1. FE – FI – FO – FIM Bars
An Introduction to Facing Identification Marks and POSTNET bar coding on Envelopes

2. Briefly… Used for Envelopes – not flats or packages
Tells USPS machinery two things:
What type of postage is affixed to the piece
If the piece already has an Intelligent Mail barcode
Five type of FIM bars
FIM-A – used for Courtesy Reply Mail with pre-printed POSTNET barcode
FIM-B – used for Business Reply Mail without pre-printed barcode
FIM-C – used for Business Reply Mail with print-printed barcode
FIM-D – used only with Information Based Indicia (IBI) postage
FIM-E – used for customized mailings with pre-printed barcode

4. FIM – A (for Courtesy Reply Mail)
Has Intelligent Mail (POSTNET) barcode
Envelope should have postage or postage meter affixed
USPS Facer/Canceller will detect fluorescent trace on meter or stamps with 10 cent or greater denomination.
POSTNET coding ensures rapid handling and delivery of piece

5. FIM – B (for Business Reply Mail)
Does not have a POSTNET barcode
Seldom seen since USPS charges much more to permit holders to process non-Intelligent Mail encoded pieces
It’s simple to obtain a proper ZIP+4 for the return address so why not do it?

6. FIM – C (for Business Reply Mail)
Contains Intelligent Mail barcode
Will not have fluorescent ink present to detect
Postage is paid by the recipient of the mail using a permit billing system.

7. FIM – D (used by PC-based postage systems)
Uses personal computers to produce postage indicium
Mail is Intelligent Mail encoded and the postage is present but will not show fluorescent trace

8. POSTNET Barcodes (replaced by Intelligent Mail barcodes)
Replaced by Intelligent Mail barcodes in the fall of 2009
ZIP or ZIP+4 is encoded in half- and full-height bars
Frequently, the delivery point (last 2 digits of address or PO Box) is added
Starts and end with full-height bar
Each digit is represented by a set of five bars, two of which are full bars
Pseudo-binary coded at 7,4,2,1,0 reading from right to left

9. Example of POSTNET Coding – ZIP+45 5 5 5 5 1 2 3 7 2
Start
End
Check Digit

10. Check Digits – Why and How Do They Work?
Check digits are a way of ensuring that the barcode was read properly. If the mail piece is uneven, a full-height bar may be interpreted as a half-height bar.
If the value read in the POSTNET code doesn’t match the calculated check digit, something went wrong in the reading.
To calculate the check digit
Add up the digits. In the previous slide, a letter going to Young America, MN ( ) totals 38.
Find the remainder after dividing by 10 (in this case, 8).
Subtract the remainder from 10 (in this case, leaving 2, the check digit)
If read correctly, the sum of the ZIP, ZIP+4 or ZIP+4+delivery point digits should always be a multiple of 10.

11. It’s Test Time! 6+6+2+2+1+2+3+7+7=36 36 mod 10 = 6 10 – 6 = 4 6 6 2 2
Start
End
Check Digit

12. Intelligent Mail Barcode Beginning Jan. 28th, 2013

13. Intelligent Mail Barcode Components
Index of first digit
Length
Name 1 2
Barcode identifier 3
Service type identifier 6
6 or 9
Mailer ID
12 or 15
9 or 6
Sequence number 21 11
Delivery point ZIP code
Service IDs
First Class Mail with no services
Standard Mai with no services
Periodicals with manual address correction
Business Reply Mail with no services
Priority Mail with no services
712 Priority Mail Flat Rate with no services

14. Thanks for Your Attention Let’s Take a Break Before the Auction