Swiss Post Solutions (SPS) has replaced Xerox as the Brandeis mailroom operating partner after complaints from students, faculty and staff of lost packages and slow delivery. Swiss Post Solutions began their contract with Brandeis on June 1, and since then the mailroom has received new package tracking software and a new store manager. The change in providers is expected to result in more efficient package delivery and fewer package losses.

Due to the large volume of packages received last year, especially during the busy periods at the beginning of the school year, the mailroom received many complaints from students, faculty and staff about slow delivery and lost packages. Several measures have been implemented to prevent a repeat of last year’s events.

More temporary and seasonal staff has been hired to compensate for the larger amount of incoming packages during move-in day, Aug. 26. Eight pods have also been placed near first-year dorms, where first-years’ packages will be delivered during international and domestic student move-in. Students will be able to pick up their packages near their dorm, rather than traveling to the mailroom in Usdan Student Center.

The mailroom will be open for extended hours, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, until Sept. 7. It will also be open Aug. 25 and Aug. 26 (move-in days).

As part of what Gino Galutera, the managing director of Campus Card and Auxiliary Services, called “phase two” of the changes to the mailroom, a kiosk system has been installed to reduce wait times. Galutera explained that with this system, students are able to check-in to the mailroom by swiping their student ID card, instead of having to hand it to a clerk.

When a student swipes into the kiosk, they are able to view the number of packages they have in the mailroom and can choose to pick them up now or later. When a student chooses to pick them up, an alert goes to the mailroom computer telling the staff the location and tracking number of the student’s package.

SPS offers a different package tracking software than Xerox. Galutera explained that the new software that Brandeis uses to internally track packages, “SC Logic,” will store, sort and notify students much more quickly. The software provides automatic information flow (such as information about a student’s forwarding address during a leave of absence) with the Sage student information system, while Xerox’s software “PackTrack” required the manual input of some student information.

Galutera spoke about the changes to the mailroom, saying, “I think the changes are…going to more be seen from a customer service standpoint,” he said. “In that… packages don’t get lost and that packages don’t get delayed.”

Changes in staffing of the mailroom have also occurred. Paul Morrison was hired as the new store manager. Morrison was named the 2017 SPS store manager of the year, an accolade Galutera cited as one of the advantages of the new mailroom partnership. Staff members Angela Palmarozzo and Anthony Sanders have been retained, though there have been changes in temporary staffing.

During the search for a new mailroom partner, three companies were considered. After SPS was chosen, personnel from the company such as Vice President of Operations for Swiss Post North America Gary Wilson and Northeast Client Director Andre Josaphat came on sight four weeks prior to the official start of the contract on June 1 to make changes to the organization of the mailroom. Several changes have taken place, such as removing old and unused equipment and purchasing new shelving.

Galutera praised their work on the mailroom floor. “[Wilson] has been looking at the operation, seeing what we could do to make the store better…Making sure that the sorting of the packages… and the workflow of that is nice and clean whereas…in the past a lot of packages were… just put somewhere,” Galutera said. “I think with him onboard and him onsite he was able to make a lot of recommendations.”

Ricoh will be the copy partner for the copy center. Ricoh already provides copiers for academic and staff departments, but its partnership with Brandeis has now been expanded.