On opportunities:
E-commerce is opening up more opportunities on the business to consumer (B2C) side. While on the business to business (B2B) side, e-commerce provides another means for transactions; it is on the B2C side that most of the action will be. Blue Dart has substantial capacity to deliver to individual residences. Our distribution reach is both extensive (across locations) and intensive (within locations).

On existing infrastructure and expansion plans:
The express industry is witnessing more than 30 per cent growth and must have infrastructural and physical capacity for transportation and delivery. Blue Dart currently services over 1,103 locations across the country and has the widest reach. We are proposing to add a third aircraft to our fleet. The pick up and delivery system too is being strengthened and revamped.

We are also increasing our warehousing capacity and have recently opened a new 10,000 sq. feet warehouse in Chennai. Our belief in logistics is not just warehousing. We specialise in moving customer's shipment door to door, taking care of all related formalities-customs, sales tax, octroi. In business to business, we move goods quickly to the end consumer so that there are savings in inventory costs resulting in benefits to the bottom line of our customers.

In electronic infrastructure, we have an Intranet with over 1000 terminals over 11 locations connected through VSATs, enabling wide interface. The customer has a desire to know the status of his shipment at all times and if shipments are delivered on time so that he can provide further value adding services.

Besides, he wants to be kept aware of any problems. The physical movement is tracked electronically through our wide area networks. Blue Dart has 17 scans to track the shipment along its journey to the end customer.

On training manpower:
Blue Dart's key asset is it's over 3,800 strong team of committed and professional employees spread across the country. Knowledge and learning are key words and the company is making investments in organising special training modules across levels to further raise the level of skills and expertise. To maintain the momentum of the training programme on a continuous basis, Blue Dart has initiated a unique methodology - `nRich' to build develop and utilise a network of internal trainers to meet the identified training needs of its personnel.

The company's own Intranet enables a Blue Darter to learn at his own work place, time, pace and will further support the `nRich' process.

On investment in training and expansion work
The investments being made in developing manpower is very qualitative. We are identifying employees from different functional areas and regions to form a core group and developing them as trainers. We have identified areas for skill development across levels and functional areas. We are inviting external, qualified trainers to fulfill this initial need by training this core group and develop them as internal trainers. These internal trainers will then train other employees. The objective is to invest in learning from external resources and develop internal resources to share the knowledge and learning across the entire organisation thereby internalising it.

We are also developing training modules using both external and inernal resources, which will be made available online for use by our staff at all times. "On line college" and chatting with experts are other ideas on the agenda.

On benefits expected:
Blue Dart is currently India's largest express company with over 36 per cent market share. Our business today is largely B2B. We also handle the business of leading credit card companies, and are therefore well equipped to deliver to residences and handle the B2C aspect of the business.

Our capabilities will benefit portals and e-shops. We believe technology gives us a broader objective and we would like our customers to use it directly by putting it up on the net. We would like to allow our customers to directly track the shipment's position. Our vision is to facilitate distribution and transportation of material between all parties and all locations.

On its existing set of clients:
We are currently doing business with Rediff and Fabmart among others. Essentially, when a customer orders goods over the net, the request for despatch is sent to us. We pick up the goods and deliver it. In e-commerce, we should be able to interface the portal's communication system with the Blue Dart system. A customer should be able to track the status of his shipment directly from the portal site or a link should be provided to the Blue Dart site from the portal site. We are equipped to offer this service.

On the future of courier companies in e-economy:
The industry will move from couriering of documents and small Packages to Supplier Chain Management, Distribution and E-Commerce.

Globally the Express Industry where perfect infrastructure exists is growing at an average of 18% per annum.E-Commerce is expected to generate $1.3 trillion in terms of global revenue transactions and product distribution opportunities of the future and Express growth will be dynamically linked to this phenomenon.

On bottlenecks:
The express industry is currently witnessing more than 30 per cent growth. With increasing transactions on the net, this growth is expected to increase susbstantially. However, it will take time. There are a lot of issues - infrastructure, regulation and fraud prevention, which have to be built into the system before shopping on the net becomes popular. The actual infrastructure to support fast communication and profile of customers who will actually shop on the net needs to be examined.

This will take time and require lot of aggressive marketing by the portals and e-shops. The current situation in India is very similar to what existed in the west some time back.

This will soon change. Internet connectivity through cable networks will happen and almost every other household today has a cable connection. Thus, physical infrastructure will allow easier browsing and more online users. There are predictions that the business on the net will be around Rs. 10,000 crore by 2002 in India.