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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 5, 2001
Press Release #01-053
Tracking Technology Extends To Contractors Hitting The Road, Taking To The Air
Washington, D.C. - Key to the success of the Postal Service's information platform is the mail's ability to communicate "when and where it is" within the postal mailstream. This ability to communicate will now hit the road and take to the air following today's $15 million funding approval to design, build and implement the Surface-Air Support System (SASS). This new link to the information platform will enable the Postal Service to measure performance and verify accurate payments for all modes of transportation, including commercial air, highway and rail. Testing will be completed in July and activated in August.
Explained Paul Vogel, Vice President, Network Operations: "We are transitioning into an environment where transportation carriers are required to scan mail at different hand-off points among their own carrier hubs as well as when mail is turned over to the Postal Service for final delivery. This data will provide the ability to pay contractors based on performance, making transportation suppliers more accountable for services they provide to the Postal Service."
Vogel said SASS will provide a new dimension of contractor performance assessment because it will provide a systemic method to exchange information with suppliers.
"SASS will relay mail assignment data to transportation carriers as well as use scan data to match mail assignments and reconcile payment information. Moreover, SASS will seamlessly integrate our current systems environment with our vision, serving as the central repository for mail assignment information and scan data."
"We have intertwined our vision with the FedEx contract negotiations making them the first supplier to fit the model," he said, referring to an air transportation agreement with FedEx to transport Express Mail, Priority Mail, some First-Class Mail and some international mail beginning in August. "FedEx will scan the dispatch and routing tags on each mail sack, tray or parcel and transmit this data to back to us. SASS will then perform a 'match' routine in order to reconcile payment."
The Information Platform's Big Picture
The Information Platform will make postal operations more efficient, and the mail more visible as it moves through core processes: acceptance, processing, transportation and delivery, and be supported by four cornerstone initiatives that will allow the Postal Service to begin developing end-to-end data capabilities.
- PostalOne!: a web-based exchange of mailing information provided by customers when placing their mail into the mailstream. It gives postal management a head's-up on the amount and type of mail entering the mailstream.
- The Processing Operations Information System collects and tracks mail inventory/workload and productivity data from each operation within a processing facility.
- The Surface Air Management System (SAMS) calculates the modes of transportation needed to meet mail delivery service standards. Many times, mail that is ordinarily flown by expensive air transportation can still meet service standards when transported by less costly ground transportation. SASS will support SAMS to utilize transportation assignment data for all mail transportation agreements, and also provide management reports to optimize the utilization of dedicated and commercial air transportation.
- The Delivery Operations Information System gives postmasters and delivery supervisors a clear picture of the amount and type of mail coming their way and is used as a tool to balance the workload among letter carriers and improve productivity.
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