With the creation of Parcel Shipping & Distribution magazine, we at RB Publishing were leaders in recognizing the growing importance of parcels in the supply chain. Parcel Shipping & Distribution highlighted the need to focus on the parcel in order entry, warehousing, packing, shipping and delivery. We were on the cutting edge then and we plan to stay on that cutting edge.

Today, we recognize the growing impact of the World Wide Web in our society, both as a commerce and an information tool. Internet commerce is driving and will increasingly drive a tremendous growth in parcel shipping. The Web also opens multiple new avenues for information distribution and makes a great information distribution partner for print media.

Recognizing the multi-media potential of this print-electronic partnership, we at Parcel Shipping & Distribution are adapting our publication to utilize the full impact of the Web in information distribution. Over the next few months, we will introduce (signaled by this issues new look and the magazines new name PARCEL) an array of informational products focused around a new and improved Web site (www.parcelindustry.com). While we will continue to provide you with information via this, our traditional printed publication, we will also add offerings via a new online electronic version of the book, e-mails, e-newsletters, Web broadcasts, Webinars, regional seminars and, of course, our annual Parcel Shipping & Distribution Forum whatever methods best deliver the message to you. We have always been a leader in the preparation and delivery of parcels, and we will remain a leader in todays changing environment.

In this issue, we feature Part I of our annual Best Practices Survey the transportation portion. Part II the operations portion will appear in the November/December issue. We analyzed over 250 of our Parcel Shipping & Distribution readerships operations that collectively ship 90 million and receive over 30 million parcels a year. One of the interesting findings of our survey is that our readers deliver 27% of their parcels to domestic residential/consumer addresses. That jump from 22% (last year) coincides with ever-increasing Internet sales. The Web clearly is impacting our society and parcel shipping. Check out the results closely; theyre good stuff.

Keep an eye out for our new product offerings. We want and need your feedback. Let us know what works best for you and what is not effective. And, as always, thanks for reading PARCEL .