Mailers' Technical Advisory Committee General Session September 12, 1996 Minutes The meeting was called to order on Thursday, September 12, 1996, by Pat McGee. He welcomed members and guests and introduced Vice President of Operations Support Allen Kane to discuss the fall holiday mailing season. Mr. Kane indicated that this year's fall holiday season would operate under the same basic framework as the previous two years, as those had worked well. However, some adjustments have to be made due to the reclass changes to the network. He discussed some trends in reclass indicators: (1) an increase in number of vans is due to trays with light loads; (2) an increase in delayed vans at BMCs from 2 or 3 percent to 8 percent; (3) sack sorter capacity appears not to be a problem; (4) an increase in cross-dock pallets; (5) a growth in pre-bar code mail volume, which provides better service and efficiency; (6) a trend toward decreased work hours and opening unit operations costs, in part due to increased automation of volume; (7) a slight decrease in drop ship vans at BMCs and SCFs; and (8) inventory of equipment appears steady and, therefore, not a concern. Mr. Kane then discussed pending issues. One pending issue is exceptions. The number of exceptions has come down; however, remaining exceptions create dual networks, which has a cost impact. He also emphasized that tray problems, such as trays not strapped properly and improper labeling, have a huge impact on bulk mail centers. Lastly, he cited pallet problems, similar to tray problems. Moving into the fall mailing season necessitates adjustments in BMCs. Mr. Kane said that in the last two weeks an analysis of every BMC has been done and an alternate game plan put together to offset some of the trends seen in reclass. Next, Mr. Kane introduced John Kelly to discuss the New York Key Program. Mr. Kelly discussed some of the issues involved in implementing the New York Key Program. Although only approximately 60 percent of the necessary address information has been collected, implementation is expected to start in October with a Federal Register notice and conversion of lists in March, with hopefully an effective date of June 1998. He added that although the key system will hopefully increase mail efficiency in New York, the decision to transport to other urban areas will have to be made individually. Mr. Kelly then responded to questions. Regarding the June 1998 effective date, Mr. Kelly said that the qualification will be the lowest step of sort; building discount will no longer qualify. He added that the cost to the mailer would depend on how their file is set up. As far as impact on package delivery, the carriers would know who is in each apartment, as each receptacle would have its own number. This number would not be a ZIP+4 number, but a unique identifier for a particular receptacle, and would be printed on the address line. He emphasized that apartment numbers in New York City do not work at present. Eventually the key number will be a permanent part of the address base. Advance notification of the key number to those changing address is intended. Mr. Kelly clarified that the key system currently is intended for Manhattan, although it may be expanded the other boroughs on a more limited basis. Next, Mr. McGee introduced Kenneth Hunter, Chief Postal Inspector of the Postal Service, to discuss Inspection Service Customer Initiatives. Mr. Hunter focused on three initiatives: (1) credit card fraud; (2) rebate fraud; and, (3) mail order fraud. Mr. Hunter introduced Ricky Dodd to discuss credit card fraud. Mr. Dodd outlined the Non-Received Issued (NRI) mail theft and fraud loss prevention initiative, in partnership with other credit card industry members, which focused on proactive prevention measures. He specified five working groups which work together to facilitate communications and develop solutions to credit card fraud: (1) NRI Loss Reporting Group; (2) Department of Justice Liaison Group; (3) Pre-Sort Mail Security; (4) Check Fraud; and (5) Account/Identity Takeover. Additional communication efforts include a credit card newsletter, designated division credit card coordinators, and the International Association of Credit Card Investigators (IACCI) electronic network to share information. Mr. Dodd outlined some successes of the NRI mail theft and fraud loss prevention initiative, which has seen a tremendous drop in NRI losses. He spoke about the development of airport mail security reviews, better use of Express Mail drop ship, and the development of the application fraud reference guide, which will be available soon. These application fraud reference guides will be sent to those who requested one at the meeting. Since 1992, fraud losses, due to credit cards stolen from the mails, have decreased by about half. Mr. Hunter added that the common database helps identify trends in fraud and theft, and that the fraud application guide can be useful in many areas of fraud, not just credit card fraud. Next, he introduced Rick Bowdren to speak about rebate fraud. Mr. Bowdren gave a brief overview of rebate fraud, its causes, and effects. He described the rebate Group task force which was formed to address the causes of rebate fraud: the lack of uniformity in the design, development, processing and handling, and the need for more fraud prevention. A handbook was created and published with a collaboration of best business practices. Copies may be obtained by contacting Mr. Bowdren at (513) 684-8000. The task force determined that clear and concise industry guidelines governing mail-in offer development and an information collection process were needed. The task force recommended a series of progressive steps to combat rebate fraud: (1) industry pre/post promotion review of data collection; (2) voluntary discontinuance; (3) administrative sanctions against abusers; and (4) law enforcement action. Mr. Hunter emphasized the necessity for cooperation in the effort to fight fraud. Next, he introduced Chuck Wilson to discuss the newest initiative, the Confidence in the Mails or the Mail Order Industry Initiative. Mr. Wilson stated the general objectives of the Mail Order Industry Initiative: to reduce non-receipt dollar losses and fraud dollar losses. He outlined several strategies: (1) the attractive loss parcel reporting system for collection and analysis of loss information, with a pilot project with Fingerhut Corporation; (2) the implementation of prevention strategies; (3) investigation of losses; and (4) looking at issues from a systematic standpoint as opposed to individual problems. He added that the working group would be meeting on September 16 and 17. