A standardised label for parcels shipped within Europe may soon be in use. CEN, the European Committee for Standardisation, has approved the technical specifications of crossborder parcel shipping. With that approval, the parcel label is ready for use.
A standard label for parcel shipping would make the last mile in e-commerce a lot more efficient. The European Commission therefore asked postal operators to consult on standards within the parcel market. A draft of the parcel label then had to be approved by CEN and national authorities. Now that that has happened, the way seems clear for the label to go into use.
An expert group from Shopping Tommorow revealed earlier this year that a standard parcel label could offer benefits especially towards consumers. "A standard parcel label enables new services towards consumers," says Margreeth Pape, Advisor Logistics & Sustainability at Thuiswinkel.org and chairman of the expert group. "Imagine that consumers will soon be able to track all their parcels via one app, regardless of the carrier delivering them. Even postal agencies would like nothing more than to offer the possibility of collecting parcels from different carriers. The unique barcode on the parcel label makes that possible."
GS1 Netherlands, developer of information standards, earlier stated that it expected carriers to be reluctant to adopt the new label at first. This is because they will have to adapt their systems, which costs money and time. Also, many carriers think they will benefit from their own system, in order to demarcate their market area. "It is logical that they are still a bit hesitant," said innovation manager Frits van den Bos. According to GS1 Netherlands, the benefits for their customer - the consumer and the online retailer - far outweigh this.
Editorial LogistiekProfs
