Take Note

January 22, 2008
Take Note

Sorting new mail vendors
With key mail services contracts expiring this summer, Emory is in the process of preparing an RFP to select one mail services vendor for the entire enterprise.

Emory’s mail services currently cover 275 mail stops in 10 delivery routes, serves approximately 33,000 end users and delivers to 13 zip codes, in addition to its own unique zip code, 30322. More than 30 million pieces of inbound mail are received annually.

The mail services function is both complex and large, with service effectiveness dependent on clear division of labor between multiple internal and external parties, including the U.S. Postal Service. Consolidation from the current three outside vendors to one vendor will enable better coordination and management of the operation, says Mike Mandl, executive vice president for finance and administration.

While the vendor consolidation is a large part of enhancing service, other elements of the operation will be addressed as well, such as updating mail stop codes for personnel who move locations on campus and reconsidering Emory’s “bulk mail” acceptance policy.

The RFP for a new mail service vendor will be issued and due in February, with the final selection expected in April.

Recycled paper closes ‘loop’
Emory will begin using only 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper for its University stationery, including letterhead, envelopes and business cards.

“We are completing the ‘recycling loop’ when we purchase 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper,” said Ciannat Howett, director of sustainability initiatives. “This paper is the byproduct of the paper we each recycle daily at our desk.”

Manufacturer Mohawk Fine Papers’ products and paper mills are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. The process chlorine free paper is made using non-polluting, wind-generating energy.

Emory is expected to consume 11 tons of this recycled paper annually. According to Mohawk, that equates to the elimination of 19,545 pounds of greenhouse gases, the discharge of 89,712 gallons of wastewater and the planting of 686 trees.