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Wilson, Detroit Division, at (313) 226-8033. Mr. Hunter then responded to questions. Regarding postage meter fraud, he stated that over 20 different methods of cheating the Postal Service have been identified in the last three years, such as counterfeiting and copying, and he believes that is just the tip of the iceberg. He cited new sophisticated detection tools and statistical analysis to help in prevention efforts. With regard to commercial mail receiving agents such as Mailboxes, Etc., Mr. Hunter affirmed that many criminals have seized upon the existence of such addresses to conduct fraud. The Inspection Service will be working closely with the CMRA industry to reduce the problem. Mr. Hunter reiterated that first and foremost, efforts are to be proactive to prevent fraud. Yvonne Reigle thanked the participants and introduced the 1997- 1998 leadership team for subcommittees: (1) Mury Salls, First-Class/Expedited Mail; (2) Howard Schwartz, Periodicals; (3) Dan Minnick, Standard Mail; (4) Lloyd Karls, Parcels; (5) Peter Moore, Addressing & ZIP+4; (6) Joe Lubenow, Engineering & Technology/Transportation. Chris Rebello added the importance of finding a solution to the problem of tray labels falling off. Before adjourning the meeting at 11:02 a.m., Ms. Reigle stated that the cut-off for new issues for agenda items for the December MTAC meeting is November 8. Parcels Meeting September 11, 1996 Ed Meszaros, Industry Chair Richard Sherrill, Postal Chair 1. Reclassification Update: Lloyd Karls stated that there is data being collected in the field to help determine reclass positions. There will be a meeting in early to mid-October to present these findings. Industry will then report to the USPS their feedback. The test year for reclass has not been determined. The issue of whether this is reclass or a revenue case was discussed. Reclass should be to improve service and bring in new products. The effect of the LPSS was discussed. 2. Minutes of the Parcel Working Group: This was given by Phil Parizino. He discussed: The Greensboro MTAC meeting minutes Swiss Colony Video LPSS 3. Bulk Insurance: A presentation was given by Jon Wittnebel. (attached) 4. Changes in Collection Procedures: (attached) A discussion on these changes brought out the issue of several industry spokespersons stated that they were getting APO and FPO parcels returned. When they made inquiries into this they seemed to get different messages from the field and headquarters. What is the current policy? This is described in the attached. 5. Track and Trace: Julie Rios discussed the following: - TNT is on schedule for the BOG meeting - BMCs are being wired to transmit TNT data for machineable parcels - Near-real time scanning is being expanded to 500 carriers in the Tampa test - The scanning devices being planned will have "panic" buttons and other functions other than just TNT. - There is a Priority Mail test at the end of October. This will include a peel-off label. - Julie is looking for businesses that mail +500 Priority Mail daily for the test. - May 98 is the goal for full deployment of all products for TNT. Standard Mail Subcommittee Meeting September 11, 1996 Industry Chair: Daniel J. Minnick Postal Chair: Tim Reeter Replacement of EX3C With ADVANCE In response to questions raised during the day, Pat McGee provided explanation of the Postal Service's position regarding the announced discontinuance of EX3C and replacement by ADVANCE. Mr. McGee offered that the USPS no longer felt that the information provided by EX3C and EX2C was not actionable and, therefore, represented about $6 million of incurred costs with no appreciable benefit. He further explained that ADVANCE could provide delivery information that was a representation of the mailing delivery to be supported with periodic EX3C verification. He indicated that the Postal Service did not see any value in having aggregate delivery information for Standard Mail. Several in the audience asked about the Postal decision including: - if aggregate results were not of interest, why preserve the First-Class program (EXFC)? - industry testing had shown there were sharp discrepancies between EX3C and ADVANCE. - how would ADVANCE represent a mailing when less than half the involved offices reported? - how ADVANCE could be valuable since it did not measure "to the door"? - if, as stated, $2 million for 2C subscriptions, then was the probable $2 million net for 3C too much for monitoring performance for over 65 billion pieces of mail? Mr. Minnick solicited comments from interested parties after the session. Standard Mail Focus Groups - Report Ruthie Ewers shared how communications and product exposure were greatly enhanced by Focus Groups. As Southeast/Southwest Industry Chair, Ms. Ewers enthusiastically expressed her personal commitment and desire for continuing industry and Postal support for Focus Groups as the singular most important means of getting the word to the masses. She did raise an issue that had come from her Focus Group: why is the "tap test" pertinent when a legitimate barcode has been reapplied to the face of the window envelope? This was acknowledged as over-zealous behavior by the involved Postal Acceptance employees and would be resolved immediately. Many thanks to Ruthie for her dynamic, hard-hitting and humorous remarks. Return Rates for Third-Class Mail Pieces Ashley Lyons sent a note stating that no new action since his last report. Problem Created by Having Less than 200 