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WSU Vancouver Mailroom - US Mail
List of all places/people for mail delivery
Go to the Index page for an easy way to find a subject
Sending LUMPS in US Mail
- Any LUMP in a regular envelope (a binder clip, or keychain, or any other type of lump with a "sharp" or "protuding" edge) may catch, and rip the envelope, while being processed through the automated US Postal sorting machines... and will then be returned instead of being delivered (if the contents are not lost entirely due to the envelope ripping open)
- Please do not put a LUMP in a regular envelope, you need to use a PADDED or RIGID CARDBOARD envelope for this type of item
- You may Click HERE to read more on how to package items for the US Mail, including videos showing how mail is sorted (also read about Overstuffed Envelopes and Flap Sealing)
Catch and RIP - Sealing Large Envelopes
- When addressing large envelopes, where the flap you seal is on the end, please be sure to turn the envelope so the flap you seal is to the RIGHT as you look at the envelope to read the address
- When you address a large envelope so the flap you seal is to the LEFT, it is then the "trailing edge" as the envelope moves through the various postal machines
- A flap on the trailing edge has a much higher chance of catching in the machinery, which may rip the envelope open and allow the contents to spill
US Mail Delivery Verification
- FedEx and UPS shipping includes an automatic tracking function not included with US Mail, but you may add Delivery Verification to US Mail for an additional fee (US Mail Delivery Verification does not track your item "as it moves" like FedEx or UPS, but it does provide a way for you to know that your item was, in fact, delivered)
- Please put your NAME on the FedEx (or UPS) form in case of questions
- When you wish to have Delivery Verification added to your US Mail item, simply attach a Delivery Verification note to the item when you place it in your Department's OUT box
- A Delivery Verification sticker will be added to the US Mail item, and the receipt portion will be returned to you - you may then go to the US Mail web site here and enter the Delivery Verification number from your receipt
- US Mail Delivery Verification is NOT for Foreign Addresses
Return Addresses on Mail - Security Concerns
Please use a blue or black ballpoint ink pen (not a hard to read pastel color) or an indelible marker when putting addresses on all mail.
Due to concerns over the security of the US Mail system, the US Postal service has set their automatic sorting machines to "kick out" any mail that does not have a legible return address. This mail must then be viewed by a postal worker, leading to delays in moving mail through the system. This "kick out" process is for ALL mail, even preprinted mail used to return payments, so be sure to put a legible return address on all mail to insure that your mail is delivered in a timely manner (ie - your payment will be delayed, which could lead to a service charge)
Information from a US Postal Service Bulletin
Please use a blue or black ballpoint ink pen (not a hard to read pastel color) or an indelible marker when putting addresses on all mail.
How to Address an Envelope
Return address needs your Department Name for returned mail handling
Person's Name on the top line
Any additional address information
Post Office Box # or Street Address
City, State and Zip Code
The INcorrect way to address an envelope
Person's Name on the top line
Post Office Box # or Street Address
City, State and Zip Code
Any additional address information
In short, do not write anything below the Zip Code
The automated sorting machines used to process the millions of pieces of daily mail may become "confused" if you write ANYTHING below the Zip Code, which will lead to your mail being delayed by either being sent to the wrong address or having to have a postal worker look at your mail to override the automated sorting machine
US Mail for Past Employees
- Mailroom staff do not open incoming mail, so have no way to know if mail for a past employee is for the individual person, or for the person's work function
- All incoming mail is delivered to the last known campus address
- Also read about Past Employee Mail From Pullman
- The past employee's Department staff may then:
- [A] give the mail to the person now performing the past employee's work function, or
- [B] forward the mail to the past employee (UNopened 1st class mail will forward, all other mail must be put in a new envelope and paid for by the Department) or
- [C] return UNopened 1st class mail (mail other than 1st class, unless it has a specific marking of "Address Service Requested" or "Return Service Requested" on the item, does not return to sender) or
- [D] dispose of the mail (paper recycle bin)
- Do note that since WSU Vancouver is an ongoing BUSINESS address, with (as of July 2008) almost 2,500 current and past employee and program names, that the US Postal Service will NOT accept a change of address notice for anyone leaving WSU and who wishes to have their mail directly forwarded by the USPS
