IMb™ Services

Initial Steps for Mailers

Agenda

• Vision

• Direction

• Make It Happen

• Resources

• Questions

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• Identifiable & Verifiable

• Traceable & Accountable

• Efficient & Predictable

• Valuable & Responsive

Mail - a Key Communication Medium

IMb™ Vision

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IMb™ Options

• Basic– IMb on mailpieces

• Full-Service– Unique Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb) on mailpieces– Unique Intelligent Mail barcode (IMtb) on trays, sacks– Unique Intelligent Mail barcode (IMcb) on containers– Electronic mailing documentation (PostalOne!®)– Scheduled appointments (FAST®)– Services/benefits included with Full-Service:

• Full-Service ACS™• Start-the-Clock

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Automated Payment

Automated PaymentAdvance

Notification

Business Customer Gateway

Electronic Documentation(PostalOne!®)

and Transportation Management System

(TMS)

Advance Notification(FAST®)

Start-The-Clock(PostalOne!)

Verification and Postage Payment(PostalOne!)

Tracking(Confirm® & PostalOne!)

IMb™- Business Customer Gateway

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Intelligent Mail barcode

Tray

Tray

Pallet

Pieces

Pieces

Intelligent Mail tray barcode

Intelligent Mail container barcode

Nesting of Data

IMb™- Nesting

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Example Data for eDoc

IMb™ Timeline

• Ongoing– Intelligent Mail barcode, OneCode ACS® & OneCode Confirm®

– Test Environment for Mailers (TEM)• Testing submission of electronic documentation

(Mail.dat® 8-2 & 9-1) – Migrate to Full-Service in production

• Enable Mail.dat and Postal Wizard tools for electronic documentation

• Receive Start-the-Clock and Full-Service ACS™

• November 2009 Onward– Discounts for Full-Service– Enable Mail.XML® tool for electronic documentation– USPS® ended support of Mail.dat 8-1

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Getting Started

• Acquire knowledge• Determine mail presentation practices• Interact with the Postal Service®

• Interact with software and/or service providers• Construct implementation plan• Acquire software, fonts and aids• Initiate implementation plan• Test and validate

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Acquire Knowledge

• Postal Service®, Service Providers & Vendors– What is this Intelligent Mail®?– What’s its value to me?– What existing & new services can each support and

when?

• Customers & Internal Departments & Resources– Document current practices and equipment– Document future vision, expectations & constraints

• Training– Review Postal Service™ & industry Intelligent Mail

information opportunities

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Determine Mail Presentation Practices

• Do I the “mail owner” present all, some or none of my mail to the Postal Service®?

• If a service provider presents some or all of my mail, determine Mailer ID, mailpiece uniqueness and extra service options.

• If a service provider acquires some or all of my tracking and/or address data from the USPS®, determine data acquisition options.

• How will your current practices change with IMb™?

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Interact with thePostal Service®

• Familiarize yourself with the Business Customer Gateway– Establish logon for interaction– Use the Gateway to:

• Set up your MID• Determine services needed

• Determine electronic data exchange needs• Highly recommended: Have your mailpiece, tray,

and container barcodes tested by your local Mailpiece Design Analyst (MDA)

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Business Customer Gateway

• The Business Customer Gateway gives you a single, unified landing point to access certain online business offerings from the Postal Service®.

• These channels include the services that support the IMb™ Full-Service option.

• These include PostalOne!®, FAST®, CLDS (Customer Label Distribution System), and Mailer IDs (MIDs).

• https://gateway.usps.com/bcg/login.htm

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Interact with Software and/or Service Providers

• Base discussions on data from acquired knowledge activities– Current state of functions, features, interfaces, and

services – Available new functions, features, interfaces and

services– Desired state factoring expectations and constraints

• Determine custom software requirements

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Construct a Plan

• Incorporate findings, expectations & constraints• Target timeline• Internal and external resource and funding

allocation• Procedural, operations, hardware and technical

changes and opportunities• Test criteria to ensure content and print quality• Implementation sequence through applications

and customers• Testing and validation

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Intelligent Mail® Data

Font software Converts printing instructions into

barcode

Encoder software Converts Intelligent

Mail data into printing

instructions

Software, Fonts & Aids

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Software, Fonts & Aids

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To download software and font files visit the RIBBS® website at https://ribbs.usps.gov/index.cfm?page=intellmailmailpieces