Non-Barcode Pieces Per Destination Entry Point Cheryl Beller provided a solution for the inefficiency that Classification Reform's creation of essentially three subclasses had fostered within segmentation for Destination Entry. Ms. Beller said that a notice would be published indicating that the eligibility minimum (such as 200) would be applied per "job" as long as all of the "job" was entered at one physical location. This should essentially resolve the issue. Ms. Beller also answered two implementation issues: - Would "fletter" rules relax so more than 10% no-CR/No-barcode could be in a palletized mailing? - Would MxBMC pallet rules relax so more than 10% could exist in a mailing? Ms. Beller said that neither of those scenarios were being considered for change. Update On Proposed "Return to Current Resident" Service Rocky Matthews reported that it was technically feasible to place "mailer criteria" within the ACS system to initiate a return of the mailpiece to the "current resident" after the change-of- address processing had been completed. However, the existing ACS system is maxed-out. Therefore, this process could not be implemented until at least early `98. However, Mr. Matthews is initiating discussions to get procedure, pricing and protocol in place by the technical availability date. Possible New Service - Notification of Delivery Duplicates Rocky Matthews also responded to a suggested new service that would enable carriers to identify and communicate the existence of a duplicate mailpiece within a specific days mail. Mr. Matthews was concerned as to the practicality of a venture. With automation processing more and more mail directly into delivery sequence, the carrier is denied the opportunity to identify duplicates without bringing them back from the street. What is a duplicate; how would a carrier distinguish between a mailpiece where the same name is a duplicate versus where the mailer intentionally put two pieces into that address on the same day? Mr. Minnick solicited participation in a Task Group for this issue, with Chris Rebello as Leader. You may contact Mr. Rebello at 719-531-2188, or Mr. Minnick at 847-517-5683. CustomerPerfect! - Overview Bob Scanlon presented an overview of the Postal Service's new process quality program. Based upon the criteria used to judge for the Baldrige Award, CustomerPerfect! is a continuous cycle of needs identifications, goal setting and review which through time closely ties process performance to customer needs. Classification Reform Implementation Many thanks to Charley Howard, Dan Goodkind, and the Standard Mail Subcommittee for their insight and diligence in exposing and educating the Postal Service to the serious impact created by the elimination of the Three-Digit Carrier Route Trays. That traying level has been reinstated. However, the change did not include the Three-Digit Carrier Route sacks. Joe Schick described two scenarios where over a thousand "unnecessary" sacks were created in a single string of one mailing. This could mean nearly 100,000 "air" sacks per week out of one of his company's facilities each week. Mr. Minnick asked that more data be collected so that full analysis can be made at the December MTAC meeting. ______________________________ Daniel J. Minnick Industry Chair Addressing and ZIP+4 Subcommittee September 11, 1996 Three-Digit ZIP Changes In Northern Virginia Richard Strasser, District Manager for Northern Virginia began the meeting. He described the characteristics of his district which led to the need for a three-digit realignment to improve delivery service. Dick outlined the process by which customers in the area were notified of the new information. He added that the implementation appeared to be moving smoothly. He also asked for the help of the membership. The new ZIP Code information was announced in January and appeared in the June and July Address Information System City State file. While mailers are gradually making the conversion to the new ZIP Codes, the district has received some complaints from residents who are attempting to supply address information over the phone either when ordering new goods and services or making corrections to an existing record. It appears that some on-line verification systems have not been updated with the new ZIP Code information. Consequently, the caller is being told that the ZIP Code information they are supplying is invalid, that they must be mistaken about the ZIP Code they are attempting to furnish and that the Postal Service "says" that the ZIP Codes are incorrect. Dick asked that the members spread the word about the ZIP Code changes with their members and ask them to ensure that all systems are updated with the new ZIP Code data. Ancillary Service Endorsements Rocky Matthews announced that the Federal Register on new service endorsements would be published this month. He asked that the members take note and provide comments during the 30 day comment period. He anticipates an implementation date of January 1997, with a dual system operating for a year to allow mailers stock to become depleted. Peter Moore also encouraged positive comments to be supplied when the Federal Register notice is published. Impact of Classification Reform on Small Mailers Peter then described some of the experiences which he had had subsequent to Classification Reform. He received many calls from smaller volume mailers who were very uncertain about what to do under Classification Reform. He described a need to have something for those customers which would tell them what to do and how to do it. Several members also related similar stories and most cited the Postal Business Center as an excellent resource for those mailers. Peter commended the recent Postal Bulletin article which provided a lot more information about PAVE certified software, such as the platform used, price ranges, etc. Hank Cleffi asked the group about the types of tools that could be provided to mailers. One suggestion was to provide the Business Mail Entry personnel and other delivery unit staffs who accept mailings with information on the Postal Business Centers and instructions to direct customers to that group. Another suggestion was that the various alternatives be outlined in greater detail, using actual cases perhaps, so mailers could make more informed decisions. The presence of local service providers should be made more widely available. Others called for economic models to be developed to assist mailers in making the right decision for their business. Others suggested that the continuing change in technology may make mailers more able as time goes on. The case studies or economic models will need to be regularly updated as a result . Peter asked for volunteers to help develop some additional suggestions or resources. Five-Digit Scheme Sort Ralph Moden announced that the 5 digit scheme option will become available in October. 