- Since the only way for a past employee's mail to be forwarded is by Department staff, it would be a good idea for the past employee to provide sheet(s) of address labels with a new address, to make it easy for Faculty Support staff to forward mail
When you forward or return US Mail, please be sure to use a HEAVY BLACK MARKER to completely hide any barcode information on the envelope, since if the US Postal Service sorting machine is able to read the barcode information, the envelope will be returned to you
Please NOTE that Presorted Standard US Postage Paid mail does NOT return or forward - you may keep it or toss it, but trying to return the mail to sender will not work (or you may, of course, put the mail in a new envelope and use your postage account to send the mail on to the recipient's new address)
Incoming Postal Service Mail
- The rural route driver delivers each work day at
approximately noon. (This rural route delivery has been
as early as 10:00 AM, and as late as 2:30 PM)
- Please note that incoming US Mail is USUALLY
delivered to the campus, and outgoing mail taken away, during
the morning time that mail is being delivered on campus,
so today's US Mail is delivered to a Department's IN
basket in the afternoon. However, on days when US Mail is
delivered here too late for the 2 PM rounds, US Mail will
be delivered the next morning.
- The afternoon schedule is that US Mail and interoffice courier mail will usually be
delivered to the IN boxes starting at 2 PM each work
day.
- The final pickup from OUT baskets will therefore also
begin at 2 PM, to insure that Pullman mail goes out at
approximately 3:30 PM.
- If you have US Mail that MUST go out Today, you will
need to hand-carry it to the mailroom BEFORE 3:15 PM for
processing through the postage meter and placement in the
outgoing US Mail pickup box, to then be hand-carried to
an offsite dropbox at 3:30 PM (departure from campus is at 3:30 PM)
- Full Schedule
Postcards
- Cost is 26 cents, if the card is postcard size
- Minimum size is 3.5 inch by 5 inch by .007 inch
thick.
- Maximum size is 4.25 inch by 6 inch by .0095 inch
thick.
- Larger postcards are charged the regular 1st Class
rate.
- According to the card stock that is used at SuperPrinters (12013 NE 99 St 896-3716) what you should specify for postcard card stock is Krome Kote CS1 (CS1 = Coated on Side 1) at a MINIMUM 12 Point Weight (heavy enough to "grab" in the meter)
- This card stock has worked in the WSU postage meter as long as the PRINTING side of the postcard is "buff" and not slick (the address and printing side is UP when run through the postage meter, where the metered stamp is applied via inkjet)
- Please NOTE that the minimum thickness of postcard
"stock" may lead to the cards not being "gripped"
properly by the postage meter machinery, which results in
the card twisting and jamming in the meter... sometimes
even tearing the card. Please talk to your supplier when
you order postcards, and specify the thicker stock for
fewer problems (as noted above)
- Also please NOTE that "slick surface" postcards twist and jam more often then do "buff surface" postcards, plus the inkjet, sprayed on stamp does not work right (it smudges) and even a printed stamp may not work, since the stamp peels off as soon as the "wetted" glue on the back of the stamp dries (you will need to have DRY stamps printed from the postage meter, which you may then put on the postcard and cover with 2 inch wide clear packing tape)
- Also be sure you allow space for the 1x3 inch inkjet, sprayed on stamp... a BLANK space with no printing or pictures on the postcard (the stamp starts printing about one-half inch to the left of the leading edge, and then about 3 more inches to the left, as well as about one-half inch down from the top edge) so you might want to bring an example to the Mailroom for a test printing before you place your postcard order with the printer - Click Here for a Stamp Example
Outgoing Postal Service Mail
- If you have a new account for Postal Service Mail, please have your Faculty Support Staff Download and Complete PAGE THREE of This Form
- All outgoing mail needing postage must include your
8-digit expense account. (The general format is
58xx-xxxx, please check with your Faculty Support Staff
if you do not know your Department's 8-digit expense
account used for postage)
- Please write your account in the upper left corner
for individual pieces, or on a note rubber-banded to
bundles for groups of mail. How to Address an Envelope also see the USPS site for Mail Requirements
- If you have envelopes with a pre-printed Department, you only need to write an account if it is different than the default account used for the pre-printed Department
- If you do not know your expense account number, please see #2 just above, or you
may write your Department and Name in the upper
left corner, and the account your Faculty Support provided to Mailroom staff, with your name when you were hired, will be used
- Any mail placed in an OUT basket without an account or Name and Department
will be delayed the time it takes to find an account.
