Royal Mail buy a billion elastic bands

[resperin]

A billion elastic bands equates nearly to one for every address in the country for each week of the year.
There's no way that we are dropping or breaking that quantity so Royal Mail must be stockpiling them ready for TNT to use in years to come.

i sometimes have a trail from the stock cabinet to my bay of elastic bands, but thats because i try and get loads in one go. admitebly alot of useable elastic bands do go in a bin for no reason, on the bases that theres no enforcement of looking after stock and stuff. i may drop loads on the floor, but they'll get mixed up with the old ones so i let the cleaner get rid of them. best thing is if they gave us proper stronger elastic bands which they're to tie up the packets with - they never seem to break, and because of that i look after them

[Lounge Lizard]

A billion elastic bands equates nearly to one for every address in the country for each week of the year.
There's no way that we are dropping or breaking that quantity so Royal Mail must be stockpiling them ready for TNT to use in years to come.

Wrong colour!!!!! They will need to be orange Remember the future is bright, it's orange!!!!!!

But red fades to orange.

[DGP1]

A billion elastic bands equates nearly to one for every address in the country for each week of the year.
There's no way that we are dropping or breaking that quantity so Royal Mail must be stockpiling them ready for TNT to use in years to come.

Wrong colour!!!!! They will need to be orange Remember the future is bright, it's orange!!!!!!

But red fades to orange.

30% at a time

[BELIAL]

Tnt directors would need their heads tested if they came within a million miles of RM.If I was a shareholder I'd be jumping ship at the mere sugestion

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Letter: Your View - We Must Stretch To Better Bands

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/comment/yo ... -21183541/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Comment Of The Day

THE issue of the Royal Mail having to buy a billion elastic bands a year because posties drop them is petty.

I've been a postie for nearly 10 years and we work hard to get the job done, often coming in an hour early without claiming overtime.

Is that good or bad for the taxpayer?

Elastic bands were strong when I first started and lasted a long time.

Now they snap after one day.

The real issue is that buying cheap and nasty elastic bands is more expensive for the taxpayer.

Mr X, by email

[brothermagrew]

Thousands of delivery posties everyday, pick up a handful of bands and say, (BAC) BANDS ARE CRAP. Had to be said, or I'm I over stretching things?

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Thousands of delivery posties everyday, pick up a handful of bands and say, (BAC) BANDS ARE CRAP. Had to be said, or I'm I over stretching things?

............. and the pun of the day award goes to

[slave]

Always pop mine in my pocket or bag - never drop them delibrately (the odd one may fall out now and then though)
Try to reuse bands, usually works a few times before they snap, although some snap after a single use.. When they look used I tend to double up on some bundles, just to be sure as if it doesn't snap onto my arm it will in the bag

Had some time off a bit back and when I got back on delivery I thought the red carpet had been laid out for me, closer inspection revealed whoever was covering the duty (mixture of people I believe) had thrown bands all over the place...

[saintsnut]

Wrong colour!!!!! They will need to be orange Remember the future is bright, it's orange!!!!!!

They exist

Now i take my hat off to you. I laughed that much my head nearly fell off. Just pure quality. But on a serious note are they for those who have a rubber fetish(sorry) allergy??????

[DGP1]

or

[resperin]

if i could wear that i wouldnt mind tnt taking over! o/j

http://www.play.com/Gadgets/Gadgets/4-/ ... oduct.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[TrueBlueTerrier]

if i could wear that i wouldnt mind tnt taking over! o/j

http://www.play.com/Gadgets/Gadgets/4-/ ... oduct.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Are you sure you put that post in the right message board

[uprising95]

where did them big brown ones go

im going to get some industrial ones soon
so they last longer or ratchet straps

its not a bad thing them being on the floor as the other day i didnt no were i was going so i followed the bands

[johnsouthwales]

ever thought of the worker who makes elastic bands?


Before the rubber band-making process can begin, heres a quick fact on where the rubber comes from. Rubber grows on plantations in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the west coast of Africa. Every other day, a 2mm swath is shaved in the bark of mature rubber trees (called Hevea Brasiliensis). Rubber sap slowly drips into a cup, along with a white sap known as latex. The sap is collected, coagulated, dried, and pressed into sheets and blocks of rubber, which is then used to make tires, hoses, molding, and, of course, rubber bands!

Step 1: The rubber is formulated. Combining the latex (except in latex-free applications) plus other additives achieves specific qualities for the end compound. Compounds vary, according to the desired properties for the rubber bands.


Step 2: The rubber compound is processed through a machine called an "extruder" to form it into tube shape. It's very similar to the way that manicotti noodles or other "hollow" pastas are made... only the end result is a lot chewier!


Step 3: A round pipe or "mandrel" is placed into a length of the extruded tubing, and then it is subjected to heat in a pressurized steam autoclave. This pipe forms the round shape of the rubber band, and the heating process is referred to as "vulcanization." Vulcanization causes a complex chemical change to occur in the rubber. But in layman's terms, vulcanizing gives rubber its elasticity and other desirable properties so that it's useful.


Step 4: The rubber sleeves are removed from the mandrel, and the vulcanized tubing is cut into "rings" using a high-speed cutter. These rings are "rubber bands."


Step 5: The rubber bands are thoroughly washed and dried to remove chemicals used in the processing steps above. After quality inspection, rubber bands are packed into bags or boxes for distribution. Today, many rubber bands are also imprinted or receive other "secondary" operations to improve their utility.

probably they're on piece-work.... tut

[Stormproof]

They should sack all the 'quality inspectors', nearly every band i've used this week(all new) have snapped and RM should supply decent tools for the job instead of buying the cheapest cr@p they can get their hands on.