Fonts

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Type

Fonts Fixed Pitch Bitmap

Scalable

The Advanced Function Printing (AFP) Yes

The XEROX Metacode Yes

Hewlett Packard’s PCL Yes

Adobe’s Postscript Yes Yes

TrueType Yes

Check out the new shorter-height fonts (close to the minimum 0.125")

IMb™ Technical Resource GuideAppendix C. Encoding Software Packages and Fonts Available on RIBBS®

Fonts - Barcode Placement

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• Same placement as POSTNET™ barcode

• Letters– Address block OR

– Barcode clear zone

• Flats– On address side AND

– At least 1/8 inch from any edge of the piece

JMCXNM5 38141

Fonts - Clearance and Voids

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• A minimum clear zone of 0.125 inch between the left and right edges of the barcode is required.

• A minimum clear zone of 0.028 inch above and below the barcode is required.

Maximum dot matrix spacing must not exceed 0.010 inch.

0.010

Font – Barcode Tilt

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< +5° max > -5° max

CLCL

< +5° max > -5° max

CL

CL

• Same as POSTNET™ except you look at the centerline not a baseline!

Barcode Skew Bar Rotation

IMb™ Aids

• Manual tools for visual inspection– Plastic templates– Optical comparator

• Online encoder/decoder• Scanners and verifiers

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Initiate the Plan

• Some BIG things:– Software and databases:

• Data structures and management,• Interfaces to existing systems,• Electronic distribution and acquisition of IMb™ and

mailing data,– Production hardware, workflow and practices– Business Customer Gateway – (PostalOne!®) as the

electronic data exchange portal

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Initiate the Plan

• Some NEW outputs:– Mailpieces with the IMb™: ALWAYS 65 bars– Barcodes on tray labels, IMtb– Barcodes on container labels, IMcb– Electronic documentation (eDoc) &

data exchange (Mail.dat® / Mail.XML®)

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Test & Validate…Repeat, Physical Output

• Ensure the test plan has pre-established results– Know the CORRECT results and use available tools

to ensure outcomes match them

• Validate input– Ensure all data elements for barcode content match

either yours or your customer’s specifications

• Validate output– Print samples from each piece of equipment that

could be used in actual production– Provide samples to USPS™ MDA / service providers

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Test & Validate…Repeat, Electronic Output

• Participate in the USPS™ Test Environment for Mailers (TEM)• Ensure the test plan has pre-established results

– Know the CORRECT data content & structures, transmission protocols and reporting schemes

– Use available systemic tools to ensure outcomes match and transmission acknowledgements are processed

• Validate eDoc– Ensure all data elements for the record structures meet defined

specifications – change control for updates is properly defined and executed

• Validate downloadable reports– Establish Mail.XML® practices– Validate receipt and internal practices

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IMb™ Key Takeaways

– Major project for mailers– USPS™ MDA, service providers, and vendors are

valuable resources– Mailer ID, encoders and fonts are free– IT involvement is required to:

• Integrate the encoder into existing software,• Manage uniqueness,• Generate eDocumentation• Change font and spacing in documents,

– IMb is just another font to your printer

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IMb™ Key Resources

• IMb Services Update, DMM® Advisory• RIBBS® Webside: www.ribbs.usps.gov

– Intelligent Mail® Services• Latest News• Benefits Calculator• Guides & Specifications• Tools• Services• Guidelines

• USPS® publications• USPS & industry training: National Postal Forum, Postal Customer

Council (PCC) Seminars, and other vendor conferences and various association meetings

• Local USPS Mailpiece Design Analyst 27

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IMb™ Getting Started

Additional information about all of the topics covered in this presentation can be found on RIBBS®.

Click on Intelligent Mail® Services and then click on “Guides & Specs” as shown here.

All of the supporting documentation references are shown under “Important Links”.

Intelligent Mail® Education

• National Postal Forum sessions• Additional Presentations

– MIDS/CRIDS– Working with Your Mail Preparer– IMb™ and ACS®

– IMb Service Type Identifiers– Mail.dat® and PostalOne!®

– Start-the-Clock

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