Feature

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If you’re an online shopper, you’re used to having information at your fingertips. So shouldn’t a few quick keystrokes tell you when to expect your parcel delivery?

For Canada Post, tracking parcels depends on having the right tools in the right places. You can’t track it unless you can scan it, so in 2007, we invested in substantial improvements to our scanning capabilities. All our core parcel products are now bar-coded, and incoming international parcels have a Canada Post label placed over the foreign bar code to ensure proper scanning. New scanning equipment was installed in three major urban centres, and 5,000 drivers across the country now carry hand-held scanners to scan parcels on pickup. Today, we offer customers delivery updates by email, putting the information they need right on their desktops.

Looking forward

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As technology improves and scanning equipment becomes more sophisticated, Canada Post plans to improve the visibility of its delivery processes and offer more precise tracking information for parcels. Today, Canada Post is working with key customer partners to research customer-specific tracking solutions using Radio Frequency Identity (RFID) technology. This technology could make it possible for our customers to access much more information about their parcel’s location as it works its way through various checkpoints in the mail stream. Canada Post also continues to increase the number of times a parcel is scanned as it goes through the system, providing customers with more up-to-date information.