Services
Direct Mail Terms and Acronyms
A
AADC
Automated Area Distribution Center, a Post Office distribution center that processes automated mail.
ABE
Automated Barcode Evaluator, software that verifies barcode readability by translating it into an address.
ACE
Address Correction & Encoding, A service of CCI where your addresses are corrected and standardized. Then enhancements such as Carrier Route, Zip+4, and barcode are added for additional postage savings.
ACS
Address Change Service, a program available to mailers that maintain electronic copies of their mailing lists. Automatic readers catch addresses that will be forwarded to a new address and send an updated address back to the mailer in electronic form.
ADC
Area Distribution Center, a facility that distributes mail to specific ZIP codes.
ADD/ADDR Address
One or more lines of information needed to identify a specific mail recipient.
AE
Additional Entry, a secondary facility where a publisher may mail periodicals other than the original entry.
AEC
Address Element Correction, computer process to correct an incomplete or incorrect address so that ZIP+4 and CART information can be attached.
AMF
Airport Mail Center/Facility, facility located at an airport that receives and distributes mail by air.
AMS
Alternate Mailing System, a procedure to allow permit imprint mail to be accepted without verification by weight.
APO
Army Post Office, a post office, either in New York or San Francisco, that serves the Army and/or Air Force.
ARM
Accelerated Reply Mail, service provided by USPS to ship Business Reply mail back to the mailer via Express Mail.
ASF
Auxiliary Service Facility, a satellite mail processing facility usually serving a Bulk Mail Center.
B
BC
Bar Code, vertical bars and spaces that graphically represent a series of numbers (ZIP Code).
BCR
Bar Code Reader, machine that can read and interpret a barcode.
BMC
Bulk Mail Center, a plant that processes bulk mail using optical-readers, sorters and other machinery.
BMEU
Business Mail Entry Unit, the area at which mailers deposit bulk mail.
BPM
Bound Printed Matter, Standard mail weighing between 1 and 15 pounds consisting of bound sheets of which 90% must be a combination of advertising, directory or promotional information.
BPRS
Bulk Parcel Return Service, service that returns undeliverable Standard parcels to the mailer for a fee.
BRM
Business Reply Mail, service that allows mailers to receive First-Class mail back from customers. The mail is delivered to the mailer and fees and postage are collected.
BRMAS
Business Reply Mail Accounting System, now known as Qualified Business Reply Mail (QBRM), means of processing and accessing fees and postage for Business Reply Mail.
C
CART/CARR/CR
Carrier Route, geographical area covered by a postal carrier, the route a carrier travels to deliver mail.
CASS
Coding Accuracy Support System, a service and rating system for mailers that measures and helps to improve address accuracy.
CFS
Computerized Forwarding System, system that catches and forwards mail incorrectly addressed or addressed to people that have moved.
CIN
Content Identifier Number, identifies the sorting level and class of mail for a container of mail.
CMRA
Commercial Mail Receiving Agency, private business responsible for receiving mail for specific clients.
CMRS
Computerized Mail Resetting System, electronic system allowing postage meter users to reset the meter at their place of business.
COD
Collect/Cash On Delivery, service for mailers where postal employees collect payment from recipient for merchandise and return it to mailer.
CPP
Centralized Postage Payment, a system that allows periodical mailers to pay postage for a multi-post office mailing at one post office.
CRM
Courtesy Reply Mail, business reply mail that is not postage-paid.
CSBCS
Carrier Sequence Barcode Sorter, machine that sorts mail into delivery order for an individual carrier route.
D
DAL
Detached Address Label, paper or card that carries the address that corresponds to an un-addressed periodical, flat or bound printed matter.
DBMC
Destination Bulk Mail Center Rate, special postage rate for mailers that ship mail directly to the BMC that serves the addresses on that mail.
DDU
Destination Delivery Unit Rate, special postage rate for mailers that ship mail directly to the Delivery Unit that serves the addresses on that mail.
DMM
Domestic Mail Manual, published by the USPS, contains all the standards, description and services of the USPS.
DMU
Detached Mail Unit, area set aside in the mailer's place of business where postal employees can verify, accept and dispatch mail.
DOT
U.S. Department of Transportation, government agency charged with identifying hazardous materials.
DP
Data Processing, the CCI department offering unique programming and expertise that allows us to offer the special MCAP plan that could save you 20% of your mailing costs.
DPBC
Delivery Point Barcode, a POSTNET barcode that allows mail to be automatically sorted in walk sequence for each carrier.
DPO
Designated Post Office, post office at which mailers maintain an account for the Centralized Postage Payment system.
DSCF
Destination Sectional Center Facility Rate, special postage rate for mailers that ship mail directly to the SCF that serves the addresses on that mail.
E
EMMS
Express Mail Military Service, expedited delivery service between personnel at APO and FPO addresses and US addresses.
EPO
Entry Post Office, post office at which mailers deposit mail for which postage is paid from the Centralized Postage Payment system.
