FAQs

What is a “Presort Mailer”?

A “presort mailer” is a mailer that sorts its mail or has it sorted for it by postal ZIP Codes prior to presenting it to the U.S. Postal Service. A mailer earns a (worksharing) discount that reflects the reduced cost to the U.S. Postal Service of processing presorted Mail.

In the early 1990s, the U.S. Postal Service extended the worksharing concept by introducing discounts for “automated” mail. Automated mail is mail that is not only presorted by ZIP Code, but also has an eleven-digit, delivery point barcode applied to each piece of mail. The presence of an eleven-digit, delivery point barcode on a piece of mail allows the U.S. Postal Service to sequence that piece of mail for delivery on its delivery barcode sorters (“DBCSs”).

Automation mail earns larger discounts than mail that is presorted, but not barcoded. The amount of the discount depends on the “depth of the sort.” Automation mail can be sorted to any one of three levels, the 3-digit level, the 5-digit level, and carrier route level. The further down the mail processing and delivery stream mail can be entered before it must be worked by the Postal Service or “the deeper the depth of sort,” the larger the discount as the costs avoided by the Postal Service increase as the depth of sort increases and mail goes further downstream before the Postal Service must work it.

What is a “Presort Bureau”?

A “presort bureau” is a company that presorts and/or automates mail for mailers who are the bureau’s customers. Some presort/ automation mailers presort and/or automate only their own mail.
Presort bureaus sort and automate (apply eleven-digit, delivery point barcodes) on their customers’ mail. By consolidating and sorting together the mail of several mailers, it is possible to sort a larger portion of each mailer’s mail to a greater depth and thus increase the discounts. This benefits all the mailers involved as well as the U. S. Postal Service.  A presort bureau may sort mail for as few as a dozen customers or as many as several hundred mailers. Presort bureaus charge a fee or keep a portion of the worksharing discounts as compensation for the services they render.

What is an “MLOCR”?

“MLOCR” is an acronym for “Multi-line Optical Character Reader.” This machine is used to read the address on a mailpiece after it has been created, print a POSTNET barcode or an Intelligent Mail barcode (“IMb”) on the mailpiece and sort it into a bin from which it is placed in a tray. Postage rates are reduced (“discounted”) for mailers who presort and pre-barcode their mailpieces prior to entering them into the United States Postal Service’s mailstream for delivery.

What is a “POSTNET” barcode?

“POSTNET” is a United States Postal Service acronym for “POSTal Numeric Encoding Technique.”  The POSTNET barcode is the series of tall and short lines that have been placed on mailpieces since the 1990s. The POSTNET barcode incorporates the familiar 5-digit ZIP (“Zone Improvement Plan”) Code. The first three of the five digits designates the “SCF” (United Stattes Postal Service Section Center Facility) that serves the delivery area in which the mailpiece is to be delivered. The fourth and fifth digits identify the delivery area of an associate post office, office branch, or post office station. The POSTNET barcode also includes the “+4″ extension of the ZIP Code.  The first two digits in the +4 extension identify the sector while the last two digits identify the route on which the address is located.

What is a Delivery Point Barcode (“DPBC”)?

A DPBC is a POSTNET barcode that includes not only the ZIP +4 (9 digits of information) but three more digits, for a total of 12 digits.   The first two of these last three digits reflect the last two digits of the primary street address or P.O. Box. The third and last digit is a correction digit. This type of POSTNET barcode , which requires 62 bars, is required on First-Class and Standard Mail letters that are sent at a discounted rate.

What are CASS and MASS?

CASS (Coding Accuracy Support System) and MASS (Multiline Accuracy Support System) are U.S. Postal Service^® certification processes designed to improve the accuracy of postal codes (i.e., 5-digit ZIP^®, ZIP + 4^®, delivery point barcodes), and carrier route codes that appear on mailpieces sent at the discounted rates available for automation mail. To qualify for the rates available for automation mailpieces, the address used must be processed using a currently certified CASS or MASS process.

The CASS software certification program provides hardware and software developers, service bureaus, and commercial mailers a common measure by which to test the quality of address-matching software.

CASS certification is valid until the end of the cycle for which it was granted.  Cycles normally begin on August 1 of the year of certification or recertification. For software to remain CASS Certified, the developers of the software must reapply for certification and meet the minimum accuracy requirements prior to the initiation of each cycle or deployment and use of CASS software.

