Hermes has become the first major UK carrier to use the address mapping technology what3words.
what3words divides the world into a grid of 3m squares, each of which can be identified by a unique combination of three words.
Hermes will now be able to accept what3words addresses from retailers including AO and ASOS which offer the format at checkout.
Hermes app users will also be able to add their what3words address to their profile, allowing the driver to use this in addition to existing address information.
Chris Ashworth, CIO at Hermes UK, said: “This marks the latest development in our innovation portfolio that we had been planning for some time, however given the pandemic, when we have experienced five years’ growth in five months due to online shopping behaviours changing, we have expedited the use of this tech to further enhance our contact-free deliveries option, at a time when both our clients and their customers need efficient, safe deliveries.”
Clare Jones, CCO at what3words explained that, “Hermes is leading the way in the UK, delivering on the promise of fast, efficient deliveries for its customers. Traditional street addresses aren’t accurate enough to deliver your online orders smoothly every time.
“This year has shown the importance of ecommerce, and the role it plays in the UK – with record numbers predicted this Christmas period. This means more deliveries, more new delivery drivers on the road and more customers with increasingly high expectations for fast and seamless deliveries.
“Hermes app users only have to update their preferred what3words delivery address once, and every subsequent order, dispatched by Hermes, will arrive at that precise three-metre square. For the retailers, our integration means that Hermes ecommerce clients can deliver to any 3m square in the UK.”
Hermes has also recently opened a new distribution centre in Castleford. The 11,000 square foot site will be able to handle over 84,000 orders per day.