(Mail without an account will be left UNDER the OUT
basket)
- Please read HERE before you use mail which has a bulk mail postage permit number pre-printed on the envelope or card
- Please read Sealing Flaps on Bundles of Envelopes and also please read this note about Bundle Orientation (US Mail Envelope Tip)
Marking Foreign Mail for Correct Postage
- SPECIAL NOTICE - Do be aware that any barcode tracking label you may put on domestic mail (Delivery Confirmation, Certified, etc) does NOT work with foreign mail, since another country does not use the US Mail process for tracking items - which means that you must use FedEx or UPS if you wish to be able to track any item going to a foreign country (Call FedEx at 800-238-5355 or UPS at 800-742-5877 to find out if either will deliver to the specific address in the foreign country, and do NOT use a US Mail customs tag, use the appropriate FedEx or UPS form)
- Be sure to mark (rubber band or post-it note) mail
going to foreign countries, to insure the correct coding
is entered into the meter and the proper postage is
issued. Foreign mail "buried" in a larger bundle will
be delayed, since it will not receive the proper postage
and will be returned by the Postal Service
- If you use a post-it note to mark foreign mail, be sure the post-it note extends beyond the edge of the envelope (ie-"sticks up") so the envelope is not buried in a stack
- Foreign mail consisting of boxes of any size, and
large or "thickly stuffed" envelopes must have a Customs
Form attached, or the US Postal Service will return your
mail. Call 546-9708 if you need additional Customs
Forms
- Read Here for More Information on Foreign Mail and Customs
- Full Schedule How to Address an Envelope
Bundle Orientation
- When sending bundles of mail (or many loose envelopes
all stacked together) please make sure all the envelopes
are facing the same direction. Envelopes that are upside
down or backwards of each other take much more time, as
they must be hand-sorted in the mailroom before being run
through the postage meter.
- When mailroom staff has a lot of mail to process (which is usually the case where there are bundles of mail) your "upside down or backwards" mail inside a bundle may be missed, and your mail runs the risk of being returned by the USPS, when the imprinted stamp is not in the correct spot so the USPS scanners may "see" the stamp
Fold-Over Requirement
- Fold-Over mail may NOT be used for foreign mail.
- NOTE - Fold-Over mail created with "flimsy" paper
must be refused, since it jams and tears in the postage
meter - the minimum paper weight allowed is 20 pound paper, with heavier "bond" paper or "card stock" being better since it has less chance of being "crunched" in the postage meter (but do be aware that ANY paper made into an envelope is going to "crunch" more often than a real envelope)
- Fold-Over mail (individual or multiple sheets folded
over and mailed without an envelope) jams the postage
meter if the ENTIRE leading edge is not taped shut.
- Please use Strong/Wide tape and cover the ENTIRE leading edge! The leading edge is to the RIGHT of the address label, as you look at the mail. Please tape, DO NOT STAPLE, the entire leading edge closed. Failure to tape this ENTIRE leading edge will cause your fold-over item to jam in the postage meter.
