Post-Expo 2007 

Post Expo is the main annual meeting in the world of mail, where the latest innovations can be seen and the future of the postal sector can be foreseen. And this year’s event was especially interesting.


After being hosted in cities like Brussels, Bucharest, Paris and Amsterdam, the 11th annual edition of Post-Expo was held on 2nd - 4th October 2007 at the Fira de Barcelona.

Post-Expo is the leading world-wide event for the postal, parcel and courier sectors. Over 3 days, leading companies showed their products and ideas to senior officials of postal administrations and worldwide mail companies. Delegates and industry experts shared their experiences and knowledge in technology workgroups and conferences. The World Postal Business Forum is the most important postal conference of the year, and its organized in association with the UPU.


About 200 companies participated in the 2007 event, and Spanish Post - Correos, was the host-sponsor, with a large institutional stand ... but with almost no contents.

In this article we look at the different companies represented at Post-Expo and which are related to our field of study, along with their proposals and the equipment exhibited, plus some of the test issues that were made during the three days of the exhibition (see note at the end of the article).
Some of these subjects have already been studied in other articles of our publications, whilst others will be dealt with in more detail in future articles.


aCon

In its second involvement at a Post-Expo, the young Danish company aCon displayed two latest generation PostSelv postal kiosks, one of them in the colors and graphic appearance of Norway Post.
After the success of the trials with this equipment in Denmark (see article), a pilot scheme will start in November 2007 with 4 postal kiosks for Posten Norge AS. The first ATM issues are 3 beautiful designs of butterflies.

Post Selv - postal kiosk for Norway Posts.
Test printings. Self-adhesive label without postal value and a receipt with the logo of Posten Norgen AS.

The Post Selv is currently the postal kiosk offering the most features and is a benchmark for its competitors.


Grupo Epelsa

The well known Spanish company specializing in electronic weighing equipment participated in Post-Expo along with the Italian company EMS. On the stand they displayed the 4 most recent models of postal balances on offer by Grupo Epelsa.

Amongst them was the DLI Postal, a DLT-Iris/Postal franking balance (see article), and an interesting prototype balance (right image) developed as a result of the withdrawal of variable value stamps from all Spanish post offices. This prototype includes a canceller that makes a direct impression on letters, with any type of postmark.

Different test labels issued by the franking balance DLT-Iris/Postal


Escher Group

Since 1989, the Escher Group has developed software applications used by almost 30 postal administrations around the world. Among them we can find Riposte ® - a family of computer products that includes RiposteEssential™, a powerful application that is easy to use for the management of post offices and points of sale (right image), Riposte ® for mail and data management, and MobileRiposte™.


Self-adhesive test label, without postal validity, issued by the sales terminal installed in Post-Expo 2006.


Nagler Technik

The German company showed different products at Post-Expo 2007. Amongst them were different cancelling machines, a new packstation for prepaid parcels, and the N714 stamp distributor
(right image), a smaller size simplified piece of equipment for the printing and issue of ATMs with the face value specified by the user.

Test label issued by the N714 vending machine, one of the 2 only distributors displayed in Post-Expo 2007which doesn't print thermally ...


NewVision

This Portuguese company focuses its activity on the development of integrated service solutions for face-to-face public service and self-service equipment: queue management systems, people counting, corporate TV, multimedia kiosks and a variety of self-service machines with different applications.

Related to our field of study, NewVision displayed at Post-Expo 2007 two MSM self-service machines, one of them was an Epost stamp vending machine identical to those currently in service in Portugal. There was also an Elite postal kiosk with a scale on
the top (left image) and, as a novelty, the prototype of a new small size ATM vending machine with a touch screen (right image).
So, NewVision becomes the company with a wide range of options and postal equipment, from small size basic distributors, to the most complete Elite-SC postal kiosks (also called ProPostal 2000).

A variety of test labels issued during Post-Expo 2007.
Below to the left, a label issued by the distributor MSM or E-Post 2000, ink printing. To the right, self-adhesive labels and a receipt with thermal printing issued by the postal kiosk Elite.
Many of the companies usually take advantage of fairs and demonstrations to include some special text in their test products, in order to show the graphical capacities of their equipment.


 
Pitney Bowes

The American multinational Pitney Bowes, displayed in Post-Expo 2007 some products and equipment for the issue of variable value and personalized stamps. This represents a revolution in the classical system of printing and issue of postage stamps, that is being rapidly developed in the United States and which could arrive in Europe shortly.

Amongst them, Stampexpressions™, a system that allows the issue of customized variable value stamps in the home or at the office (right image - see article), and also the photo stamps, a new product in collaboration with Zazzle, that allows the printing of sheets of 20 stamps with any image and face value selected by the customer.
On the occasion of Post-Expo 2007 they prepared sample sheets of photo stamps, with 3 different views of Barcelona.


Pitney Bowes also displayed 2 postal kiosks for handling all type of shipments, already in service in the US,

and a prototype kiosk that allows the immediate printing of sheets of 6 stamps with the image and value selected by the user.

A future article will be written in order to study all this information in more depth.
 

Samkyung Hitech

Postal Automatic Service System (PASS) is a peculiar postal kiosk developed by the Korean company Samkyung Hitech. For more than 10 years, there have been 160 units in service in South Korea.

The user selects a postal service, puts the letter or package inside a receptacle that closes automatically, the system calculates the tariff and issues the corresponding variable value stamp, after first receiving the payment. Then the customer removes the postal item, sticks the stamp on it and returns it to the receptacle. The equipment verifies the operation and, if correct, keeps the shipment inside
.

 
Stamp for registered mail and receipt


Swiss Post - bsi

This is one of the most refreshing and imaginative proposals displayed at Post-Expo 2007.
As a consequence of the Ymago project, started at the end of 2003, Swiss Post launched this small module postal kiosk for installation in postal agencies, partners providing postal service like grocery stores, commercial stores, cafeterias, tourist offices..., in which customers can do the basic operations of franking a letter, or package, by themselves.
The unit, called a 'sending module', contains computer equipment with a touch screen, a scale and, in some cases, a small writing-desk. By following some very simple (and intuitive) steps, the user can obtain a self-adhesive variable value stamp (image below) to frank his postal piece. Finally, payment for, and deposit of, the shipment are made at the cash desk of the establishment, along with any other products purchased.

The equipment has been manufactured by the company PESA and the software is by bsi (Business Systems Integration AG). It is planned that at the end of 2008, 200 modules could be in service.
The Ymago project will be the subject of a future article.

Variable value test label issued by the sending module installed in Post-Expo 2007

Wincor Nixdorf

Displayed as a prototype in the 2006 edition, the ProPostal 2000 postal kiosk appeared in Post-Expo 2007 in a very prominent position - in front to the main entrance to the exhibition. And quite rightly so. After problems with the software during the first months of testing in different post offices in The Netherlands (see article), it is now planned to continue with the installation of more of these in Holland. Tests have also been made in Italy, and a series of pilot tests will shortly start, with 2 units, for the Austrian Post.

The ProPostal 2000 is a magnificent kiosk, with many possibilities for the future, that combines the experience of its manufacturer, the Portuguese company NewVision, with the world-wide presence of the multinational Wincor Nixdorf. A worthy alliance.


Test label without postal value and a receipt, issued by the equipment ProPostal 2000



Note: As far as the possibilities, all ATEEME members will receive some of the test labels shown on this article, along with the next quarterly shipment. More information in the Internal Bulletin.

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This page was created in October 5th, 2007. Last updated:  15.10.07 . English edition rewritten by S. Goodman (15.10.07)