Major USPS Network Changes are Underway

Over the next four to five years, this transformation will upgrade and overhaul every aspect of how mail is handled and delivered. Wondering how you can prepare?

Let GrayHair Help.

Gaining visibility into mail delivery for your critical customer communications is more important than ever! For 20+ years, GrayHair has been providing mail delivery performance data to some of the largest mailers in the United States. Check out our platform below for the insights you need.

What’s To Come

  • Future network design will consist of 60 RPDCs, 190 LPCs, 600 S&DCs and 15,000 “delivery units”, mostly post offices.
    • Out of the 600 Sorting & Delivery Centers (S&DCs) that are planned to go live, 100 are being actively worked on
    • 100 of these centers will be co-located in other plants and the rest with be standalone

Regional Processing & Distribution Centers (RPDCs):

    • The USPS plans to open 9 RPDC regions with 26 LPC’s attached by the end of 2024. These facilities would process around 25% of all mail and packages.
    • Planned to go live in 2024
      • Charlotte, NC; Chicago, IL; Atlanta, GA; Greensboro, NC; Indianapolis, IN; Jacksonville, FL; North Houston, TX; Oklahoma City, OK; Santa Clarita, CA

Sorting & Delivery Centers (S&DCs):

    • To date, the USPS has launched 28 S&DCs and expects to have 30 running by the end of this year.
    • By the end of 2024, they predict that 60 S&DCs will be in operation.
      • January 13
        • Pompano Beach, FL and South Atlanta, GA
      • February 24
        • Binghamton, NY; Charlottesville, VA; Erie, PA; Flint, MI; Hampton, VA; Hattiesburg, MS; Irvine, CA; Jackson, MI; Lafayette, IN; Oxnard, CA; Salem, OR; Richmond, VA; Stewart, NY; Southeastern, PA; Waco, TX
    • By June 1, 2024, the USPS plans to launch additional S&DCs in the following locations: Beaverton, OR; Boston, MA; Fort Lauderdale, FL; Hicksville, NY; Kalamazoo, MI; Lakeland, FL; New Brunswick, NJ; Newark NJ; Orange, CA; Phoenix Rio Salado, AZ; Southern Maryland, MA; Springfield, MA; Stockton, CA

Local Processing Centers (LPCs):

  • The USPS plans to upgrade 40-48 sites in 2024, three or four of these will be new sites

Between 2023-2028, the USPS is purchasing a total of 106,000 vehicles

    • 66,000 of these vehicles will be electric
    • ~50,000 of these vehicles will be commercial
    • The electric vehicle rollout will result in a 98% reduction is carbon burn from the USPS

S&DC Locations Going Live in 2023; courtesy of Save The Post Office

226 Facilities To Become RPDCs and/or LPCs

What’s Already Happening

New changes in Service Standards have already taken action by moving mail and parcels that previously traveled by air to traveling by ground. Additional changes are expected as the network continues to evolve.

New S&DC (Sort & Delivery Center) and RPDC (Regional Processing and Distribution Center) sites are underway.

  • S&DC Activations to date include: Athens, GA; Bryan, TX; Gainesville, FL; Panama City, FL; Utica, NY; Woburn, MA; Annapolis, MD; Hanover Park, IL; Golden, CO; Kokomo, IN; Owensboro, KY; Pasco, WA; Topeka, KS; Williamsport, PA; North Atlanta, GH; Chula Vista, CA; Huntington Station, NY; Irvine, CA; Jackson, MI; Stewart, NY; Palo Alto, CA; Terre Haute, IN; Waco, TX; Athens, GA; Bryan, TX; Utica, NY; Gainesville, FL; Panama City, FL; and Woburn, MA
  • Live RPDCs Include: Richmond, VA, Boise, ID and Portland, OR
    • Norfolk Flats mail moved to the Richmond RPDC on July 29
  • Richmond, VA was the first RPDC to go live
    • Norfolk Flats mail moved to the Richmond RPDC on July 29
  • Elimination of Intra-NDC Network; USPS is enforcing Shape Based Processing by merging Marketing Letters & Flats at Origin P&DC
  • Flats Sequencing System (FSS) machines have been decommissioned
    • Simplifying delivery, increasing workroom space, and save on processing, transportation, and maintenance cost
  • The USPS is in the process of closing down around 150 annexes and contracted facilities to consolidate Mail and Package processing and to reduce transportation costs

Did You Know?

GrayHair can help address your concerns by providing enhanced visibility into your mailing efforts.

These data insights are accessed through easy-to-read dashboards that provide key delivery data points, making it simple to proactively monitor transformation trends and resolve issues.

  • Real-time status of a single mailpiece’s location
  • Projected in-home delivery dates
  • Percentage of how much of a job or campaign has been delivered
  • Client delivery compared to industry performance