The Shiply office has been buzzing as we received news of our top 10 position in the list of the UK’s Top 100 Startups. The list is comprised of whole host of companies that have found new and innovative ways to do business and engage with their customers. Sitting pretty at number nine, Shiply has seen off fierce competition from astounding companies such as Zoopla, SeatWave and yes, even, Reggae Reggae Sauce.
Startups.co.uk also explained why they felt we were deserving of such a high ranking:
“The result is a reduction in CO2, cheaper delivery options for customers, and more profitable delivery routes for transport companies. Shiply’s commission-based revenue model has seen company turnover enjoy a 10-20% monthly growth rate over the past year, and Robert has bagged a whole trophy cabinet’s worth of awards along the way.”
We’d like to thank Startups for the recognition, which sits very nicely next to our win of Startups green start up of the year 2009. Thanks to all involved.
100km Long Traffic Jam in Beijing
Since August 14 truck drivers and everyday road users in Beijing have been subject to a traffic jam stretching 100km long. Now in its ninth day, the standstill on the Beijing-Tibet Expressway has left frustrated deadlocked truck & delivery drivers in their daily transport of goods in and out of the capital. The traffic jam has arisen as a result of continued roadworks that are not expected to be completed until late September.
The vast increase in trucks, which reached a daily peak of 17,000, have contributed to the jam and run the risk of affecting the road safety of local drivers. Niu Fengrui, director of the Institute for Urban and Environmental Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences told said: “If there’s no traffic jam in the city, that would be news.
However, the standstill has not put a dampener on everyone’s spirits; one local joked: “concerts should be held at each congested area every weekend, to alleviate drivers’ homesickness”. Many drivers stuck in the traffic jam have used their now considerable free time to play chess or cards, whilst local entrepreneurial vendors have seized the opportunity to sell tired drivers noodles and drinks.
This is why mum always told you to look both ways!
Going the wrong way no matter what you’re driving is never a good idea…
Enjoy and have a great weekend!
http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf
53 years for a postcard to be delivered
A postcard sent from Durban, South Africa in 1957 has finally reached its destination in Dorset after 53 years.
Staff at Monkton Wyld Court education centre, near Bridport, are trying to find out the postcard intended recipient, “J.C. Belsey”.
Since 53 years have past, the addressee may have been a student, teacher or staff member of the then mixed boarding school housing 36 students.
The postcard which took 53 years to be delivered
The postcard, which appears to be sent from Belsey’s grandparents, refers to a trip to Durban, saying: “It has rained a bit today but is staying hot even so.”
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “It is extremely unlikely that this item of mail was in our system at this time. It is difficult to speculate what may have happened, but almost certainly it was put back in a post box very recently, as we regularly check all our sorting offices and machines are cleared.”
It is hoped that some former pupils will be able to shed light on the postcard’s recipient at the boarding school reunion in May 2011.
Tea delivery man saves pensioner’s life with marshmallows
Lee Craggs, 24, a delivery man working for Ringtons Tea of Sunderland, saved the life of a pensioner who collapsed in her house in Gateshead.
Mr. Craggs, a trained first aider, found Rosemary Falloon, 84, who has diabetes, on the floor of her home and called an ambulance.
He also fed her chocolate covered marshmallows from his basket which helped bring her sugar levels back to normal.
Chocolate covered marshmallows helped save Mrs Fallon
He said: “The paramedics were looking for some biscuits. We couldn’t see where she kept them so I went to the van and got a box of marshmallows, something sweet, thankfully, that brought her round.”
Mrs Fallon said his quick action saved her life: “I can’t thank Lee enough for what he did for me. I might not have been here today if it hadn’t been for him. He had the sense to the phone straight away, he had the sense to switch the iron off which was still hot and he had the sense to put me in the recovery position.”
Waitrose’s home delivery service trials eco-friendly vehicles
After a six month successful trial, five of Waitrose’s home delivery vans – Mercedes Sprinters will be powered with liquid biomethane (LBM), a methane-based renewable fuel produced from landfill gas. It is created by extracting naturally occurring methane from organic waste in landfill sites and converting it to a high quality, clean fuel.
