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The year 2005 is a significant milestone for the mailing
industry with the Mailers‘ Technical Advisory Committee
(MTAC) celebrating 40 years of achievement and providing
a new focus on priorities. MTAC, a joint effort between
mailers and the Postal Service™ to share technical
information, advice, and recommendations, has consisted
of the most well-informed and forward-thinking leaders in
the mailing industry. Today, these leaders represent over
50 major mailing associations and organizations and help
make the U.S. Postal Service the best postal system in
the world, providing universal and high-quality service at
reasonable cost.
“Outgoing MTAC Industry Chair Robert J. O‘Brien is to be
complimented for his leadership and innovation during his
three-year term as Industry Chair” says MTAC Postal Chair
Susan Plonkey, Vice President, Customer Service for the
U.S. Postal Service. Mr. O‘Brien is stepping down as MTAC
Industry Chair and is retiring as Vice President, Postal and
Distribution Policy, for Time Customer Service, Inc.
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MTAC accomplishments are based on outputs of
workgroups jointly run by Postal Service and industry
executives. The new focus for MTAC, established during
2005 by both Postal and industry MTAC leadership, is in
four key areas considered important for the entire mailing
industry: Seamless Acceptance and Induction, Service
Measurement and Improvement, Address Accuracy
and Optimization of Preparation and Entry. Several new
work groups were initiated in 2005 consistent with this
new direction including Streamlining Verifi cation, Service
Performance Reporting Process Standardization, FAST
for Periodicals, Developing an Interface to the AFSM
100 Automated Induction Process, Address Quality
Methodology, and Address Quality Tools – Move Update.
Oversight for these important initiatives is provided by
elected industry leaders as well as Postal Service officers.
“The progress made during recent years with the Postal
Service taking an aggressive leadership role in harnessing
technology, while working with industry experts, has
helped drive service scores up and costs down for
everyone‘s benefit” says Joyce McGarvy, Vice President/
Distribution, Crain Communications, Inc. who will serve as
MTAC Industry Chair effective January 1, 2006. Coleman
Hoyt, former MTAC Industry Chair and currently Executive
Director of the Continuity Shippers Association, was
there near the beginning of MTAC during the mid 1960s.
Mr. Hoyt remembers meeting in Postmaster General
John Gronouski‘s office with founding MTAC association
members when “Mr. Gronouski asked for advice regarding
how best to implement the still relatively new ZIP Code™
concept.”
The rest is history with many other advancements,
taken for granted today, introduced and refi ned over the
years, such as these worksharing innovations: presorted
mail, drop shipping, barcoding, ZIP+4®, delivery point
addressing, national change of address (NCOA), and many
others.
For additional information about MTAC, see the
May-August 2005 issue of Mailers Companion.
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