News Release No. 07-002
U.S. POSTAL SERVICE: ‘INTELLIGENT MAIL’ FULLY OPERATIONAL BY 2009
Advanced Technology to Revolutionize Business Mail
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Postal Service® today presented its new vision to revolutionize business mail by using standardized intelligent barcodes, continuous mail tracking, and real-time feedback to business customers. These services, referred to as Intelligent Mail®, will be fully operational for all commercial mailers by 2009.
“Intelligent Mail is like having a GPS system for mail,” said Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer John E. Potter during the January Board of Governors meeting where the vision was presented.
Intelligent Mail
The centerpiece of the technology is one standardized intelligent barcode used on each piece of mail (letters and large envelopes known as “flats”) as well as each mail container. As these travel through the postal network, and are scanned at key points, the technology enables business customers to ”see” their mail at every step — from arrival at the postal facility to processing to transportation to delivery.
The Intelligent Mail process is fully automated. Customers provide advance notification of each shipment electronically, enabling the Postal Service to better match appropriate resources. Verification — checking address quality, pre-sorting accuracy, and postage — also is automated instead of performed manually.
This sophisticated system enables real-time data to be captured and communicated – identifying problems such as bad addresses and improper pre-sort and feeding the information back to the mailers for correction.
“Constant feedback is what really differentiates Intelligent Mail from our current process,” said Potter. “This increases the overall value of mail as a business communications medium.”
The new system also provides real-time data to improve service measurement, enabling the Postal Service to pinpoint problems immediately, rather than receive evaluations from outside sources after the fact.
Customer Benefits
Intelligent Mail enables business customers to better plan promotions and payments.
- Increases ability to track mail.
- Saves time through automated acceptance and verification.
- Enables electronic postage payment and around-the-clock access to account.
- Allows businesses to compare printer services.
- Adds more envelope space for valuable marketing messages.
- Provides real-time feedback on mail quality.
The full suite of products that currently encompass Intelligent Mail are being pilot tested by three large businesses and results are promising. One large mailer improved its “scan rate” (automated reading) to 99 percent, ensuring 140,000 pieces a day were processed by postal equipment instead of manually.
Everybody Wins
With Intelligent Mail the entire mailing process is seamless, transparent and efficient. Advanced planning, increased communication through “e-dialogue,” trouble-shooting, and better use of technology provides benefits to both the Postal Service and the business community.
“Intelligent Mail is the smart way for customers to do business,” said Potter. “Our vision is becoming a reality and we’re looking forward to having everyone on board by 2009.”
Since 1775, the United States Postal Service and its predecessor, the Post Office Department, have connected friends, families, neighbors and businesses by mail. An independent federal agency that visits more than 146 million homes and businesses every day, the Postal Service is the only service provider delivering to every address in the nation. It receives no taxpayer dollars for routine operations, but derives its operating revenues solely from the sale of postage, products and services. With annual revenues of $72 billion, it is the world’s leading provider of mailing and delivery services, offering some of the most affordable postage rates in the world. The U.S. Postal Service delivers more than 46 percent of the world’s mail volume—some 213 billion letters, advertisements, periodicals and packages a year—and serves 10 million customers each day at its 37,000 retail locations nationwide.