Address Information Systems (AIS) Products

AIS Viewer is an interactive DVD, which includes the following AIS products: City/State/Delivery Type, County Name Retrieval, Delivery Statistics Retrieval, ZIP + 4^® Retrieval, and Address Lookup. The DVD provides the ability to retrieve, view, and print hardcopy reports, on demand. The DVD is updated monthly and the data is valid for 105 days from the product (monthly) cycle date. The data is encrypted and cannot be exported.

The following report/product options are available on the AIS Viewer DVD:

• City/State/Delivery Type – A comprehensive list of ZIP Codes and the city, county, and Post Office™ names associated with those ZIP Codes. The City/State report can be used to validate a city (Post Office) name and ZIP™ Code that is part of a mailing address. The Delivery Type report identifies the type of deliveries made to each ZIP Code. (i.e. street, rural, post office box, general, unique, military, and non-active addressed delivery)
• County Name Retrieval – Provides the name of the county or parish in which the 5-digit ZIP Code resides.
• Delivery Statistics Retrieval – Provides information regarding the number of deliveries by individual carrier route and Post Office box section. The data file defines the number of post office boxes and business/residential deliveries on city, rural, and highway contract routes (HCRs) for every ZIP Code.
• ZIP + 4 Retrieval – Provides the ability to lookup and print reports of street records in various formats. (city, state, ZIP Code, carrier route code, etc.)
• Address Lookup – Lookup individual addresses to verify/obtain the correct 5-digit ZIP Code, ZIP + 4 code, carrier route code, county code, delivery point code, and check digit code.

The Address Lookup function is free with the purchase of at least one of the four other AIS Viewer products, which are priced separately, allowing mailers the flexibility to customize the AIS Viewer to their needs. The annual subscription price is based on the product(s) ordered, and includes 12 monthly updates.

For more information about AIS Viewer and other addressing tools, contact the National Customer Support Center at 800-238-3150, or via email at incsc@usps.gov.

Links
PS Form 5111, AIS Viewer Order Form PDF

AIS Viewer User's Guide PDF

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Carrier Route Product provides mailers with reference information for applying carrier route codes to addresses when taking advantage of presort postage discounts. Mail containing carrier route codes can then be presorted to the carrier route level.

Carrier Route Product is available with monthly or bimonthly updates on CDROM. This product contains raw data and does not contain any software. The hardcopy report offered in the past has been replaced with the ZIP + 4^® Retrieval option found on the AIS Viewer CD-ROM. Using the ZIP + 4 Retrieval option, mailers can retrieve, view, and print hardcopy reports on demand similar to the Carrier Route Information System (CRIS) hardcopy reports.

Mailers are encouraged to update their files when they receive updates from the Postal Service™ or vendors, and carrier-presort mailers must comply with the established mandatory update cycles specified by the Postal Service in the DMM^® reference manual.

A sample Carrier Route file is available for download.

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Sample Carrier Route File

City State Product is a comprehensive list of ZIP Codes™ with corresponding city and county names. This file also contains other names by which a Post Office™ may be known. City State Product can assist mailers with city, state, and 5-digit ZIP validation; ZIP Code and finance number assignment; and county code/name identification.

This product contains raw data and does not contain any software. It is available on CD-ROM and contains approximately 100,000 records. Updates are issued monthly or bimonthly, and technical guides are either shipped automatically with a subscription or are available upon request.

Note: City State Product does not contain detailed street data; it only contains city place names and their associated ZIP Codes. To perform complete 5-digit ZIP coding of address files, City State Product must be used in conjunction with Five-Digit ZIP Product, ZIP + 4^® Product, or Carrier Route Product.

A sample City State file is available for download.

Links
City State Sample File

Delivery Statistics Product contains information regarding delivery by carrier route and Post Office box section. This data file defines the number of post office boxes and business/residential deliveries on city, rural, and highway contract routes for every ZIP Code™ in the nation. This product contains raw data and does not contain any software. It is available on CD-ROM.

A sample Delivery Statistics file is available for download.

Links
Sample Delivery Statistics File

Five-Digit ZIP Product, in conjunction with City State Product, provides mailers the ability to add 5-digit ZIP Codes to address files and validate existing 5-digit ZIP Code assignments.

Five-Digit ZIP Product contains 5-digit ZIP Codes and detailed, ranged street data only for cities with more than one delivery ZIP Code (i.e., multi-coded cities). A complete list of ZIP Codes for both single- and multi-coded cities can only be found in City State Product. Both City State Product and Five-Digit ZIP Product are required to perform complete 5-digit ZIP encoding and validation.

Five-Digit ZIP Product is available on CD-ROM and updates are produced monthly or bimonthly. This product contains raw data and does not contain any software.

A sample Five-Digit ZIP file is available for download.

