Other News (archive)

20 December 2012 – Notre Dame Cathedral will celebrate its 850th birthday in 2013. The Paris landmark will get nine new bells for that occasion. The largest bell, named Marie, was forged this year in the Netherlands by the Royal Eijsbouts company, one of few foundries who can achieve the desired sound quality. She weighs 6.5 tons and has a diameter of 2.06 meters. Forging the bell required melting 850 bronze bricks of 10 kilos each. French, Belgian and Dutch bishops witnessed the production in action last September. TNT Express will today truck the Marie bell from Asten, the Netherlands, to the French foundry company Cornille-Harvard in Villedieu-les-Poêles, Normandy, France. She will reach her destination on Friday 21 December at 11:00 a.m. The Marie bell will later be installed in the south tower of Notre Dame.

2 November 2012 – TNT Express has received two human resources awards for its international assignment and mobility programmes. The International HR Services team of TNT Express was distinguished in September and again in October with two EMMA awards from the Forum for Expatriate Management: one for Europe in the category "Best Global Mobility Program in the Services Sector" and another for America. The European competition attracted more than 1,000 entries.

The Forum for Expatriate Management is both a virtual and real-time community of global mobility professionals from many of the world’s leading companies. It brings together in-house HR, operations and finance people who employ and manage international staff, plus service providers who facilitate cross border employment and living.

8 October 2012 – TNT Express has been awarded “Road Supplier of the Year” 2012 by CEVA, one of the world’s leading supply chain management companies. Launched in 2011, the Global Supplier Awards are designed to recognise best practice and excellence among CEVA’s supplier base worldwide. The awards ceremony was held end September in Ontigola, Spain. On this occasion, Bruno Sidler, CEVA’s Chief Operating Officer said: “TNT’s approach is customer focused. They have taken their wide range of services and solutions and invested time and money to make sure they are efficient and meeting our business needs.  As a global organisation whose footprint matches our own, TNT has ensured a consistent level of service wherever we have worked with them in the past year.” In addition to the Road Supplier of the Year award, seven other suppliers were recognised as category winners at the award ceremony.

2 October 2012 – TNT Express' best drivers from 20 countries will compete this week in Grevenbroich, Germany, during the finals of the company’s annual "Drive Me Challenge". 

The express delivery industry is associated with speed. Yet speed is not what will matter most. The prize will go to the team of driver and co-driver that demonstrates the best eco-safe driving techniques and customer service. Their skills will be tested on a circuit that recreates real world tasks, such as collecting and delivering multiple parcels under tight deadlines.

Drivers will also be tested on their health knowledge by North Star Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation which offers health and safety services to truck drivers in East and Southern Africa. Volkswagen will provide the vehicles (VW Crafter 30/35 vans) and Lysanda will provide the on-board technology to measure fuel consumption.

In its six years of existence, the Drive Me Challenge has become a major event within TNT Express with drivers travelling long distances to take part. "I’ll be coming from +40 degrees Celsius so the cold weather will be a welcome relief", said Murray Henderson, the Australian finalist. "I have never been to Europe, I expect to have a splendid trip and an opportunity to meet other TNT drivers", said Macdonald Saasa of South Africa.

Besides its motivating effect, the Drive Me Challenge has helped TNT Express engage drivers on the importance of road safety, driver health, fuel efficiency and excellent customer service.

See the DriveMe Challenge on Facebook and Twitter.

6 September 2012 – TNT Express is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its partnership with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). TNT has put its logistics expertise to good use: every year, WFP provides food aid to 90 million people a year.  The partnership takes several forms, starting with hands-on support when emergencies strike. In 2011, for instance, TNT Express delivered 68,000 blankets to Japanese people displaced by the tsunami and nuclear emergency. In the same year, TNT Express airlifted 50 tons of food to Nairobi for distribution in neighbouring Somalia. TNT’s contribution also includes knowledge transfer, awareness campaigns, and fundraising projects, such as the annual “Walk the World” charity walk. The proceeds of this event have allowed WFP to provide school meals to 120,000 children over the pasty ten years.

TNT’s partnership with WFP, known within the company as “Moving the Word”, has proven to be very popular amongst employees, several of whom assisted WFP on the ground in Africa, Asia or Central America. TNT Express has created a micro-website to thank them.

23 August 2012 - TNT Lit Cargo, TNT Express' unit in Chile, has received the Investors in People (IIP) accreditation following an inspection in July. This is the first company in Chile to achieve this standard, which recognises good practice in people management and development. Assessors praised TNT Lit Cargo for its training programs and its success in creating a strong company culture. TNT Lit Cargo employs 2,000 people. It holds a leadership position in Chile’s domestic delivery market and also offers international delivery services to/from South American countries.

17 July 2012 - TNT Express has become first in industry to earn the TSR Level 1 certification from the Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA) for its road transportation in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. Level 1 is the highest security certification that TAPA awards in its Trucking Security category.  TNT Express is now the first globally to operate a complete door-to-door TAPA certified road network to and from China and Southeast Asia. The company already has TAPA certified integrated regional road and air hubs in Bangkok, Hong Kong and Singapore.

With the certification, TAPA recognises TNT Express' industry-leading security standards, which include point-to-point monitoring systems and increased security hardware and processes. Safe and on-time delivery is crucial to customers from the High-Tech and Automotive industries with their high-value and time-sensitive goods.

