The transcript discusses the process of mail processing in the United States, specifically focusing on the Remote Encoding Center (REC) in Salt Lake City, Utah. The REC is responsible for deciphering scrawl and blurred ink into actual addresses. The process involves optical character recognition (OCR) technology, which reads the address from the front of the envelope. If the machine can't read the handwriting, a keyer at the REC types in the missing information, which is then sent back to the processing plant.
The REC uses a unique keyboard layout to speed up the keying process. The home row, A, S, D, F, also work as numbers. The keying process follows a 3+1 rule, where the first three characters of the first word in the city name are typed, followed by a space and the two-character state or territory abbreviation.
The REC is connected to every processing plant in the country, including those in Guam, Anchorage, Alaska, Juneau, Alaska, San Juan, Puerto Rico, and others. If the machine can't read the mail and a keyer can't decipher it, the mail is sent to the reject bin and manually handled. If the mail can't be deciphered, it is either returned to the sender or sent to the Mail Recovery Center.
The transcript also mentions that the job at the REC may be getting harder due to the increasing difficulty of reading pieces of mail. This is because if the computer can't read it, it's more likely that the mail is not a good piece of mail to begin with. The address may have been destroyed or the customer may have had incorrect information for the address.
The transcript concludes with a demonstration of the keying process, where the speaker is tested on their ability to key in the address information. The speaker successfully completes the test, demonstrating their understanding of the keying process and the 3+1 rule.
1. Almost all the letters that get sent in the United States are processed automatically.
2. The process involves putting the letter in a post box, which is then taken to the closest processing center.
3. At the processing center, cameras and computers take a picture of the front of the envelope.
4. The address is read with optical character recognition (OCR).
5. The envelope is then passed on to the right truck or plane.
6. The postal service also handles handwritten letters.
7. If the handwriting is really bad or the envelope got a bit damp, the picture of the envelope is sent to the Remote Encoding Center (REC) in Salt Lake City, Utah.
8. The folks at the REC turn scrawl and blurred ink into actual addresses.
9. The REC in Salt Lake City, Utah, is the last one in the United States.
10. Back in 1997, when there were 55 RECs open, all of those RECs combined keyed 19 billion images.
11. In 2021, as the last REC remaining, they only keyed 1.2 billion images.
12. The REC currently has about 810 employees.
13. If a piece of mail can't be read by the machine, one of the keyers will type in the missing information.
14. The information goes right back to the plant, staying within automation, which is cheaper than having somebody physically sort that piece by hand.
15. If a piece of mail can't be keyed in 90 seconds and the information isn't returned to the machine, it is dumped into a reject bin and someone has to hand sort it.
16. The REC is connected to every plant in the country, including Guam and Alaska, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
17. If both the machine can't read it and a keyer isn't able to decipher it, the machine at the plant sends it to the reject bin.
18. If they can't figure it out, it would either get returned to the sender.
19. If there's no return-to-sender information, then it will go to the Mail Recovery Center.
20. The speed of keying is about 7,150 keystrokes per hour.
21. It's much tougher than expected to keep everything in your head while keying.
22. The average time for each keying task is about four seconds.
23. The job of keying is impressive and requires a lot of concentration.