5 digit scheme is an optional sorting procedure for automation letters which allow mailers to group together 5 digit ZIP Codes which the Postal Service performs the final sortation on a single piece of equipment at the same time. Similar to the 3 digit scheme, these ZIP Codes may be combined to meet the 150 piece requirement for tray preparation and rate eligibility. New schemes will be issued every other month and will be effective or mailings presented to the Postal Service in a three month period following the release of the scheme information. Further information is available through a Federal Register notice and Postal Bulletin article. Manual Assignment of Carrier Route Codes Cheryl Beller announced a clarification of the policy for small volume mailers at Enhanced Carrier Route Basic and Periodicals Basic rates. Those customers who have used hard copy Carrier Route Information System (CRIS) products in the past to assign carrier route codes manually will continue their eligibility for carrier route rates as long as the carrier route codes are updated within 90 days of the date of mailing using the current hard copy CRIS available. Any sequence requirements which apply to rate categories must also be met within 90 days of the date of mailing using the available sequencing options. ZIP+4 Coding At Colleges And Universities Thom Roylance reported on a meeting held in conjunction with the Postal Forum. The meeting was held at the behest of Jim Pehta. A joint task force was assembled to address the problems surrounding college and university addresses. The Postal Service, colleges and universities, educational list mailers/compilers and software vendors were all represented. Agreement was reached that a comprehensive guide to address systems for colleges and universities needs to be developed. University officials also need to understand the potential benefits that a comprehensive addressing system can provide to the university. Thom reminded the members that it is likely they are unable to mail at discount rates to those institutions because of the difficulty in matching addresses. Software developers have agreed to evaluate the unique conditions that these addresses may pose with an eye to improving coding rates. Thom also expressed concerns about his industry's ability to meet the Move Update requirement. Implementation Of New Addressing Requirements Joe Lubenow reported on the requirements for non-profit implementation. On October 6, the percentage requirements for barcoded non-profit Periodicals and Standard A mail, sequence requirements in Enhanced Carrier Route, Five Digit ZIP Code verification, update carrier route codes within 90 days of the date of mailing, update barcodes within 6 months of the date of mailing and PAVE or standard documentation requirements will be implemented. January 1, 1997, PAVE or standard documentation, 100% barcoding for Periodicals and barcoded label requirements will be implemented. On March 1, the requirements for automation compatible reply mail enclosures will be implemented. Addressing Work Group Report Bob O'Brien reported on the Addressing Work Group's meeting. One of the barriers to 100% barcoding is that the customer has supplied a street address when they receive mail through a post office box. This exists under two circumstances: when there is no delivery except through post office boxes and, in some locations, when the customer resides within 1/4 mile of the post office and rural route delivery exists beyond the 1/4 mile radius of the post office. A list of ZIP Codes where the 1/4 mile condition exists will be compiled. Some time was spent on the "default" code issue, but since it was a part of the main committee agenda, that is covered later. The Postal Service has gathered the data on ZIP Codes where address conversions have happened more than 3 years ago and there is no way to establish a link between old and new address. The list of ZIP Codes will be posted on RIBBS concurrent with a Postal Bulletin article on the proper handling of mail in areas where address conversions have occurred. The other primary topic of the Addressing Work Group was the Automated Barcode Evaluation (ABE) tool which has been deployed nationwide. ABE is designed to be an objective tool which will evaluate the quality of barcodes on letters. It will replace the subjective tests which had previously been performed by postal employees. He added that Anita Bizzotto had apologized to the group for the way initial implementation had occurred, as the field was not adequately briefed on the way ABE was to be used. Bob outlined the process of ABE implementation. A burn-in phase will occur from September 14 through October 13. During this time, the Postal Service will be sure BME employees know how to use the equipment, that some mechanical problems which have been identified are corrected, that the tolerance limits on the barcode reader are appropriate and that an SOP is issued to cover how ABE is to be used in the acceptance process. During Phase 1 (October 14-November 17), mailings will be tested and qualified using ABE. During Phase 1, if 85% of the barcodes in the mailing are within the tolerance limits, the mailing will be accepted. If less than 70% of the barcodes are within tolerance, non-automation rates will be