Waitrose’s eco-friendly delivery vans run on renewable fuel
These eco-friendly transport vans, which run at a 62 per cent lower CO2 emissions compared with diesel, will deliver food to homes in Central London.
Ray Collington, Fleet Engineer at Waitrose, said: “The John Lewis Partnership is committed to reducing its carbon footprint and to using, where possible, locally sourced materials. Gasrec’s Liquid Biomethane gives us a high-performance vehicle, using local sustainable fuel that will reduce our CO² emissions. It is a real viable alternative to diesel for us.”
DHL can send almost anything…
…to just about anywhere.
Another brilliant TV Ad from DHL.
Enjoy and have a great weekend!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9SGYt8idhc]
Argos trials 90-minute delivery service for customers
Argos are starting a trial with Shutl, a promising start up business which will allow the retail giant’s customers to have products delivered to their doors in as little as 90 minutes.
The six month trial will be based in London and available for Argos customers using its “Check & Reserve” service.
Shutl’s solution helps by connecting Argos with same day local couriers who can deliver the retailer’s products to its customers in a much shorter time than before. The service starts at £4.95, which is £1 cheaper than Argos’s current two to three day delivery service!
Tom Allason, Shutl’s founder (and former owner of eCourier) said the majority of the £4.95 will go the courier companies. “We’re a high volume, low margin business. We have no moving parts. It’s in our interests to get the costs as low as possible because the consumer is more likely to convert.”
The company is hoping to expand the trial nationwide if the London trial proves successful.
We think this is another example of making good use of vehicles capacities and empowering independent courier companies to get involved in large-scale supply chain contracts which frankly they would not otherwise get a sniff of.
London Olympics 2012: Moving goods about will be a “nightmare”
With less than two years before the first Olympic Games hosted in Great Britain since 1948, coping with the number of visitors and tourists seems not to be a problem in London.
With no engineering works planned during the Games, the Tube we are told will like clockwork and there will be plenty of buses available. Other methods of transport such as bikes or even boats are also ready to be used.
However, moving goods about, especially food, is going to be a much more difficult task. The haulage industry and supermarkets are working with the Olympic Delivery Authority to come up with a workable logistics plan.
![[olympics-logo-bike.jpg]](https://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YIGwolhYYP0/SJyeevL5gVI/AAAAAAAAALA/SnwYEKu4EC8/s1600/olympics-logo-bike.jpg){kind=logo}
Natalie Chapman of the Freight Transport Association said :”It will be a huge challenge. Difficult is the understatement of the century. It will be pretty hellish, especially as we are expecting an upsurge in business and will have to make even more deliveries with less time available to us.”
“It is clearly vital that business is able to operate as efficiently as possible during London 2012. One of the main objectives of having an Olympic Route Network is to ensure that the capital keeps moving during the Games,” said Theresa Villiers, transport minister.
Haulage driver would rather go to prison than pay litter fine
Paul Robinson, 46, a haulage driver, has vowed to go to prison rather than pay a £700 fine for dropping litter.
Mr. Robinson appealed against a conviction for throwing a cola can and a cigarette from his lorry in Park Farm Way, Wellingborough on November 23 last year.
However, despite calling six witnesses, showing video footage and a record of his movements that day, Northampton Crown Court dismissed his appeal and doubled the fine he must now pay.
Paul Robinson rather goes to prison than pay fine
Paul said: “I’m not paying anything. I refuse to pay for a crime I didn’t commit. I would be prepared to go to prison without a fight. They can work out how much a day it will cost to keep me in prison then work that out against how much I’m supposed to owe them.”
He presented testimonies from colleagues, friends and a magistrate saying he did not drink fizzy drinks and was impeccably clean but all he achieved was doubling the court costs to £500.
Mr. Robinson’s friend Rob Hadfield who came from Middlesborough to support him, said: “I’m disappointed in British justice.”