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Office of Research Services

Serving the NIH Community

Parcel Ground Service

​​Definition

A nationwide, economical, date-certain, guaranteed parcel ground delivery service available to any physical address within the 48 contiguous United States, except to Post Office Boxes, (also excludes Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and US Virgin Islands).

This “add-on” service guarantees door-to-door delivery to most U.S. cities in one to six days (depending on distance) at significantly lower costs and improves transit time for parcels that could normally take up to 14 days for delivery via USPS Parcel Post. This service also allows customers to track parcels by telephone or using the Internet. Contact the Mail Customer Service Branch for assistance with tracking.

When parcels meeting weight requirements up to 70 pounds are received, DMMS will perform a cost and transit time comparison between the USPS and other carriers to determine which carrier will be the most cost effective and provide the least transit time for NIH parcels. Customers can expect improved delivery time and reduction in mailing costs.


Procedures for Using Parcel Ground Service

No special requirements are needed. Prepare the parcel in accordance with USPS addressing standards and place in the NIH outgoing mail stream. Customers with parcels too large to fit into collection boxes should contact the Mail Customer Service Branch to schedule a pick-up. Customers located near DMMS satellite mail facilities may always take packages there or call for assistance if the parcel is too large to carry.

Customers with high-volume mailings meeting weight requirements should contact the Mail Customer Service Branch at the beginning of the planning stage.​

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