Since the launch of its new shape-based pricing initiative with the May 14, 2007, postal rate change, the US Postal Service has produced and distributed over 200,000 official rate classification guides based on a design by Hasler Inc.
These guides are circulated to USPS retail associates in over 38,000 post offices around the US. They are used to simplify the process of calculating mailing costs under the new SBP regulations.
The USPS did not return calls in time for press time.
“We have had a long vendor and supplier relationship with the USPS,” said Bob Sheehan, VP of postal relations at Hasler. “They license our products and we license them for our users. With the guide, we were attempting to provide our customers with a simple, easy to understand tool that is technically right and informs our customers what rate they should be paying for their mailing.”
In an effort to better align the price of postage with actual processing costs, USPS moved from the use of a pure weight value to a size, thickness and weight combination when deciding the cost of postage.
Under these SBP guidelines, it is critical that a mail piece is measured and classified either as a letter, flat or parcel, to ensure the proper postage value is applied.
Hasler designed a shape-based pricing sorting device that categorizes the mail under the new regulations. The guide contains the size measurements and thickness slots necessary to allow a mail piece to be correctly sorted as a letter, flat or parcel.
Hasler has produced both hard cardboard and sturdy, self-standing acrylic versions that are available to its dealer network and its customers throughout the country.
