Don't forget that the USPS is strictly a US organisation and does not function outside the borders of the US. But UPS and Federal Express do. They operate world-wide and use the measurement units that all of their world-wide customers use. It would not be practical for them to use FFU in a metric country. People in metric countries that have metric scales are not going to buy FFU scales just because UPS might want to have pounds world-wide nor will they waste their time trying to calculate pounds after using a metric scale. Thus for the sake of their customers (market forces) they accommodate the market by using metric.
Euric ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gavin Young" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Sunday, 2004-03-07 13:58 Subject: [USMA:29090] Re: United States Postal Service > Today I sent an e-mail to the USA post office using their website's online > contact form. Others on this listserver may wish to send similar e-mails. Here > is a copy of my e-mail: > > Suggestion: > > UPS and FedEx websites allow people to calculate shipping in metric units (kg > and cm) as well as US Customary Units, however the post office web site > calculator does not provide the option of using metric units. I am a big fan of > metric and I request that the post office update their website shipping rate > calculator (for both domestic, international, and business rates) to allow > calculations using metric units. I also request that the printed rate sheets be > available using metric units. I further ask that all of the public scales in > the post office diplay the weight (or mass) in metric units as well as US > Customary Units. The digital scales at the UPS and FedEx stores have a selector > button for that switches the displayed weight/mass from US Customary to metric > and back. > > The USA federal government has declared metric to be the preferred system of > measurement for the USA and by the year 2010 the European Union will no longer > allow any imports of products labeled with US customary units, only metric > units will be allowed on the labels. More information about metric is available > at my website at http://www.xprt.net/~hightech/metric.htm . > > Please begin providing metric options on your scales and shipping rate > calculators, otherwise you will continue to loose your competitiveness. > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > I'm thinking of posting targetted form letters to my websites so that > individuals and organizations can easily petition various businesses and > government agencies to make use of metric. Are there any suggestions? > > Quoting john mercer <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > > > In the U S do most post offices have digital scales? The reason i ask this > > is because if they do wouldn't it be quite easy to metricate the postal > > service. On July 1 1979 Canada post went metric at a cost of 1.5 million > > dollars. At that time i don't know if digital scales were available. I > > remember going in to a post office just after the metric change and the clerk > > had a little trouble using the scale. If the USPS uses digital scales it > > would probably be quite easy to metricate it. When Canada post changed they > > called a one oz letter 30 g. I have another question in the States if you > > mail a parcel and use your bank card to pay for it when you get the receit > > does it give the weight of the parcel. If it does how easy would it be to > > change it from lbs to kg. i wonder how hard it would be to change the rates > > from pounds and ounces to metric. > > > Gavin Young > http://www.xprt.net/~hightech , http://www.renewableelectricity.com, > http://www.electric-automobile.com > >
