Fort Lauderdale to Conduct AMP Study

On Monday, April 4, the Postal Service will begin an Area Mail Processing (AMP) feasibility study at the Fort Lauderdale Processing and Distribution Center. The purpose of the study is to see if it makes sense to consolidate some operations into the Miami Processing and Distribution Center. This does not mean that any changes in operations are being made now. We are just conducting a study at this time. Why is this AMP study being conducted? We all know that mail volume has fallen the past few years. Since 2007, total mail volume has declined by 20 percent. Even more importantly for our operations, the volume of stamped First-Class letter mail has dropped nearly 50 percent over the past decade. Because there is less mail to cancel and sort, we have an excess capacity of equipment, people and space devoted to processing a declining volume of stamped mail. It only makes sense to study whether we can consolidate some of these operations to improve efficiency and reduce costs, as long as service is not negatively impacted. AMPs are not new. The Postal Service has been doing them for decades. We need to constantly update and improve our operations in order to help keep mail affordable, maintain universal service, and preserve the long-term viability of the Postal Service and all of our jobs. How does the AMP process work? First a feasibility study is conducted. Based on the data from that study, a proposal is then made. The proposal may recommend consolidating mail processing operations; or it may say that a consolidation should not be made because it would not provide any cost savings or would negatively impact service. If the study data indicates that consolidating operations makes sense, a public meeting will be held to allow members of the community to ask questions and provide feedback. The business case for consolidation and community feedback will be considered, and then a decision will be made as to whether or not the mail processing operations should be consolidated. What would happen if the decision is made to move some operations to the Miami Processing and Distribution Center? First, there may be some reassignments made for Fort Lauderdale career employees if operations are moved. We will try to handle any reductions in positions in the affected operations through attrition to the extent possible. Second, there will be no change in local mail service. Letters mailed to local addresses will be delivered the next day, the same as before. The local postmark will still be available. The majority of originating mail is either metered or permit mail, which will continue to show the Fort Lauderdale mark. Third, there will be no change in retail service. The Fort Lauderdale Main Office that our customers use will still be open as usual with the same hours. We are soliciting the public’s input as part of the process. Employees may submit their comments as well. You can submit your comments by mail to: Consumer Affairs Manager, 2200 NW 72 Ave RM 225, Miami FL 33152-9631. All comments will be fully considered in any decision. All employees will be kept informed about any future developments regarding this AMP study.