applied to the mailing. For mailings between 70% and 85%, a financial penalty will be applied to the postage paid which equals the percentage of barcodes out of tolerance. During Phase 2 (November 18-December 31), the percentage correct needed to gain access to automation rates is raised to 90%. Effective January 1, 1997, the percentage requirement is raised to 95%. Bob added that a number of questions had been raised about specific conditions or procedures and Anita assured the group that these would be answered or explained in the SOP which is still being finalized. Members expressed concerns about the calibrations and how frequently the machines would be reset, how to handle failures and if staffing in BMEUs was sufficient to run the process. Bob reiterated that the SOP had not been completed and that their concerns would be addressed. Bob also stated that the reverse address look-up process would be in operation but would not impact acceptance except in the case of gross errors, such as all the same numbers in the ZIP+4 code, etc. The Impact Of The Use Of Default ZIP+4 Codes On LOT And DPBC Peter then framed the questions concerning default codes. The Postal Service is seeking to automate the sequencing of mail in high-rise buildings. To do this, two steps must be accomplished. The calculation of barcode information must be altered to allow the creation of unique delivery point codes using secondary information. Once that has been accomplished, it will become necessary for addresses to have secondary information and the finest depth of ZIP+4 code if the Postal Service will be able to delivery point sequence the mail. In places where the finest depth of code is required to allow delivery point sequencing of mail in buildings, the Postal Service would limit access to barcoded discounts to those addresses on mailpieces which have the finest depth of code. Addresses which have received the "default" ZIP+4 code for the building would no longer be eligible for the rates. There is clearly an operational necessity in these cases to get the mail properly addressed with complete information. Paul Bakshi added that there are still some internal concerns which need to be resolved before we can move forward. He also stated that the Postal Service will be able to identify on a building-by-building case where the most exact delivery point information will be needed. Once the list of buildings has been developed, a list of the "default" codes associated with those buildings will be developed. The Postal Service will work with the industry to determine what the impact of restricting the access to rates for the addresses matching those ZIP+4 codes will be. Without the list to evaluate, it is difficult to assess the impact of the proposal. However, it should be noted the access to automation rates will not be restricted for all addresses matching to building default ZIP+4 codes, just in some cases where the Postal Service is using automation to delivery point sequence mail within buildings. The list of impacted ZIP+4 codes will not be available for a couple months. Peter added that the size and the scope of the impact will vary based on the characteristics of each list. One member offered that there might be an opportunity to help mailers with lists with significant impact if other lists with similar characteristics have a lesser impact. These mailers could be used as a resource to provide tips or ideas on list management to help others improve address quality. Peter also raised concerns about the Postal Service limiting access to carrier route rates for addresses whose ZIP+4 codes do not appear in the Line of Travel product. Currently, these addresses are placed at the beginning of the route. Address Coding/Business Center Group Peter concluded by thanking Doug Schmidt and the members of the Ad Hoc Address Coding/Business Center group for their work. The group has disbanded. First-Class / Expedited Mail Subcommittee Meeting Minutes September 11, 1996 1. EXFC Quarterly Update - The following data represented the national performance during Postal Quarter III which began on March 2, 1996 and ended May 24, 1996. First-Class Mail on-time performance for Quarter III showed improvement in the overnight and two-day categories compared to Quarter III of last year while three-day service remained unchanged. On-time performance was 90 percent for overnight committed mail, 80 percent for two-day committed mail, and 82 percent for three-day mail. Quarter III's overnight performance set a new benchmark with the best performance ever achieved in this category. The trend line for the performance of all three categories continues to show improvement with the new high reached by overnight and two-day time on-time delivery performance tying the existing all-time high score. Copies of the data slides are attached. 2. Move Update Requirements for New Customers vs. Purchased/Rented Lists - Two approaches will be used for this item. In the case of new customers initiating the request to change an address, the mailer will continue to be eligible for a discount until the next cycle change. This assumes that the mailer already has an established cycle. Any other names which originate from a source other than the actual customer will receive discounts only if documentation is provided by the address source that the address had already been passed through the moved update. 3. Status of other Move Update Options - A brief presentation was made on the options currently being considered for implementation. Details of these will be provided as soon as they are finalized. 4. Mail Acceptance Time Moved Up - It was noted that this is normally a local issue which should be handled through the standard procedures established for problem solving by the Postal Service. The mailers are asked to initially discuss the issue with the Plants that are effected by the change in acceptance. It the problem can not be resolved, then the mailers may go to the appropriate Area Operations Center and then to the Operations Center in Headquarters. This can be done by going through the National Account Manager or Account Representative who can either contact the Operations Center for the mailer or give the mailer the telephone number so that the can contact the Operations Center directly. 