. DHL did not make it into the top fifty, but can be seen as being considered for it.

FedEx Corp.’s Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Fredrick W. Smith, has said: “We are honoured to be included on the Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies List. This recognition is possible because of our 300,000 team members who strive to make every FedEx experience outstanding.”

Tuesday 18 March 2014

DPD introduces “early warning” system for customers of online fashion retailer ASOS

DPD have announced they are to launch a newly introduced “early warning” system, consisting of an e-mail and text notification service for its deliveries with online fashion retailer ASOS.

The new service will give customers notification of when their parcel is anticipated to arrive the night before of the expected delivery date. This comes as an expansion on the Follow My Parcel initiative that was introduced previously, which enabled customers to track their parcels in real time, before delivery occurring within a 15 minute time slot.

The new “early warnings” method will allow customers to be aware of when their shipment is likely to be delivered up to 12 hours beforehand.

The notification, which is to be sent to the customer the evening before, will provide them with five delivery options, some of these being delivery to a safe place, being able to collect the shipment from the nearest depot and giving the option of upgrading the service for delivery before a certain time, or even delivery on a Saturday morning. Further options for the customer will also include offering delivery to a neighbour or rearranging the delivery day for a more convenient date.

Having been founded in 2000, ASOS has become one of the UK’s biggest fashion retailers, being based solely online. With a reported 29.5million people visiting the website on a monthly basis, with a range of around 65,000 products to choose from, ASOS has seen growth in their sales by £769.4 million last year, this being an increase of 39%.

Matt Rogers, Director of Delivery Solutions at ASOS, has spoken of the impact the new system will have on the customer experience in shopping with them: “For us, making sure customers receive their goods promptly and safely is every bit as important as being able to find what they want on the site in the first place.” Rogers further says that the ability for customers to change their delivery preferences “is a fantastic advantage too.”

Further to this, DPD’s UK Chief Executive, Dwain McDonald, has expressed the importance of an effective delivery service to their business: “Online fashion retailing is a fast moving business and our aim is to provide a home delivery service that exceeds people’s expectations and helps turn shoppers into repeat purchasers and loyal customers.”

Monday 17 March 2014

eCommerce and eLogistics: we need to move faster, says FIATA secretariat

The secretariat of FIATA, the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations, has urged quicker adoption of electronic innovation in the logistics industry in the March edition of the FIATA review, its first publication of the year.
According to FIATA, in our increasingly interconnected and globalised world, the way forward for the industry is via a global legal framework, outlining the necessity of implementing electronic processes across the board. The aim is to support the growth of the industry and respond to the increasing customer demand arising from explosion of e-commerce in developing economies such as Russia.

The most essential piece of legislation, says FIATA, is the Montreal Convention of 1999, which came into force in 2003 and is known as MC99. The convention permits the use of electronic records for air waybills, permitting the industry to move towards paperless processes.

The air freight sector has doubtless lagged behind other sectors in its adoption of new technologies and electronic processes. It's certainly the case that the use of electronic Air Waybills is not uniform across the industry, with some airlines, and sub-sectors lagging behind the rest. The theme of FIATA's publication is therefore the demystification of this, an exploration of why some countries may have been slower to adopt the new processes, and an investigation into some of the available examples of  good practice.

The need for a paper air waybill can seem inconvenient when everything from banking to keeping in touch with a loved one can be done online. Thankfully, when booking air freight through air freight forwarders such as Transglobal Express, you can enjoy fully-automated online booking and electronic production of all the documentation you'll need. You can find out more here.

Thursday 13 March 2014

TNT Express to sell TNT Fashion Group to Belspeed and Netlog Group

After several months of searching for a buyer, international courier TNT Express and logistics firm has announced its plans to sell its specialised fashion supply chain business TNT Fashion Group B.V.

Subject to consultation and regulatory approval, the fashion branch of the Dutch courier company will be bought by a consortium formed by Belgian fashion logistics firm Belspeed and Turkish supply chain specialists Netlog Group. Completion of the sale is expected by the end of June this year.  The UK arm of the fashion group will be downsized and merged with the core TNT UK business.

