postalref

eInduction

eInduction is a USPS process that checks the payment and preparation of commercial mail containers by scanning their barcodes against the mailer's electronic documentation. It handles drop shipments and expedited plant load mailings without paper PS Forms 8125 and 8017.

Updated October 31, 202620 sources

What it is

eInduction is a way of entering mail at USPS facilities that works at the container level. Full-Service mailers and the providers that prepare their mail use it. USPS deployed it in October 2013.

It replaces paper checks at the dock with data, so clerks no longer reconcile containers by hand against paper forms. FAST, the USPS system for drop shipment appointments, also resolves appointments around the clock.

eInduction supports drop shipping, where mailers earn discounts by entering mail closer to its destination. It is a requirement for Seamless Acceptance mailers that create drop shipments.

How it works

The mailer's preparation is the same at every kind of drop site. What differs is the scanner: a site either has a Surface Visibility scanner or uses an IMDAS scanner instead. Surface Visibility sites check containers as they arrive. At other sites, checks happen after induction.

The normal case, from preparation to reports.

  1. The mailer confirms its rate, processing categories, container types and facility types are eligible.
  2. The mailer puts a unique IMcb, the Intelligent Mail container barcode, on each container.
  3. The mailer books a FAST appointment for a processing facility or hub.
  4. The mailer flags its containers as eInduction in the eDoc and uploads it to PostalOne!.
  5. The eInduction module in PostalOne! creates container records and sends them to FAST and Surface Visibility.
  6. At a Surface Visibility site, scanners read each IMcb to check payment and induction location.
  7. At other sites, USPS employees scan each IMcb with an IMDAS scanner.
  8. After induction, USPS systems check for duplicate barcodes and the claimed entry discount.
  9. Reports tell the mailer about payment, induction and delivery of each container.

Delivery units take eInduction containers without appointments.

Who can take part

Four mail classes qualify, each for set processing categories:

  • First-Class Mail: letters, flats and cards.
  • Periodicals: letters and flats.
  • Standard Mail, including nonprofit: letters and flats.
  • Bound Printed Matter: flats.

Parcel mailings do not qualify, and neither do Priority Mail, Parcel Select, Media Mail or Library Mail. Containers must be one of the eligible types, such as pallets, and loose sacks or trays are not permitted.

The entry location has to be correct per the Mail Direction File. Origin and destination entry shipments both qualify. Air facilities and non-Postal facilities do not support eInduction.

Flagging containers in the eDoc

An eDoc is the mailing's postage statements and supporting paperwork, sent electronically instead of on paper. The mailer marks each eInduction container in it with a Y in the eInduction Indicator field.

In Mail.dat, the eInduction fields sit in the CSM file for pallets and mother pallets. The CSM record carries these fields:

  • eInduction Indicator, set to Y.
  • Container Type, set to an eligible container type.
  • IM Container Barcode, always filled in and unique across all jobs for 45 days from the postage statement mailing date.
  • Entry Point Actual/Delivery Locale Key, always filled in.
  • Accept Misship, optional, set to Y to accept misshipped containers.

The eDoc submitter can change the indicator at any time, before or after finalization. Mailers who use Postal Wizard can take part with a simplified container manifest.

Some mailers cannot tell which tray is on which pallet, so they build a logical pallet in the eDoc. Physical pallets then inherit its eInduction flag and entry point. A logical container needs at least one physical sibling container.

Onboarding

A mailer that meets the requirements asks to join through the FAST Helpdesk. The mailer names the Customer Registration IDs, the numbers for each business location, that will send eInduction mailings. Onboarding takes 2 to 3 weeks on average and 4 weeks at most.

Continuous mailers

A continuous mailer may induct containers before paying postage once USPS issues it a Continuous Mailer ID. A USPS manager with the eInduction Master Role approves or denies each request. Every container accepted under a continuous Mailer ID still goes through post-induction checks. Continuous mailers get 10 days after a scan to upload the eDoc before an error is logged.

eInduction Certification

eInduction Certification is a USPS certification for software vendors whose products support eInduction mailings. It is for software vendors and developers. USPS notes each certified product on its mailing software reference lists and fact sheets.

A mailer that uses certified software may complete a simplified testing program before onboarding. Mailers should check that their software provider supports eInduction mailings.

A certified product has four required capabilities:

  • It lets the user set the eInduction Indicator in the eDoc, for chosen containers or the whole mailing.
  • It leaves eInduction containers out of the container counts on paper PS Forms 8125 and 8017.
  • It supports destination drop ship mailings and mailer-transported origin mail into local plants.
  • It creates an IMcb for each physical container, unique for 45 days from the postage statement mailing date.

A certified product may also have three optional capabilities:

  • It lets the mailer put an eInduction continuous Mailer ID in the IMcb.
  • It lets the user set the eDoc indicator that accepts misshipped containers.
  • It prints the optional eInduction Intelligent Mail container placard.

Vendors certify each software product by eDoc type, Mail.dat or Mail.XML, and by mailing type: class, processing category and special preparation.

  1. The vendor tests the software in the Test Environment for Mailers.
  2. The vendor fills out the eInduction Software Vendor Certification Application.
  3. The vendor emails the application to the PostalOne! HelpDesk.