- You also need to tape the ENTIRE Long Edge (either top or bottom) to prevent the mail from twisting and jamming.
- Any mail with OPEN PAGES (pamphlet, brochure, etc) also needs to have the entire leading edge taped - or use a real envelope to insure it is not damaged in trasit.
- Tape the ENTIRE leading edge to reduce the chance of your item "catching" and jamming in the postage meter... a "DAB" of tape on the leading edge will not work, since any part of the "made up" envelope that "could" catch and jam most likely "will" catch and jam (Murphy's Law works very well with the postage meter!)
- NEW Postage Meter Addendum 02/17/06
- Due to post 9/11 security requirements set by the US Postal Service, WSU had to buy a new postage meter in late 2005, which has proven itself to be MUCH less accepting of any kind of non-envelope items
- It is therefore recommended that all mail be sent in envelopes (Mailroom staff will do as much as they can, but fold-over mail which jams in the postage meter must simply be returned)
Franking Cover UP
- Bulk (permit) mail is not currently handled in the on-campus mailroom.
- Contact Student Services for more information (as far as I know, they use Alexandria's Mailhouse at 360-737-8587)
- Be sure to include your Department Name for returned mail handling
- The US Postal Service uses automated sorting machines, which become "confused" when a mail item has both a "franking mark" (permit code) and a semi-transparent spray ink stamp applied by a postage meter (the permit code shows through the inkjet stamp)
- You must use a blank WHITE adhesive label to completely cover the WSU permit printing on any mail item, before that item may be stamped by the postage meter
Foreign Mail Tip - Customs
- All foreign mail MUST be in an envelope (or a
package). The Post Office will NOT accept "fold-over"
mail (pages that have been folded/stapled to mail without
an envelope) for any foreign address. Please put all
foreign letters in an envelope.
- Boxes of any size, and large or "thickly stuffed"
envelopes must have a Customs Tag attached, or the US
Postal Service will return your mail. Call 546-9708 if
you need additional Customs Tags
- When you remove the cover from the back of the GREEN part, be sure to adhere the Customs Form BESIDE the address on the envelope, not OVER the address... since the WHITE part of the form, where you put the outgoing address, is torn off and kept by the Postal Service in case of questions, so the address on the item must be readable and not covered by the green part of the form
- A standard #10 envelope (the 4 x 9.5 inch size) does NOT need a Customs Tag, unless it is "thickly stuffed" (Please note that Mailroom staff really can't give advice on just how "thick" an envelope may be to require a customs tag, since this seems to be, based on envelopes that have been returned, a somewhat "fluid" situation depending on the current world political situation)
- Foreign items UP TO 4 Pounds AND a total size UP TO 36 inches (Length + Width + Height) use PS Form 2976 and may be sent by AIR mail (the form with a green part with a sticky back which YOU glue to the item, and a white part that is kept by the Postal Service)
- Foreign items OVER 4 Pounds or OVER 36 inches (Length + Width + Height) use PS Form 2976-A and may only be sent by SURFACE Parcel Post (a multi-part form which requires a sticky back "document holder" pouch since 2976-A does not have a sticky back)
- If you have a scale which is accurate to the TENTH of a pound, you may determine which form to use... otherwise, please send your foreign item to the Mailroom in advance for weight determination on the Pitney Bowes postage scale, and your item will be returned to you with the weight noted so you may select the correct Customs form
- For items UP TO 4 Pounds AND a total size UP TO 36 inches (Length + Width + Height) complete all parts of the PS Form 2976, sign in both
places, and affix the form to the mail by removing
the peel-off backing. Please Do Not Separate The White
Part From The Green Part - the Green part stays on the item, the White part is kept by the Postal Service.