Jason Teo, TAPA Asia Chairman said: "TAPA Asia congratulates TNT Express in attaining TSR certification. Once again TAPA Asia members have shown their determination to secure the supply chain by using TAPA’s best-known methods written by Global Security Supply Chain Experts. TAPA members who make this type of investment into security were found to have three times fewer losses than non-TAPA members".

12 July 2012 - TNT’s International HR Services Team, responsible for the International Assignment and International Mobility Programs, has been shortlisted for an EMMA award in the categories 'Best Global Mobility Program in the Services Sector' and 'Most Effective Relocation Management Strategy'.
Among the nominees in the same category are McDonald’s, PepsiCo and AON Corporation. The EMMA’s are granted by the Forum for Expatriate Management, which is both a virtual and real-time community of global mobility professionals from many of the world's leading companies. The membership reflects both sides of the equation: in-house HR, Operations and Finance people who employ and manage international staff plus selected service providers who bring expert advice, support and services to facilitate effective cross border employment and living.
The shortlisted nominations will be assessed by an independent judging panel and the Awards will presented at the FEM Global Mobility Summit to be held in Las Vegas on September 13.

5 July 2012 - TNT is to be the first express delivery company to trial new longer trailers on UK roads as part of its daily operations. The 15.65-metre trailers – two metres longer than the standard semi trailers currently in use – will allow TNT Express to carry a 15% greater payload, significantly improving its efficiency and capabilities for customers.

The trailers will be introduced on TNT’s route between its main UK hub at Kingsbury, in Staffordshire, and the Llantrisant depot in Mid-Glamorgan, Wales.  The trial is part of a Government initiative within the transport and logistics industry, which authorises the use of longer trailers for the next 10 years.

"In days of high fuel prices, these innovative, modern trailers offer exceptional loading capacity and space utilisation to keep freight costs down to a minimum," said Simon Harper, Director of Operations TNT Express Services UK & Ireland. “With bigger loads on each vehicle, we will cover fewer miles per volume of parcels which will help with fuel consumption and reduce our CO₂ emissions," added Simon.

The trailers incorporate other innovative features to further reduce tyre wear and fuel usage such as the ability to raise the centre axle which only deploys if the load weight on either of the other two axles exceeds 90% of the permitted axle load of 9 tonnes.

29 June 2012 – The French lingerie and swimwear brand Huit, which belongs to the Eveden Group, has selected TNT Express as its provider of domestic and international shipping services. TNT will ensure express delivery service of Huit products to stores in the domestic and international market. Huit brand is distributed in about thirty countries worldwide.

From its logistics centre in Rennes, Huit supplies specialty stores, department stores and high-end retail chains in France, Europe, Canada and Australia. Huit first signed on with TNT in 2008. The new contract was signed for two years.

28 June 2012 - Bristan, the UK’s largest supplier of bathroom taps, showers and accessories, has just renewed its partnership with TNT Express UK for the delivery service provided to its nationwide network of customers.  

Bristan was initially seeking to streamline its distribution operation by sourcing a single partner that could manage a high volume of shipments every month through consolidated, next-day delivery before noon. The key objective was to improve efficiency across its supply chain and improve connectivity with its customers via a single, reliable distribution channel. This requirement has now significantly increased per month.

TNT worked closely with Bristan to develop a cost effective supply chain solution. A dedicated account support system provided by a specialised Major Accounts Desk team ensures all enquiries from Bristan Group and their customers are dealt with promptly. TNT also designed a bespoke IT system that simplified electronic data flow to increase the accuracy and exchange of information.  Tracking information is fed back to Bristan so their customer service agents have the information to hand in case of query rather than having to access an external website.

14 May 2012 - Exploring the countryside on a scooter or a bike during a holiday is fun. But why rent one when you can bring your own? TNT Express Italy is introducing a convenient service for people wishing to ship their two-wheeler to their holiday getaway in Europe. Known as 'Scooter Express', the service is available from Italy to 10 countries, including France, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Ireland, Germany, and, of course, Italy. In 2011, TNT Express Italy saw a 5% increase in demand for bike shipping services, partly driven by e-commerce, and the trend is continuing. Scooter Express was designed to cater to these particular delivery needs. Delivery is guaranteed within 48 hours. Each bike or motorbike (maximum size: 135 x 89 x 215cm) is transported safely in a special cage. One-way shipping costs from Italy are €259 during July and August and €215 between September and June. Two way shipping costs are €506 and €418 for the same periods, respectively.

The redesigned packaging range will be integrated into the TNT sales proposition and progressively replace TNT’s current packaging worldwide.

20 January 2012 – Using an aerodynamic trailer tail can cut truck fuel consumption by 6 percent. This is the result of a five month test performed by TNT Express in the Netherlands. TNT tested a trailer equipped with “EcoTail”, a foldable and retractable rear wing produced by the Dutch company Ephicas. TNT drove the vehicle every day between the towns of Ede and Duiven, which are separated by a distance of 26 km. The tests showed 1.65 liter of fuel saved per 100 km travelled at a maximum vehicle speed of 50 mph. Partner company Ephicas sought permission from the 'Dienst Wegverkeer' (RDW, the Dutch road traffic authority) to be able to run the TNT Express test program, since there is no length exemption for aerodynamic devices in the Netherlands.  After safety tests, the RDW allowed a temporary exemption.