5. Mail Acceptance Problems with the Customer Aapplied (MLOCR) 5-Digit Bar Code - The Postal Service will be issuing changes in the start location of 5-digit customer applied barcodes in the September 26th Postal Bulletin with an effective date of October 1. The new proposals will allow mailers to print the 5-digit barcode between 4-1/4 to 2-3/8 inches from the right edge of the mail piece. The Postal Service still will prefer that the leftmost bar of the 5-digit barcode be located between 4-1/4 and 4-1/8 inches from the right edge. Thus, this relaxed requirement of allowing the 5-digit barcode to be located within a 1-7/8 inch length results in tolerance of at least 1/4 inch rather than the present 1/8 inch. 6. New Customer Service Strategy - The Postal Service is in the process of establishing its new Business Customer Care Network based on the goal of establishing a world class care system for its business customers. The goal of this program is to establish a world class system which can respond to the needs of its customers proactively; identify and solve systemic problems; keep its management informed of problems; establish cross-functional support systems for resolving problems; and becoming technically superior in all areas that it does business. The Business Customer Care Network will be designed to have three levels of Operations Centers, Headquarters, 10 Area Offices and the 85 Business Centers. The Headquarters Operations Center will handle selected National Accounts; the 10 Area Operations Centers will be responsible for National Accounts and selected Premier Accounts; and the 85 Business Centers will handle the Premier Accounts, Major Accounts and Principal Accounts. The major objective is to be sure that all business mailers will receive excellent service from the Postal Service, thus increasing customer satisfaction in dealing with the Postal Service. A copy of the presentation overheads is attached. Mury Salls Chairman MTAC Periodicals Subcommittee SEPTEMBER 11, 1996 Charles Pace, Industry Chair Bob Kooken, Postal Chair INTRODUCTION Charles Pace opened the meeting by welcoming all participants to the MTAC Periodicals subcommittee meeting and announced that this will be his last meeting as Industry Chair and thanked everyone for their help and recognized that this group has accomplished much over the years. Charles discussed the Business and Courtesy Reply Mail design requirements, due to start January 1, 1997 which still needs additional clarification from the Postal Service prior to implementation. ADVANCE - TRACKING AND MONITORING RECENT DEVELOPMENTS INVOLVING PERIODICALS TRACKING Glen Cournoyer, Project Manager for ADVANCE, could not be in attendance and asked Bob Kooken, the Periodicals Postal Chair to give the report. Bob read Glen's report (copy attached) which included instructions for participation in the ADVANCE program. Bob also noted that anyone interested in having someone give a presentation on ADVANCE at their company, can do so by contacting the National Customer Support Center (NCSC) in Memphis (1-800-238-3150). Bob stated that the ADVANCE program technical guide has been distributed to all ADVANCE customers through the NCSC in Memphis. Bob said that the current threshold for Periodicals ADVANCE is 25 pieces per carrier route. PERIODICALS FOCUS GROUP REPORT QUARTERLY REPORT ON PERIODICALS AND RELATED ISSUES. Joyce McGarvy, Crain Communications, gave a report for Tom Tully, National Chair for the Periodicals Focus Groups, concerning the recent meeting that was held at the National Postal Forum in Washington, DC on August 26, 1996. Each postal area reported that they did not experience any service problems as a result of the recent Classification Reform. She stated that service currently seems to be very good. Joyce also announced that the Midwest/Great Lakes area Focus Group meeting will be held in conjunction with the Standard Mail Focus Group meeting on September 24 & 25, 1996 in Chicago. Joyce said that, at this meeting it will include a tour of the new Postal Processing & Distribution center as well as discussions on the upcoming fall mailing season. Anyone interested in attending a focus group meeting is asked to contact their Industry Chair in their area for an updated Focus Group calendar. A copy of the Periodicals Focus Group Industry and Postal Co-chair list is attached. POLICY, REQUIREMENTS AND METHODS (PRM) UPDATE ON AMC PROCEDURES AND OTHER ISSUES. Bill Strong, from The Strong Group reported on the PRM workgroup meeting held September 10, 1996. Joel Rosen, Postal Service AMC Specialist, spoke about the efforts being taken to complete the Air Mail Center (AMC) information guide. He said that Alice Van Gorder, is taking the lead and will have the guide placed on RIBBS. Suggestions were made to include the guide on the Postal Web page. Joel mentioned that the USPS is considering the placement of AMC information on the internet as well as RIBBS. Also discussed by Joel was a list of operational issues pertaining to the handling of periodicals between air carriers, the Postal Service and publishers. Bill Strong expressed concern with the deployment schedule for flat sorters which currently do not handle tabloid size publications as well as a implementation timeline for barcode rates for tabloids. Eugene Dunaway, AMC Specialist said that there is a machine being tested in Pallatine, IL, that will handle tabloid size publications. Bill announced that the comailing requirement (DMM Section E230.8.5) was reviewed by the USPS and that there appears to be no problem with comailing and that mailers are not being assessed the same advertising portion as the publication they are comailing with. MILITARY MAIL OPERATIONS Charles Pace introduced Joseph Eagle, Manager, Military Mail Operations from the USPS International Group. Joe gave an extensive overview (copy attached) on how mail was transported through