- For items OVER 4 Pounds or OVER 36 inches (Length + Width + Height) complete all parts of the PS Form 2976-A, sign at the bottom, and rubber band to your item (the Mailroom has a supply of sticky back "document holder" pouches)
- SPECIAL NOTICE - Do be aware that any barcode tracking label you may put on domestic mail (Delivery Confirmation, Certified, etc) does NOT work with foreign mail, since another country does not use the US Mail process for tracking items - which means that you must use FedEx or UPS if you wish to be able to track any item going to a foreign country (Call FedEx at 800-238-5355 or UPS at 800-742-5877 to find out if either will deliver to the specific address in the foreign country, and do NOT use a US Mail customs tag, use the appropriate FedEx or UPS form)
Bulk Mail (Mail sent using Permit)
- Bulk (permit) mail is not currently handled in the
on-campus mailroom.
- Contact Student Services for more information (as far as I know, they use Alexandria's Mailhouse at 360-737-8587)
- Be sure to include your Department Name for returned mail handling
Bound Printed Matter
- Bound Printed Matter (see description at
US Postal Service) may be used to save money (as an example, as of November 2002, the First Class postage for one Vanouver Course Catalog, and a cover letter, is $2.44 while the BPM rate is $1.79 for the same weight) IF your item meets the description at the above web site
- Do be aware that BPM mail is "2-to-9" days delivery, compared to the "1-to-3" days delivery for First Class mail
- Also be aware that BPM mail is thrown away if not able to be delivered, compared to the automatic return of First Class mail
- Your BPM mail may be returned, for a fee equal to that used to send the mail in the first place, if you write an appropriate message on the envelope (see description at
Special Address Services)
US Postal Service Mail Packing and Sorting
For anyone who has ever wondered just how the US Postal Service is able to sort BILLIONS of mail items every year, here are two video links to show you some of the equipment that is used (Hint... human eyes and hands RARELY process your envelope!)
When a Postal employee DOES look at your envelope, it is normally only when the sorting machine kicks the envelope out into a "problem" box, due to an unreadable address or an envelope with "odd" or "lumpy" contents (Some, relatively few, items are still processed by a person, but most are by machine)
In short... writing "Fragile" or "Hand Cancel" on your envelope may or may not help, since your envelope is normally not "Handled by Hand" or "Seen by Human Eyes" unless and until the sorting machine drops the envelope into the problem box (and, by that time, your "fragile but lumpy" item has already been "processed" by a machine... and may already be damaged)
If you need to send "lumpy" or "fragile" objects in an envelope, you should use a padded or cardboard envelope so the envelope does not Catch and RIP in the sorting machine
Click Envelope Processing part way down This Page to see how mail is sorted when it is first received at the Postal Service
Click Letter Processing part way down This Page to see how mail is sorted into delivery bundles for the local letter carrier
Also, Click Here to see how to pack a box for mailing
And, Finally, some History of the US Postal Service (1775-1993)
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Foreign Return Mail
- WSU Vancouver uses Business Reply Mail (BRM) for
pre-paid return mail in the US
- International BRM costs $0.80 for postcards or $1.80
for an envelop (up to 2 ounces) PLUS an annual fee of
$400 - so our current volume of about 1 item a month
would equate to a cost of at least $33 for each item
- If you need to send a pre-paid mailer to a foreign
country, use your petty cash fund (the Mailroom does not
have cash, only a postage meter account for US Mail) and
buy an International Reply Coupon (IRC) at any Post
Office
- An IRC costs $2.75, and may be used from any country
which is a member of the Universal Postal Union - Current
UPU locations are: (NOTE that the main postal site is
usually listed, not the country, so you may need to
convert city to country, such as Frankfurt means an IRC
may be used in Germany)
Amsterdam
Brussels
Buenos Aires
Caracas
Delhi
Dhahran
Frankfurt
London
Madrid
Mexico City
Manila
Moji
Naha
Osaka
Paris
Rio de Janerio
Rome
Singapore
Sydney
Tokyo
Yokohama
Last updated 04-25-2007
Send MAILROOM comments to Mailroom
Send FACILITY comments to Facility Operations
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