Links
Sample Five-Digit ZIP File

The eLOT^® Product was developed to give mailers the ability to sort their mailings in approximate carrier-casing sequence. To aid in mail sortation, eLOT contains an eLOT sequence number field and an ascending/descending code. The eLOT sequence number indicates the first occurrence of delivery made to the add-on range within the carrier route, and the ascending/descending code indicates the approximate delivery order within the sequence number. eLOT processing may be used by mailers to qualify for enhanced carrier route presort discounts.

The United States Postal Service^® requires address lists to be processed through CASS Certified™ ZIP + 4_^® addressing-matching software before being processed against eLOT Product. Non ZIP + 4 coded records may not be used with this product.

eLOT product contains raw data and does not contain any software. It is available on CD ROM. For more information about eLOT, contact the National Customer Support Center at 800-238-3150.

Links
Sample of eLOT File

In cooperation with the mailing industry, the U.S. Postal Service^® designedZ4Change to provide mailers the information to create an application that would facilitate frequent and cost-effective processing for updating very large computerized mailing lists for automation compatibility and improved deliverability. This joint effort promotes the Industry/USPS^® Worksharing Task Force goal of increased use of automation for mail processing. This product contains raw data and does not contain any software. Z4Change is available on CD-ROM.

Current USPS regulations require that all customer address lists be processed by CASS Certified™ address-matching software (see DMM^® 708.3.3) for a complete description of CASS™ requirements. CASS Certified software applies the correct ZIP + 4^®, delivery point, and/or carrier route codes while standardizing the address, city, and state elements. To enhance deliverability, the USPS recommends that customers reprocess their address lists more frequently using CASS Certified software; however, frequent reprocessing of address lists can be costly and time-consuming.

Z4Change was developed for customers who need data as a cost-effective means of improving the deliverability of their mail using the most current ZIP + 4 and delivery point information. Z4Change helps customers achieve this goal by providing data that indicates which ZIP + 4 Codes have been realigned in the past twelve months. When a highrise ("H") or firm ("F") record is added to the ZIP + 4 Product by the USPS, Z4Change also shows a transaction for the supporting street ZIP + 4 Code, allowing customers the opportunity to upgrade previously coded street-level matches. Customers must then develop their own software to access Z4Change to determine which records on their address lists need to be reprocessed by CASS Certified software. As a result, only records that have had transactions will need to be reprocessed, which can be done on a monthly or bimonthly basis.

Should the USPS determine that a significant change in CASS requirements warrants a complete update of all addresses, Z4Change customers may be notified that they will be required to reprocess their entire address lists. Otherwise, Z4Change customers will only be required to reprocess their entire lists at the end of the third year following Z4Change certification.

Z4Change Product and CASS certification offer the following benefits:

• Eliminates the need to reprocess an entire address list by providing a means of maintaining continuous qualification for discounted automation rates. Z4Change users' address files remain current and in compliance with USPS regulations.
• Increases address accuracy by enabling more frequent ZIP + 4 address file processing.
• Enhances the mailer's competitiveness in the marketplace by improving the deliverability of mail and increasing the promptness of mail delivery.

A sample Z4Change file is available for download.

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Sample Z4Change File

The ZIP + 4 Product File enables businesses with computer capabilities to add ZIP + 4 codes to their address files. The ZIP + 4 file contains approximately 30 million records and is available in its entirety or by selected states. Mailers must purchase or develop their own matching software in order to use this file.

The ZIP + 4 file is available on DVD on a monthly or quarterly basis. The changed ZIP + 4 Code information is available monthly. The ZIP + 4 product contains raw data and does not contain any software.

To convert mailing lists to ZIP + 4, mailers can…

• Order an electronic ZIP + 4 database from the United States Postal Service^® and develop their own address-matching software.
• Lease or purchase software from an outside vendor and convert their own lists.
• Subcontract their conversion through a service bureau.

A sample ZIP + 4 file is available for download.

For more information, please call the National Customer Support Center at 800-238-3150.

Links
Sample ZIP + 4 File

To reflect U.S. Postal Service^® ZIP^® Code realignment efforts, ZIPMove data files were created to assist address-matching software in providing up-todate, accurate ZIP + 4^® codes. The ZIPMove Product is available with monthly or bimonthly updates on CD-ROM. This product contains raw data and does not contain any software.

The primary objective in creating this product was to maximize mailers' ZIP + 4 code matching potential in situations in which ZIP Code realignments have taken place and a change in city name and/or finance number has occurred (which normally prevents address-matching software from determining the newly assigned ZIP Code).

Mailers are encouraged to incorporate ZIPMove as a regular part of their address hygiene process for the purpose of correcting addresses that have undergone a ZIP Code realignment in which a change in city name and/or finance number occurred.

A sample ZIPMove file is available for download.

Links
Sample ZIPMove File