the USPS to the Military Postal Operations throughout the world. Joe stressed that, contrary to popular belief, most letter mail is delivered to the military within 5 days and that other classes were delivered within 14 days. He did say that some dispatches are being missed by mailers which could cause delay or overlap of some publications. Joe also said that address hygiene is an area that needs attention by the Military, Industry and the USPS. He said that even though the Postal Service policy allows for forwarding civilian mail for twelve months, military mail is only forwarded for 60 days. He said that not only do mailers have to concentrate on active and inactive zipcodes, they should also delete addresses which are returned. He said that subscriptions can be extended for the issues missed, after the subscriber contacts the publisher with the proper mailing address. SIX PIECE SACKING MINIMUMS Charles Pace announced that Anita Bizzotto, Manager, Business Mail Acceptance could not be in attendance to discuss this issue. Max Heath, Landmark Community Newspapers, praised the fact that due to Anita Bizzotto's and Charlie Pace's efforts, the six piece minimum requirement has been relaxed. Sacks may now be sorted to Carrier Route, 5-digit or 3-digit with fewer than six pieces for service reasons, at the mailers discretion, and this ruling will be published in an upcoming Federal Register. If anyone wanting to start this type of sortation immediately, they must contact their Rates and Classification Service Center. Max also said that the Postal Service announced that a hard copy CRIS (letter attached) file can be used to update records for matching carrier route ID's. Signed: _______________________________ Date:_______________ Charles L. Pace Chair MAILERS' TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY/TRANSPORTATION SUBCOMMITTEE Industry Chair: Joe Lubenow Postal Chair: Becky Brentlinger Information Based Indicia - Roy Gordon: Roy Gordon of USPS provided an overview of the Information Based Indicia (IBI) Program. The Postal Service is pursuing new methods for business customers that use personal computer technology or postage meters to generate communications to apply evidence of postage. The establishment of a new form of postage indicia will enhance security of postage revenue, support value added products and services, and improve the level of detail and type of information by which USPS business and processing activities are managed. The current meter impressions, which date from 1920, will be retired within the next decade. An Information Based Indicium consists of five parts: an optional advertising art area; the town circle information; evidence of postage; device nomenclature; and, a two-dimensional barcode. Associated with IBI mail, a FIM mark is also required to assist in sorting the mail. It is not seen as a replacement for permit imprints or pre-canceled stamps, and is not planned for use on Periodicals or Standard Mail. The IBI will be generated by a Postal Security Device (PSD) and host software acting together. The PSD holds monetary registers and provides information relating to these registers to the host system. The host system generates the IBI contents based on information including the rate, date of mailing, and postage amount, and in some cases, the destination zip code. The specification includes an encrypted digital signature to protect authenticity. The proposed IBI will support the use of alternative printing technologies including standard off the shelf laser and ink jet printers using regular ink. At this time, the USPS does not plan to provide for the use of invisible or UV ink, though this issue is open for comment. The current USPS specification proposes the PDF-417 two-dimensional barcode as part of the IBI, though the Postal Service is open to consideration of alternative symbologies. Roy Gordon discussed the roles of customers, vendors and the USPS under the IBI program and explained that the roles will not change very much from the current activities involving postage meters. The vendors will supply authorized devices to the customers, who will apply the indicia to mailpieces. Customers also obtain postage refills from the vendors. The USPS issues license and audits the process. To date, the USPS has published draft IBI and PSD specifications, and is asking for industry comment through October 15, 1996. Additional documents are under development, including policy updates, a Host System specification, and an IBI Concept of Operations document. As the documents are published in the Federal Register, public meetings will be held to facilitate understanding of the program and to allow for comments. To obtain more information about the draft specifications or the public meetings, contact Terry Goss at 202-268-3757. MTAC members expressed concern about the size and appearance of the barcode, which may detract from the purpose of the mailpiece. Representatives from the envelope industry particularly questioned whether readability could be consistently assured without costly and intrusive testing and monitoring procedures. Existing stocks of materials may have to be redesigned and manufactured to different specifications. On the other hand, if readability is not consistent, this could have a negative impact on mail processing. PIEX - Rick Graff: Rick Graff reported on the new Centralized Automated Payment System (CAPS), replacing the old CTAS system, which Rosemary Hamel presented at PIEX. A recently published brochure on CAPS, which combines the twin options of a centralized trust account and a centralized debit account, can be obtained from the CAPS service center at 415-377-1334. New optional services that can be paid for through centralized accounts are: Address Element Correction (AEC), coming on line by the end of 1996; and Address Change Service (ACS) by the first quarter of 1997. Under development is a postage statement application that will be downloaded via Internet. This is a Java program, which would not just provide the correct format for the postage statement but would allow