F
FCM
First-Class Mail, mail for which the First-Class postage rate has been paid. First-Class is a trademark of the USPS.
FIM
Facing Identification Mark, five or six vertical bars used by sorting machines to identify and sort mail.
FLTS
Flats, abbreviation identifying mail that is larger than a letter and smaller than a parcel.
FPO
Fleet Post Office, a post office, either in New York or San Francisco, that serves the Coast Guard, Navy and/or Marine Corps.
FR
Federal Register, publication by the Office of the Federal Register which contains certain government documents.
G
GMF
General Mail Facility, a plant that receives, processes and distributes all classes of mail.
H
HCR
Highway Contract Route, formerly known as star route, a route serviced by a postal contractor to carry mail between designated points.
I
IMB
Intelligent Mail Barcode.
IMM
International Mail Manual, list of standards and regulations for mail destined outside the United States.
IPP
Irregular Parcels and Pieces, parcels that are not of the size and/or shape to be sorted by machines.
ISBN
International Standard Book Number, a number issued by the Library of Congress to identify a book or other non-periodical.
ISSN
International Standard Serial Number, a number issued by the Library of Congress to identify a periodical, see ISBN.
L
LOT
Line Of Travel Sequence, presorted in the order the carrier delivers mail.
LTRS
Letters, abbreviation identifying mail that is of letter size.
M
MACH
Machineable, code to identify mail that can be sorted by machines.
MCAP
Exclusive program offered to CCI clients to save up to 20% of mailing costs using our unique data processing services.
MM
Managed Mail Tray, a stackable container used to transport mail to or between post offices.
MMS
Manifest Mailing System, system allowing the USPS to verify and accept permit imprint mailings containing pieces or different weight and/or size.
MOM
Military Ordinary Mail, special Defense Department Mail that is carried by surface and air to expedite delivery.
MPG
Merge/Purge, A service of CCI that removes duplicate addresses from your mail list by any matching criteria thus saving postage and printing costs.
MPO
Military Post Office, a branch of the USPS that is operated by a military branch to serve personnel abroad or on ships at sea.
MRM
Meter Reply Mail, a return envelope that has the postage paid by meter imprint.
MXD
Mixed, abbreviation identifying mixed mail destined for different facilities.
N
NCOA
National Change Of Address, address correction service provided through USPS licensees to match addresses to the CFS entered for people that have moved.
NMO
Non-machineable Outside, mail that cannot be sorted by machine because of its size, weight and/or shape, see MACH, IPP.
O
OBMC
Original Bulk Mail Center Presort Rate, special Parcel Post postage rate for parcels properly prepared and deposited at the designated facility. OCR Optical Character Reader, computer controlled mail sorting machine that reads and interprets the address and prints a corresponding Zip Code information onto the piece as a barcode.
OEL
Optional Endorsement Line, line printed at the top of an address that identifies that mail's level of sortation.
OMAS
Official Mail Accounting System, tracking system used to properly bill and report postage use for various government agencies.
P
P&DC/F
Processing & Distribution Center/Facility, a facility that processes and distributes mail for a particular service area.
PAL
Parcel Airlift, air transportation for parcels to and from military bases outside the continental Unites States.
PAVE
Presort Accuracy Validation and Evaluation, testing program in which the USPS determines the accuracy of a mailer's presorting software and ability to produce presort documentation.
POSTNET
Postal Numeric Encoding Technique, a barcode system for coding the ZIP code and delivery point of mail.
PVDS
Plant-Verified Drop Shipment, procedure for accepting and verifying mail that will be shipped by the mailer to the destination post office.
Q
QBRM
Qualified Business Reply Mail, procedure for tracking postage and fees for business reply mail.
R
RCSC
Rate and Classification Service Center, an office that provides guidance to mailers on classification, rates, and more.
RR
Rural Route, route served by a rural carrier.
RVE
Remote Video Encoding, machine that prints address corrections directly on the mail before it is sorted.
S
SAM
Space Available Mail, military mail transported by surface that does not require expediting.
SCF
Sectional Center Facility, facility that processes mail for an area designated by the first 3 digits of the ZIP code.
SPF
Shipper Paid Forwarding, address forwarding system where the forwarding postage is tracked by approved ACS codes.
U
UAA
Undeliverable As Addressed, mail that cannot be delivered for various reasons and is returned to the sender.
USC
United States Code, the laws of the United States, Section 39 contains laws relating to the USPS.
USPS
United States Postal Service, originally known as the Post Office Department and reorganized in 1971 as an establishment of the government's Executive Branch.
W
WKG
Working, code identifying mail that needs further sorting.
WS/WSEQ
Walk Sequence, the order in which a letter carrier delivers mail for a carrier route.
Z
ZIP
Zone Improvement Plan, system of 5 digit numbers identifying a particular post office or area, created in 1963. ZIP Code is a trademark of the USPS.
ZIP+4
Expanded ZIP Code consisting of an additional 4 digits designating an area and a building within that area, created in 1981. ZIP+4 is a trademark of the USPS.