OPEX® Mail Matrix® Automates The Mailroom At Liberty University
By eliminating the time-consuming need to manually look up names on lists, Liberty University is saving approximately $120,000 annually and reducing the need for additional full-time staff members
The Background
Liberty University, located in Lynchburg, Virginia, has experienced significant expansion in the last few years. This rapid growth in campus size, student body, and faculty came with new challenges that needed to be addressed. Historically, sorting mail accounted for approximately 126 hours of staff overtime at the start of each semester dealing with a myriad of issues related to students returning to campus.
The Challenge
The population increase at this prestigious university made sorting inbound mail to staff and students a labor intensive and costly process. Additionally, the university found that for many students, the daily routine of checking their physical mailbox was not a priority. This meant that mail accumulated in their mailbox until the box was full.
Key Challenges
Rapid growth in campus size, student body, and faculty
Mail sorting accounted for approximately 126 hours of staff overtime
Checking physical mailboxes was not a priority leading to overflowing mailboxes
The Solution
Liberty University installed the Mail Matrix® intelligent mixed mail sorter. Using iBOTs®, wireless robotic vehicles, Mail Matrix distributes a wide variety of mail into a convenient array of delivery bins in a single pass. With a small footprint, high functionality, and cost saving efficiency, Mail Matrix offers a powerful solution that meets the needs of mail centers in corporations, universities, hospitals, service bureaus, lockboxes, and many more. The operator loads incoming mail into the feeder which is then passed to the iBOT which sorts to the correct location. This eliminates the need to manually look up names in lists and increases efficiency, especially when new staff member or students are added. The mail center also implemented an email notification solution whereby mail recipients receive an email notification when they receive mail. This was made possible by using the statistical reporting capabilities of the Mail Matrix. Each day, a “Per Recipient” report, stating who on campus has received mail, is sent to ADS. This data is merged with the recipient’s email address, and an automated email notifies the recipient that mail is awaiting pickup in their campus mailbox.
Key Results
.02%
The amount of annual savings from reducing the need for additional full-time staff
5%
Number overtime hours reduced
4
Pieces of mail per hour sorted in a single pass
Bob Boyer
AVP, Liberty University Postal Services
The Future
Liberty University is poised for future growth, as is their mail center. With the new notification system in place and the ability to add expansion modules to Mail Matrix, the team at Liberty are equipped to handle the additional volume of mail that will be generated by increases in student population for the foreseeable future.
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