Mailroom

The postroom is a 'back office' operation and must be placed at the rear of the building close to the 'goods-in' loading area. The first question to ask is whether the room is the correct size for the operation, or has it been placed in the only vacant area.

Small organisations such as the smaller accountants or law firms may incorporate the mail services into the reception services. This is when it becomes a 'front office' operation and bespoke furniture has to be manufactured to match the reception desk and other fittings.

The mailroom should have good natural light. If this is not possible then there should be very good artificial light. The room should also have suspended ceilings, wallcoverings, and suitable floor coverings.

Although few staff know where the postroom is situated, it is still the hub of the organisation. If the postroom does not function in the correct manner and deliver mail at the agreed time, this will hinder the core business — the mailroom is the factory area of the office.

Being the 'factory' it must have heavy-duty equipment, for example, benches rather than office furniture. The sorting units should be manufactured from wire mesh rather than solid wood. This enables all contents of the sort compartment to be visible, therefore there is no lost or mislaid mail. Generally speaking for back office operations the correct equipment should come from the specialist supplier rather than using carpenters or office furniture suppliers.

The workflow procedure in any mailroom is critical. The facilities manager should consult the experts, rather than discussing the subject with existing employees. These employees may have been operating the wrong practices for years. A fresh pair of eyes will highlight inefficiencies.

If a new building is involved, it is wise for the facilities manager to survey the existing procedures in the old building, taking note of the employees' ideas and grievances.

Also, the facilities manager should talk to the architect or interior designer before fit-out commences. It has been known for the architect to have completely forgotten about the mailroom. Mailrooms have even been situated on the second floor of buildings, with 50 sacks of mail being delivered each morning and 50 sacks being sent out each night from there.

Outsourcing the mailroom has become extremely popular with large organisations opting to concentrate on their core business. Contracts tend to be multi-service contracts incorporating one or more of the following: couriers; facsimile; imaging; materials management; photocopying; porterage; post room; printing; production mail reception/switchboard; records management; reprographics. The contracts are usually for three /five years.

Mailroom fit-out sizes & prices
The estimates in the table include administration staff only, (that is employees at an HQ), rather than including factory personnel and off-site personnel (such as sales representatives).

Postroom costs
It is difficult to calculate how much each worker spends on postroom services as each cost will be company specific, however Johnson Controls has used the amount of floorspace to calculate postroom spend. It has estimated the probable number of workers in relation to the physical size of the company and then divided this number by the total spend on the postroom for the company. From the results below, it may be assumed that the IT company's expenditure is significantly lower than the petrochemical company as it is making better use of the technology available.

Johnson Controls has compared second quarter costs with fourth quarter costs in 2000. In the post/mailroom services there have been small increases. The estimates are based on a building with 500 occupants. According to Johnson Controls, the competition in the courier supply market is having a beneficial impact on costs, however, this is being offset by postal charges for first class services rising and labour rate increases are moving in line with other low skill base positions in the service industry.

Courier costs MSI has estimated that in 1999 the value of the UK market for domestic courier deliveries was £550m. In its July 2000 report entitled The UK market for courier services, MSI predicts that the market for national deliveries is expected to increase by 21 per cent between 2000 and 2004, and in 1999.

The expansion of e-commerce has increased the demand for courier services, however, the internet has also had a negative impact on demand as there are a wider range of substitute methods for the same day delivery of documents, such as faxes, email and the internet.

Technology has also enabled NCA Logistics, in partnership with Amey, to introduce the only national same-day courier service in the world to turn around an e-procurement booking in 24 hours. The clients can email the organisation with delivery details and the organisation will find the most suitable carrier for the job.

But despite sector growth and innovation, MSI believes that governmental transport policies have impacted significantly on the market. Trade sources report that the price of motor insurance may rise to £2,500 a year - the high charge reflecting the high mileage travelled by a courier which is 70-80,000 a year. MSI believes that this increase in insurance coupled with the increasing fuel prices may cause couriers to raise their prices.