With e-commerce and radio frequency identification (RFID) becoming ever more central to postal activities, it is important for the UPU to strengthen its standards in both these areas.
To this end, the UPU has signed a memorandum of understanding with GS1, an international not-for-profit organization responsible for developing a worldwide system of supply chain standards.
The agreement will see GS1 and the UPU cooperating to develop their standardization activities and define a joint programme of norms for the postal sector.
One of the main objectives of this agreement is to help Posts make efficient use of EPC (Electronic Product Code™) technology, an RFID-based automatic product identification system. GS1 has already offered advice and support for the UPU's new Global Monitoring System, which uses the EPCIS (Electronic Product Code Information Services) standard.
"GS1 will work with the UPU and operators to provide postal customers with reliable data on mail items and other e-commerce services via their mobile phone or in other ways. The GS1 standards will guarantee the compatibility, upgradeability and viability of the applications offered by Posts", said Miguel Lopera, President and CEO of GS1 during this morning's signing ceremony in Berne.
"This agreement paves the way for efficient data transmission throughout the supply chain, particularly for e-commerce, an area in which Posts are ever more active", added Edouard Dayan, the UPU's Director General.
GS1 is a neutral, not-for-profit organization dedicated to the design and implementation of global standards and solutions to improve efficiency and visibility in supply chains. GS1 is driven by 1.3 million companies, which execute more than six billion transactions a day in 150 countries with the GS1 System of Standards. GS1 is truly global, with local member organizations in 108 countries. Its global office is in Brussels, Belgium.