In December 2007, the Postal Service defined modern service standards for its market-dominant products. Service standards for destination entry Standard Mail are 5 days for DBMC, 3 days for DSCF, and 2 days for DDU mailings. Based on the mailing industry's request for additional focus on critical entry times (CETs) and in-home delivery (IHD) days, MTAC 120 began work in January 2008. The IHD Guidelines was one outcome of collaborative efforts from this work group.
The IHD Guidelines were designed as a tool to assist mailers with the synchronization of service standards, CET, and other factors to achieve their desired delivery. This excel file consists of three tabs containing the following information:
- "IHD Guidelines Standard Mail - Destination Entry" segments requested 2-day and 3-day IHD windows by DBMC, DSCF, and DDU entry based on days of the week. According to the IHD Guidelines, the delivery is targeted on the second day of the IHD range.
- "Delivery Color Codes For Standard Mail" provides the Postal Service’s matrices for drop shipments entered as DBMC (ASF), DSCF, and DDU mailings. In August 2008, the Postal Service implemented its revised color code policy nationwide.
- Delivery days are identified for the destination entry of Periodicals and Package Services.
