Look for new addresses

By Nancy Hurrelbrinck

University Mail Services has begun implementing a new address system that assigns box numbers to all departments on Grounds and will be recognizable to the U.S. Postal Service, thereby speeding up delivery, eliminating errors and saving the University money, said Mail Services director Jack Parker.

"'It's about time!' is the response I've gotten from everyone I've talked to," he said. "The old system was not compatible with the federal one, so the mail had to be sorted manually, instead of automatically." With the new box numbers, the mail will arrive presorted by the Postal Service.

The new system, effective Jan. 1 for the hospital and by July 1 for the rest of the University, eliminates several sources of potential errors attending the old one. "A lot of departments have similar names or abbreviations, and the hospital was using its own box numbers, which were conflicting with Charlottesville box numbers," Parker said.

The six-digit P.O. box numbers, to be used for both U.S. and messenger mail, will begin with 800 at the hospital and 400 on the rest of Grounds. The new numbers are valid now for those office and departments that have received them.

Preliminary directories have been sent to departments for corrections; once they've been updated, final copies will be distributed in April, Parker said.

Not only will the new system be easier to implement and train employees to use, it will allow departments to keep the same address when they relocate and save the University money, he said.

Wanting to improve their delivery, many individual departments were paying $500 per year for a special service that separated their mail and held it for pickup at the post office.