In spite of its necessity, this is likely to be a difficult move for TNT, whose fashion branch has developed a strong reputation since its foundation in the UK and subsequent expansion across Europe and Asia. The sale forms part of TNT's continued restructure following the unexpected EU veto of the company's planned merger with UPS in January 2013.

In a statement yesterday, the TNT said that no changes were expected to be made to TNT Fashion's 660 strong workforce as a result of the transaction and that the terms and conditions of agreements with current customers and suppliers would not be affected.

The two companies due to take over the operation combine niche fashion expertise and more large-scale logistics experience. Belspeed has been providing fashion logistics for over 30 years and generates an annual revenue of EUR 35M while Netlog Group is one of Turkey's largest logistics firms, with annual revenues over $500 and 4,5000 employees.





Tuesday 11 March 2014

DHL teams up to make music with German orchestra

DHL have joined together with the German symphony orchestra, Gewandhausorchestra, as their official support and logistics partner during their tour across Asia this year. Having been Gewandhausorchestra’s logistics partner since 2005, DHL will be responsible for the transport of the orchestra’s 115 musical instrument and complete orchestral equipment shipment, including music stands and stools, as well as the conductor’s rostrum and wardrobe, with the shipment having an estimated value of about 2.5 million Euros.


Zoom

The tour will see the orchestra commence on March the 14th in the Chinese city of Shanghai, with the tour then moving on to Japan. The orchestra’s director Andreas Schulz has said “We have been touring Asia regularly since 1961. This is already our third Asian tour together with DHL. The cooperation has stood its test and we know that we can rely on our equipment being transported in a punctual and secure manner. We look forward to being able to focus fully on our music.” The concerts are to take place over a span of ten days with the tour due to conclude on March the 23rd in Tokyo.

DHL will be responsible for the safe and secure transport for the highly fragile instruments, with some of them even being irreplaceable. DHL have ensured that special, shock absorbent packaging materials are to be used that can also monitor the temperature of the instruments. DHL are aware of the duty they have been given, with DHL’s Trade Fairs and Events Managing Director Vincenzo Scrudato describing that “this calls for a very stringent schedule” that needs to be followed in great detail. Having planned the logistics surrounding the concert tour for approximately two years, DHL will face challenges in the short time gaps between the concerts themselves.

The opening concerts in Shanghai will be broadcast live on the 14th and 15th March for fans to watch online from all over the world. The concerts will be viewable from DHL’s website  from 12:30pm (CET) on both days.

Thursday 6 March 2014

DHL transports two giant pandas from Chengdu, China to Belgium

International courier and worldwide freight forwarding company DHL has recently supported the relocation of two four year old giant pandas from a Panda Conservation Centre in Chengdu, China to their new home in Brugelette, Belgium.



The two creatures – Hao Hao, a female and Xing Hui, a male – made the 8,000 kilometre journey last week on a DHL Boeing 767, accompanied by two animal handlers, a veterinary physician and over 100 kilograms of bamboo. They left China on 22nd February and arrived in Belgium a day later. The pandas are expected to spend 15 years at Pairi Daiza, a 55 acre garden in Brugelette, where they will live in their own specially designed Chinese garden. A special breeding and research programme for the bears, initiated by Pairi Daiza and the University of Ghent, aims to avert the future extinction of this much loved endangered species.

"DHL jumped at the chance to support the delivery of our two Very Important Pandas - Hao Hao and Xing Hui - from China to Belgium," said Charlie Dobbie, Executive Vice President, Global Network Operations, DHL Express, "We have supported a number of conservation projects in recent years, including the return of nine silverback gorillas from the UK to the wild in Gabon and the delivery of two rare Sumatran tigers from the Australia and the US to ZSL London Zoo for a breeding program. Safely transporting these beautiful but endangered animals furthers our own commitment to supporting conservation and environmental causes around the world..”