The vendor enrollment tool gives a detailed overview of the certification process.

Applications/Forms

Announcements

Rules

All eInduction containers must ship with a unique Intelligent Mail Barcode (IMcb) printed on the pallet placard. The barcode must not be reused for at least 45 days.

Every eInduction container must carry its own IMcb on the pallet placard. A mailer must not use the same barcode again within 45 days.

To identify containers as eInduction, mailers must set the eInduction Indicator field on the electronic postage statement to “Y”.

A container counts as eInduction only when the mailer sets its eInduction Indicator to Y in the electronic postage statement.

eInduction containers cannot ship until they are paid for.

A container must not ship before its postage is paid.

In the normal eInduction process, containers must be finalized to be accepted at locations and mailers must wait 2 hours after finalization to induct containers.

The postage statement must be finalized before a facility accepts the containers. The mailer must then wait 2 hours before inducting them.

For eInduction, postage statements must be submitted using one of the general eDoc submission formats: Mail.dat, Mail.XML, or Postal Wizard.

The mailer must send its postage statements in Mail.dat, Mail.XML or Postal Wizard.

Mailers must set the Accept_Misshipped field to Y in Mail.dat or Mail.XML to override the misshipped validation at induction.

To have a misshipped container accepted at induction, the mailer must set the Accept_Misshipped field to Y.

Mailers must either pay the assessed amount upon receipt or request review of the postage assessment charges within 10 business days of the email notification.

After an assessment email, the mailer must pay or ask for a review within 10 business days.

Mailers should not just blanket flag all containers as “Y” for eInduction.

A mailer should not flag every container as eInduction by default.

What goes wrong

A container shipped to the wrong facility is flagged as misshipped, rejected and returned. USPS charges the misshipped error to the eDoc submitter. A container whose postage statement is not finalized is rejected at induction.

Reversing a postage statement while its containers are arriving breaks the data transfer to Surface Visibility. The containers may then be held at the destination facility.

After induction, USPS runs six verifications and logs an error when one fails:

ErrorLogged when
UndocumentedA scanned IMcb is in no eDoc, or only in an estimated postage statement.
PaymentThe container's postage statement is not finalized.
DuplicateThe same IMcb appears on two or more containers within 45 days of the postage statement mailing date.
MisshippedThe container is scanned at the wrong entry location per the Mail Direction File.
Entry Point DiscountA piece claims an entry discount the entry location does not offer.
Zone DiscountA Periodicals or Bound Printed Matter piece claims a lower zone than the real one.

Each verification has a threshold, a percentage of containers in error. When errors pass the threshold at month end, USPS charges additional postage on the containers over it. A misshipped container is assessed the difference between the origin entry rate and its drop-ship discount. A misshipped container gets no Entry Point Discount check, so it is not charged twice.

Assessment reports come out on the 11th day of each month, by eDoc submitter CRID. Mailers fully in Seamless Acceptance are not invoiced for payment errors.

Terms

eInductionEIN, electronic Induction, eInduction program, eInduction Pilot program
The electronic Induction (eInduction) process streamlines the preparation and induction (how and where the mail physically enters the USPS mailstream) of drop shipments and expedited plant load mailings.
Electronic DocumentationeDoc, Electronic Documentation of Mailing Information, electronic document, electronic mailing documentation
an electronic postage statement that may also contain specific information about a mailing such as barcode information and qualification reports
PostalOne!PostalOne! system
the information management system that provides an electronic linkage between a customer’s mailing information and the Postal Service’s business mail acceptance and induction processes. It produces postage statements and supporting documentation.
eInduction module in PostalOne!
creates container records and automatically transmits these records to the SV and FAST systems.
Facility Access and Shipment TrackingFAST, Facility Access & Shipment Tracking, Facilities Access and Shipment Tracking, Facilty Access and Shipment Tracking, Facility Access and Shipment Tracking (FAST) system, Facility Access Shipment Tracking (FAST) system
provides business mail owners, preparers, and schedulers enhanced visibility of their scheduled mailings at each facility.
Customer Registration IDCRID, Customer Registration Identification Number, Customer Registration Identifier, Customer Identifier, Customer Reference ID, Customer Registration Identifications
a USPS-generated numeric code of up to 15 digits that uniquely identifies a business at a specific location
continuous mailer
mailers that have continuous mailing sites and that deliver shipments within 2 hours of finalization
eDoc submitter
the mailer who submitted the electronic documentation for the mailing
Mailer ScorecardMailer scorecard report, Full-Service Mailer Scorecard
a mail quality tool, the Mailer Scorecard, which displays a dashboard view of the results of the letter and flat mailing activity within each of these initiatives over a calendar month.

Documents

Tech Guides

Technical Specifications

User Guides

Publications

Fact Sheets

Data Files

Applications/Forms

Contacts

For questions about eInduction, USPS lists a phone number, 1-800-522-9085, and the email intelligentmailsupport@usps.gov. To start onboarding, mailers contact the FAST Helpdesk at 1.877.569.6614 or FAST@usps.gov.

Sources