For a modern person, the expressions “go to the post office” or “receive a letter” are increasingly used in a completely different meaning than twenty years ago. But, if a letter in a paper envelope has become rare, parcels continue to be sent and received all the time.
How did modern technologies affect the appearance and quality of parcel boxes? What is a postal package?
Shipping Box
Parcel post boxes are branded products of Russian Post. Material - dense multilayer corrugated cardboard of high quality. The walls of such a package, consisting of three or more glued layers, are able to keep their shape perfectly, and also prevent damage, deformation and wetting of the attachment. The mail package will remain intact even after falling from a small height.
A branded box is sold in the form of a designer, that is, in the form of a flat cardboard sheet from which reliable packaging can be easily assembled without using additional fastening materials, adhesive tape or metal staples.
Outer side
Corporate postal boxes for parcels are made exclusively in the colors of “Russian Post”: on a blue background, a logo is applied in white letters over the entire surface.
The front side of the package is provided with a form for writing all the necessary information about the sender and recipient: index, address, etc.
All parcels, with the exception of a parcel with a description of the attachment or with declared value, are accepted for shipment at the post office packed, and then glued with branded color or white adhesive tape (scotch tape) with the inscription "Russian Post" along the entire length.
Sizes of standard cardboard boxes
There are six standard sizes for branded mail packages:
- The largest size box for the “Russian Post” parcel is 425 x 265 x 380 mm. It is referred to as “Type A” or No. 6.
- A slightly less wide packaging is “Type B”, also designated No. 5. The standard size is 425 x 265 x 190 mm.
- The next largest post box is 425 x 165 x 190 mm. Name, respectively, No. 4, or "type B".
- Box size No. 3, aka “Type G”, is 265 x 165 x 190 mm.
- “Type D”, or No. 2, of branded packaging corresponds to a size of 165 x 215 x 100 mm.
- The minimum size of the box for the “Russian Post” parcel is Box No. 1, or “Type E”, - 220 x 185 x 50 mm.
All types of branded packaging vary not only in size but also in shape. From the proposed assortment, it is best to choose a cardboard one that is most suitable for the size of the investment.
What is it for? Firstly, the cost of the package depends on the size of the box. When sending a small item in bulky packaging, the client overpays twice for “air”: buying more expensive containers and paying an additional shipping fee.
Another reason is the need to fill in the empty space in the box with paper or similar material. According to the rules of the provision of postal services, the attachment should not be moved inside the package, as this creates a risk of damage to the shipment in transit.
Is it possible to send a parcel not in the Russian Post box
A question that causes a lot of controversy: can the sender use not his company mail box, but his own packaging to send the parcel through the Russian Post branch? Could this be considered an excuse for the operator not to accept it?
The current delivery procedure does not prohibit the Russian Post client from sending parcels not in standard mailboxes with a company logo, but using the sender's packaging, but subject to certain packaging requirements:
- The use of corrugated cardboard packaging for sending mail attachments is allowed if there are no inscriptions on the surface, except for the information about the sender and receiver of the parcel, there is no adhesive tape and its traces. If you use a box that does not meet these requirements for shipping, you can send the package by wrapping it in plain light fabric or thick plain color paper and writing information about the recipient and the sender directly on the material. A mail client can wrap a box with parcel with plain paper or other material on his own, or at the client’s request, they can do this at the post office, including this service in the cost of the parcel.
- A box made of plywood, wood or plastic material can also serve as packaging containers, but subject to the same condition that there are no inscriptions and adhesive tape on the outer surface.
- If the largest standard size of the parcel box (“Russian Post”) does not accommodate soft products, such as carpets or clothes, then you can send them in a durable fabric bag, after protecting the attachment with plastic wrap. In this case, the address is not glued or sewn, but is applied directly to the surface of the fabric bag, and it is sealed by the post office operator.
- Certain types of parcels, for example, newspapers, books, catalogs and magazines, can be sent in packs of dense plain paper with the obligatory presence of dense sheets of gaskets on both sides: from the address and from the opposite.
How to fill in the details of the sender and recipient
The address, postal code and other information on the company post box are indicated exclusively in a special form, printed in the form of a white rectangle on the front side of the Russian Post box. Information is filled in according to the instructions in the lines, in large legible letters without corrections and abbreviations of geographical names.
How many times can I use postal packaging
In accordance with the established procedure for receiving parcels, you can not reuse a company mail box. It is also unacceptable to glue the front side, intended for writing the recipient data, with paper or other material with a new address.
However, the previously used company box of Russian Post is allowed to be used for sending parcels as ordinary cardboard packaging with inscriptions, that is, pre-wrapped in a plain light fabric or thick plain color paper. The address and addressee data are written directly on the paper or fabric with which the mail package is wrapped.
Where can I get a branded box of Russian Post?
Of course, the simplest solution is to buy packaging for parcels at any post office. In addition, cardboard boxes of Russian Post, which correspond to standard sizes, can be freely purchased from companies selling such materials via the Internet.
Of course, you will need to buy mail boxes through the virtual store in advance, taking into account the delivery time. But sites selling packaging materials have a clear advantage. For example, packaging can be purchased on time, in addition, there is always the necessary box size for sending. Russian Post, especially offices in small towns, cannot always boast of this.
Mailboxes purchased in this way are accepted in any department and are not subject to additional packaging except gluing with company tape (scotch tape) with the company logo.