Competition grows fiercer in courier service industry
JAKARTA (JP): Courier service competition is tougher than ever in Asia and the Pacific as the robust economic growth over the last few years has encouraged major firms to expand.
Phil McConnell, a director of the Asia-Pacific Synergy Planning Group, told The Jakarta Post that the better economies in most of the Asian and Pacific countries have created the fiercest competition ever among the courier service companies.
The Asia-Pacific Synergy is a giant international cross-border integrator for the DHL Worldwide Express courier service company.
McConnell said that to anticipate the competitive sphere, DHL has established cooperation with Asia's major courier companies and set up a logistics center in Singapore.
DHL, which has cooperated with PT Birotika Semesta of Indonesia since 1982, claims to have partnerships in over 30 countries in the region. Under Birotika's management, DHL operates 56 branch offices throughout Indonesia.
Despite the increasingly stiff competition, Paul Moorhouse, chief executive officer for the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East for TNT Express Worldwide is upbeat about the prospects for expansion of services in the region.
"The economic boom in the region, including Indonesia, is a good vehicle to support our intensified services to its countries, which contribute some 24 percent to our total annual turnover," he said here on Thursday.
The Amsterdam-based TNT, which has embraced the local courier firm, PT Skypak International, in a joint operation since 1979, reported that its total turnover in worldwide services steadily increased to US$1.5 billion in 1992-1993 from $1.06 billion in 1991-1992 and $934 million in 1990-1991.
"Much brighter economies in the region will certainly give us an option to improve our services in the future," he said.
This month, for example, TNT plans to operate two new airplanes in the region and another two in December. TNT now has three planes serving the region.
New products
Both Moorhouse and McConnell concurred that their newly introduced service products are part of their firms' commitments to improving services in the region.
TNT and its partner Skypak International launched the Asian Air Express Network, which offers overnight freighter service from Jakarta to Singapore, Seoul and Hong Kong and return, on Thursday.
Skypak International's president, Soediono Somantri, told reporters that TNT last year launched a similar network for serving Jakarta, Manila and Taipei with an investment of $50 million.
"With the new product, we can guarantee that documents, parcels and cargoes will be delivered within 24 hours in the Asian countries," he said.
He claimed that TNT offers lower prices for its services than any of its competitors in the country.
TNT, which is owned by TNT Ltd. of Australia and GD Net BV, a consortium of the post offices of Germany, France, Sweden, the Netherlands and Canada, plans to introduce the third phase of its network this year for serving Jakarta, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Shanghai.
Money back
DHL which has operated in the country for more than 25 years, offers a strong challenge with a 100-percent guarantee to its customers if deliveries take more than overnight. "We guarantee your money back if your documents or goods do not arrive tomorrow," McConnell said on Wednesday.
TNT offers to refund only part of the fees if deliveries take longer than 24 hours.
DHL has also launched the so-called Asia Overnight package, which provides a door-to-door service from Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore and Sydney.
Both DHL and TNT use Indonesia's local carriers, Garuda Airlines, Merpati, Sempati Air, Mandala and Bouraq, for deliveries in the country.
McConnell said that his company, which operates in 215 countries throughout the world, relied on its own air fleet of 130 airplanes for its services.
Because DHL is partly owned by Lufthansa and Japan Airlines (JAL), it can also use 110 of JAL's airplanes and 203 aircraft from Lufthansa for document and goods deliveries.
JAL and Lufthansa each holds a five-percent stake in DHL.
McConnell said DHL is capable of making around 50 million shipments a year.
Moorhouse said his company operates its own 26 aircraft in Europe. "There is no need for us to operate our own aircraft in Asia and the Pacific," he said.
For the Asia-Pacific services, TNT is supported by the Pacific East Asia Cargo Airlines, which is jointly owned by TNT and the Philippine government. (fhp)