Quality

Mail business remains the technology leader

We use all available technical and operational tools to ensure high-quality and efficient mail processing. In Germany, we maintain a nationwide transport and delivery network consisting of 82 mail centres that process an average of some 70 million items per working day and 33 parcel centres with a handling volume of more than 2.5 million parcels per working day. We have kept the high level of automation in our mail business at over 90%.

Market research and processed complaints tell us that our customers expect us to achieve the highest possible quality standards. Customers evaluate the quality of our services based on whether posted items reach their destinations quickly, reliably and undamaged. To satisfy these requirements, we manage quality on the basis of a system audited by the Technischer Überwachungsverein Nord (TÜV Nord – technical inspection association for northern Germany) and certified for compliance with ISO every year. We also undergo voluntary performance evaluations from Quotas, a quality research institute.

As in the previous year, in 2008 we again attained excellent results in letter transit times within Germany. More than 95% of the letters posted during our daily opening hours or before final post box collection reached their recipients the very next day.

In addition, as Germany’s first parcel service provider, we sought review and certification of our internal delivery measurement system for parcel delivery from TÜV Rheinland. The review determined that nearly 90% of the deliveries we pick up from business customers reach their destination on the next day.

For international letters, transit times are specified by the Universal Postal Union. According to European Union (EU) specifications, 85% of all cross-border items posted within the EU must be delivered within three days of posting. Once again, we significantly exceeded this figure, reaching a level of 96% as in previous years.

Our service network is the largest in Germany. The heart of this network is made up of our around 14,000 retail outlets. We also offer our customers some 2,200 points of sale for letter and parcel postage and around 6,200 machines such as Packstations, Paketboxes and stamp dispensers. Thanks to our co-operation with retailers, we have extended our average weekly opening times by one hour to 43 hours compared with the previous year. This figure was only 18 hours per week before we began working with partner outlets. For years, retail outlet customers have been giving us consistently high marks via Kundenmonitor Deutschland (customer monitor for Germany), the largest study of retail customer satisfaction in Germany. Our partner-operated locations in particular have received ratings approaching the high ratings of the retail sector. Ninety percent of all customers are served within three minutes, as confirmed by test customers from TNS Infratest, which we hire to conduct anonymous tests of the retail outlets around 30,000 times per year.

We regard working practices that protect the environment as a key yardstick of quality. In Germany, we employ TÜV Nord-certified environmental management systems in both our mail and parcel businesses. As part of our „GoGreen“ initiative we offer private and business customers climate-neutral shipping options.

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