A. Hours of Operation
B. Contacts and Phone Numbers
C. Delivery and Collections Schedules
          USPS and Interoffice Mail
          Accountable Mail
D. Preparing Mail for Pick-up
          Outgoing USPS
          Interoffice Mail
E. Unique Zip Code and Add-ons
F. Addressing for Success - Domestic

A. HOURS of OPERATION

• Postal Services: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Bulk Mail Services: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

B. CONTACTS and PHONE NUMBERS

• Director: Sally J. Rowland 713-743-5824
• Manager: Robert Poole 713-743-5826
• Supervisor: Gabriel Hernandez 713-743-5829
• Financial Coordinator: Lisa Haywood 713-743-5909

• Main Number: 713-743-5840
• Fax Number: 713-743-5827
• Bulk Mail Services: 713-743-5825

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C. DELIVERY and COLLECTION SCHEDULES

• Morning Mail Run: 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
• Afternoon Mail Run: 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• The U.S. Post Office picks up our metered mail at 4:30 p.m. each day (Monday - Friday).

USPS & Interoffice Mail

Pick-up is made at established collection points only. Carriers may not collect or deliver mail to an unauthorized area. Any variation must be authorized by UH Postal Services. Requests for new collection and delivery points or changes in existing points should be requested in writing via email to the Director of UH Postal Services. The e-mail address is sjrowland@central.uh.edu

Delivery and collection schedules are established by UH Postal Services based on location, mail volume, vehicle patterns, and U.S. Postal Services (U.S.P.S.) schedules. If you have an unusually large volume of mail or heavy packages to be picked up, please make special arrangements by calling UH Postal Services. Requests made by 11:00 a.m. are on a same-day basis.

Accountable Mail

Accountable mail (Certified, Registered, USPS Express (overnight) and Insured mail is received from the U.S.P.S. by approximately 12:00 p.m. and is delivered to departments each afternoon on the 1:00 p.m. pickup and delivery. All Insured, Registered, Certified and Express mail must be signed for at the time of delivery.

Note: Any person expecting an urgent Express Mail item may call Ext. 3-5829 in the morning to check its status. If the Express Mail has been received, the recipient may pick it up immediately. If it has not been received, the accountable clerk will call when it arrives.

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D. PREPARING MAIL for PICK-UP

The departments are responsible for preparing and sorting their outgoing mail for pick-up according to the following instructions:

OUTGOING USPS
"To Be Metered Mail"

• All mail must have a complete University of Houston return address which includes the department name and 5 digit zip code plus the 4 digit mail code add-on.
• Keep domestic and international mail in separate bundles.
• Prepare the following in separate bundles: post cards, letter size envelopes, large envelopes (flats) and "accountable" mail.
• Each bundle type must have a completed Department Mailing Card or DMC (bar coded account number included) attached.
• Envelopes with metal clips and end flaps: attach the label so that the flap is to the right when looking at the front. These envelopes must be sealed. These procedures will prevent the flap from tearing when it goes through the meter machine.
• Letter size envelopes can be sealed by the meter machine if the flaps are extended (open).
  

  Note: Envelopes that are received with the flaps down and not sealed, will be returned for "flapping" (the extending or opening of all envelope flaps) to the originator.

• Envelopes that are bulky (or more than 1/4" thick) must be sealed by the department as the mailing machine will not seal them properly and/or they will not be able to be run through the mailing machine.
• Never use staples to secure the opening of your mail piece, flaps or folded flyers.

Personal stamped mail and already metered mail should be kept separate from mail "to be metered".

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INTEROFFICE MAIL

Interoffice mail should be bundled together and not mixed with any other type of mail. Address all interoffice mail using the proper complete mail code (see Campus Mail Codes). Building and room numbers are not necessary - only the person's name and mail code are needed. Be very specific and include sufficient information to assure proper delivery. Unclear or incomplete addressing can cause a delay in delivery. An example of a correctly addressed piece of interoffice mail:

"John Smith 2020"

Only interoffice envelopes should be used for interoffice mail; otherwise, the envelopes may go through the postage meter which would incur a cost for your department.

There is interoffice mail delivery to the Downtown, Clear Lake and Sugarland campuses. Please consult the Department Mailing Code Listing for proper mail codes to these areas. There is no interoffice mail to the UH-Victoria campus. All UH-Victoria mail is processed through the USPS on a daily basis. Address all mail to UH-Victoria in the following manner:

University of Houston - Victoria
Attn: Department and/or name of recipient
2506-E Red River
Victoria, Texas 77901-4450

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E. UNIQUE ZIP and ADD-ONS

The University's unique ZIP Code is 77204.

ZIP Codes move the mail faster. The U.S. Postal Services' sorting equipment are able to read ZIP Codes and sort approximately 36,000 bar coded pieces of mail per hour. Mail without ZIP Codes must be held for conventional sorting at slower speeds. Please make sure that the mail is machine readable, it will speed the processing - refer to "Addressing For Success" for correct addressing procedures.

Use the above unique ZIP Code plus your department's numeric 4-digit mail code as part of your return address when corresponding. For example, if your numeric four digit mail code for interoffice mail is "1002", your 9 digit zip code for all off campus correspondence is "77204-1002 " Notify your correspondents of the correct zip code whenever possible.

The additional four digits for departments improves delivery of campus mail. Incorrect delivery frequently occurs when incomplete names are used for departments and offices (for example, using "Psychology" for "Educational Psychology", which is a department under Education, not Psychology; or "Business" for both "Business Administration" and "Business Affairs", etc.). Clearly identifying each department and its 4-digit ZIP add-on will help alleviate this confusion.

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F. ADDRESSING FOR SUCCESS - DOMESTIC

COPY AND DISTRIBUTE!

• Type or machine-print all address information.
• Use upper-case letters.
• Make sure print is clear and sharp.
• Ensure address characters don't touch or overlap.
• Black ink on a white background is best.
• Maintain a uniform left margin.
• Omit all punctuation.
• Include floor, suite and apartment numbers whenever possible. (See "Mailers Guide - Miscellaneous)
• Put the city, state and ZIP Code or ZIP + 4 code in that order on the last line. If there's not enough room, you can put the ZIP Code or ZIP + 4 code alone on the bottom line.
• Use standard two-letter state abbreviations. (See "Mailers Guide - Miscellaneous)
• When using window envelopes, make sure the complete address is always visible, even when the insert moves.
• Leave one space between words and two spaces between the state abbreviation and ZIP Code or ZIP + 4 code.

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