MASS is certification program required for MLOCRs, (Multiline Optical Character Readers), RVE (Remote Video Encoding) systems, LVE (Local Video Encoding) and encoding stations which  process address information and apply delivery point barcodes.  MASS is an extension of the CASS process.   Like CASS certification, MASS certification is issued by the Postal Service’s National Customer Support Center once the required level of accuracy is demonstrated.  MASS certification is required prior to the beginning of each CASS/MASS cycle.  Certification once granted is valid from the certification date until the end of CASS/MASS cycle for which the MLOCR, RVE system, LVE or encoding stations was certified.

What is Intelligent Mail®?

Intelligent Mail is the technology platform for the next generation of Postal Service™ mailing services, features and products. Mailers and the Postal Service will gain end-to-end visibility into the mail-stream through the use of the suite of Intelligent Mail barcodes and by submitting electronic documentation, which will create actionable information about mail for marketing, financial and operational uses.

The core of the Postal Service’s Intelligent Mail program is a set of four different Intelligent Mail® barcodes:

(1)  The Intelligent Mail barcode (“IMb®”) for letters, cards and flats,
(2)  the Intelligent Mail® package barcode (“IMpb”), for individual packages,
(3)  the Intelligent Mail Tray barcode (“IMtb”), which is used on labels that are attached to trays, sacks, and tubs, and
(4)  the Intelligent Mail Container barcode (“IMcb”), which is used on container labels (or placards) that are attached to pallets and APCs.

These Intelligent Mail barcodes share some common characteristics.  They:

•   Identify the owner or sender of the mailpiece.
•   Identify the mailpiece or aggregates (trays or containers) of mail which allow for tracking.
•   Encode product or service requests on individual mailpieces, or include unique indicators for processing mail aggregates.
•   Provide sorting and/or routing information.

The POSTNET™ barcode described above is a 2-state barcode that utilizes only short and tall bars to encode only routing (and thus sorting) information.  Intelligent Mail barcodes are 4-state barcodes that utilize bars of 4 different heights:  Full bars, ascender bars, tracker bars and descender bars.

A 4-state barcode can store far more information than a 2-state barcode of the same length and height. Thus the IMb and the IMpb both include in a single barcode all of the routing data incorporated into the POSTNET barcode as well as the information incorporated into a separate PLANET Code^® barcode (a 12- to 14- bar 2-state barcode) which, when combined with the POSTNET barcode, allowed the Postal Service and customers of its CONFIRM service to track the delivery of mailpieces.

There are simply too many aspects to the Postal Service’s Intelligent Mail program to describe more than a few of them here.  For more information on the program and it many aspects you may want to go to http://ribbs.usps.gov/index.cfm?page=intelligentmail

What is Basic Option Intelligent Mail?

Intelligent Mail using the Basic Option must include:
(1)  the same Coding Accuracy Support System (CASS)-certified delivery-point ZIP Code information used to populate a POSTNET barcode,(2)  a USPS-assigned Mailer Identification number (“MID”),
(3)  the class of mail which must be reflected in one of the basic option Service Type Identifiers (“STIDs”) included in the IMb and the optional endorsement line (“OEL”) information if an optional endorsement is printed on a flat-sized mailpiece. 
(4)  A serial number though, when using the basic option the serial number field may be populated with any number or numbering system
        the mailer chooses.

What is Full-Service Intelligent Mail?

 Intelligent Mail using the Full Service Option must include:

(1)  the same CASS-certified delivery-point ZIP Code information used to populate a POSTNET barcode,
(2)  a USPS-assigned MID,
(3)  the class of mail which must be reflected in one of the Full Service option Service Type Identifiers (“STIDs”), and the OEL information if an optional endorsement is printed on a flat-sized mailpiece.
(4) an IMb on each mailpiece based on a combination of: (a) the Full Service IMb Serial Number, (b) the mail class and (c) the MID.  Full Service IMbs must remain unique (not be repeated) for a minimum of 45 days.
(5)  a unique Intelligent Mail tray barcode (IMtb) on each handling-unit label when mail is prepared using trays or sacks,
(6) an Intelligent Mail container barcode (IMcb) on labels placed on pallets or other containers when Full Service Intelligent Mail is containerized.
(7) the use of an approved electronic method to transmit mailing documentation to the USPS.  Approved electronic methods include Mail.dat, Mail.XML and Postal Wizard.  This documentation must describe how mailpieces are linked to trays or sacks (if mail is prepared using handling units), and to containers (if mail is palletized or containerized). The electronic documentation must match the preparation of the mail to qualify for the Full Service option.
(8)  appointment scheduling for drop ship mail and for origin-entered mail verified at a DMU and transported to the USPS plant by the mailer.