Hybrid Mail isn’t a new phenomenon, the concept has actually been functional for a number of years now. Perhaps surprisingly however, not everyone outside of the mailing industry is familiar with it.
Simply put, Hybrid Mail is an online postage system that allows you to send letters and business mail via the internet without physically touching a piece of paper or an envelope! As long as you have an internet connection, you can send your pre-merged or merged files to print via a virtual print driver, which then sends the documents to your partnered hybrid mail supplier for them to print, enclose and despatch. No more stocks of paper or envelopes, no more ordering toner for your print runs and most importantly, no more stuffing envelopes by hand!
In addition to the huge increase in productivity, Hybrid Mail is often vastly cheaper than the existing mailing rates most businesses are paying. The entire process from print to enclosing and then post is cheaper than the cost of a 2nd class stamp or franking machine, just 58p per item (UK).
Given that Hybrid Mail has revolutionised the way many businesses in the UK handle their mailing processes, we’ve taken a look at some other Hybrid’s that have taken the world by storm, just because!
The Hybrid Vehicle
A hybrid vehicle uses two or more distinct types of power, such as an internal combustion engine to drive an electric generator that powers an electric motor.
The basic principle with hybrid vehicles is that they provide a much better energy and fuel efficiency than their petrol or diesel fuelled counterparts.
Staring with the Toyota Prius in the late 90’s, the hybrid motor vehicle industry has come a long way since. Whilst the Toyota Prius remains a hugely popular model for the brand, popular with Uber drivers and environmentally conscious consumers alike, brands like BMW, Lexus, Mercedes and Porsche have pushed the hybrid vehicle phenomenon to new heights at the top end of the consumer market.
The Hybrid Robot
Using rat muscle tissue in robotics sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie doesn’t it? As far-fetched as it sounds however, scientists in Japan have created a bio-hybrid design able to simulate the look and movements of a human finger.
The author of the study at the University of Tokyo, Shoji Takeuchi ,said: “
“If we can combine more of these muscles into a single device, we should be able to reproduce the complex muscular interplay that allows hands, arms, and other parts of the body to function,”
Is this a step towards muscle driven robots becoming the future of prosthetics?
Hybrid Medicines
Hybrid medicines are medicines whose authorisation depends partly on the results of tests on the reference medicine and partly on new data from clinical trials.
This happens when a manufacturer develops a generic medicine that is based on a reference medicine, but has a different strength, a different route of administration or a slightly different indication from the reference medicine.
According to the World Health Organisation, a hybrid combination of artemisinin and another drug (ACT) is presently the best malaria treatment as recommended by the WHO.
As with all clinical trials and the healthcare industry as a whole, there’s a long way to go for many treatments but the advances in hybrid therapies and medicines is encouraging.
The Wholphin
A fun one to end on, the most recent hybrid species discovered just last week in Hawaii. The result of inter-species mating between a melon headed whale and a rough toothed dolphin is now scientifically known as a Steno bredanensis.
Rough estimates put planet Earth at 4.543 billion years old, so the discovery of a previously unidentified hybrid species in 2018 is both exciting and thought provoking!
A look at some of the advances in hybrid technology over the years gives us huge encouragement for the future. Who knows what further discoveries will be made by analysing the old and combining with new technologies and techniques.
Herald Chase has successfully implemented our Hybrid Mail software mailit.direct in businesses and organisations across many sectors. For one client in particular, we were able to save 60% on the existing costs they were paying for their business mail items. Is it time for you to embrace hybrid technology too?
Thanks for taking the time to read this blog piece on Hybrid Mail, if you need any further info or require a demonstration, feel free to contact us on our office number: 0118 474 888 or alternatively, email us at enquiries@heraldchase.com