for local entry of line items and calculation of totals. The results can then be both printed out and retained as a file. This should be available on the USPS Web site next year, but will not be accessible from RIBBS. Containers and Transportation - Jim Reifenberg for Rick Kropski: Jim Reifenberg discussed the USPS reinstatement on August 23 of three-digit carrier route trays. As software is distributed and pipelines of previously prepared mail are cleared, the letter mail stream will become more efficient through the elimination of large quantities of five-digit carrier route trays with few mailpieces. Updating the status of the Drop Ship Appointment System (DSAS), there has recently been an increase of 3% in no-shows, which is being monitored. Dynamic entry was discussed and is already being utilized with no apparent difficulties. The ADVANCE mail tracking program is now linked to the DSAS system, and its use is included as a data item when appointments are made. Automated Flats: Test of Extended Sizes - Sherl Johnson: Sherl Johnson of USPS provided feedback to mailers on barcoding tests conducted since July 1 of small flats with trim sizes of 5 3/8" in length by 7 1/2" to 12" in height. Unfortunately, many of the pieces don't process well, including but not limited to those with relatively thin cover stock of over 9" in height. However, these results may not be conclusive because of the ongoing modifications to the equipment to stabilize light weight pieces and to change the timing of the photo cells to better recognize narrow pieces. More data also needs to be collected for certain sizes and types. Therefore, the USPS has decided to revamp the testing procedure, dividing the test into cells by trim size and mailpiece design type. The various cells defined in that way will be evaluated on several criteria including damage to mailpieces, effect on the automation mail stream, and whether or not additional costs are incurred to process the pieces. The design of the test allows for the possibility that some cells could succeed even if all do not. The date for concluding the test has been extended to June 10, 1997. In response to questions, she clarified that mailers should receive several months warning of any impending restriction in the sizes accepted. Any change should not affect flats that are already eligible for automation discounts, since these are not part of the test. Further questions may be directed to Sherl Johnson at 202-268-5185. Equipment Availability - Paul Seehaver: Paul Seehaver of USPS reported on Mail Transport equipment inventory status. The news was positive, inasmuch as there are no significant shortages in any category as we head in to the fall mailing season. USPS Industry Test of MAIL.DAT - Rosemary Hamel, Dan Minnick, Phil Thompson Dan Minnick introduced the other speakers, and explained that Mail.dat is a ten file database specification which represents all necessary summary information about a mailing. The specification has been published by the Graphic Communications Association and incorporated into the current product releases of major presort software vendors. Copies of the specification are available from GCA at 703-548-2867. Rosemary Hamel of USPS referred MTAC members to the Direct Link brochure published recently. The Direct Link program will use Mail.dat to simplify mail acceptance and to eliminate paper documentation, including postage statements. Electronically communicated data will be kept on-line for mailers to view and distributed to the field, allowing for easier verification and better quality control for USPS. Electronic payment options can be incorporated within the Direct Link framework. Testing of Direct Link began this summer, with hardware and software installed at Quad/Graphics for the test. She asked for additional participants for future testing, which is focused on Standard Mail (A) and Periodicals. Phil Thompson explained that Mail.dat was first used in production to get information from the list house to the mail production plant. The USPS came in sooner than expected with a positive approach, so testing on the extended uses began this summer in Sussex, WI. He said that it was necessary to make change in the data base to precisely represent what is actually going out the door. The infrastructure needed for the test included a separate USPS network, server and Oracle data base. A radio frequency (RF) connection to the work stations was also used in verification. In testing to date, only Standard Mail was involved, and more work will be needed to handle Periodicals. In discussion, Rosemary clarified that the spread of Direct Link will mean the eventual end of the current MEPPS program. Electronic Postmark - Chuck Chamberlain: Chuck Chamberlain of USPS reported on the Electronic Postmark program which was the subject of a Federal Register notice dated August 14, 1996. The national information infrastructure, he said, is not entirely electronic but also needs benefits associated with hard copy communications as well as hybrid components. For example, in hard copy mail, a postmark serves as a guarantee that what was sent is what was received. The Internet also needs to be a trustworthy communication medium, so the USPS is exploring the need for a service to guarantee intact delivery of electronic mail. Among the features of the proposed Electronic Postmarking Service are the visual display on the screen of the authentication of the communication by the Postal Service, and a warning if any tampering has been detected. The USPS is working with AT&T, Citicorp, and other companies on this initiative. In the discussion, Chuck Chamberlain commented that the USPS is also taking a look at a hybrid service combining electronic mail and hard copy delivery, with a two dimensional bar code used for authentication. With respect to the electronic postmark, pricing has not yet been determined but can be expected to compare favorably to a First-Class stamp. Proof of delivery, while not included in the current test, could be accomplished within the technical standards being utilized. # # #