DPD’s Predict wins Queen’s Award for Innovation
DPD has won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise 2015 in the Innovation category for its one-hour parcel delivery service, Predict. According to DPD: “The award – the most coveted in British commerce – recognises not only the quality of the innovation itself, but also the enormous contribution Predict has made in the transformation of the company and the dramatic growth achieved in the last five years.”
Launched in 2010, Predict gives parcel recipients advanced notification of their exact one-hour delivery slot by SMS or email. The service includes a range of ‘in-flight’ options allowing the customer to divert their parcel at any time to a specified neighbour or arrange the delivery for another day if they can’t be at home.
DPD said that Predict has been “directly responsible for over £178m of new business wins”, allowing the company to “embark on an unprecedented investment and expansion programme creating over 2,000 new jobs in the UK in the last two years”.
In September, DPD will open a new £100m parcel hub at Hinckley in the East Midlands, which will be the largest of its kind in Europe, creating another 1,000 permanent full-time jobs.
DPD’s CEO Dwain McDonald commented: “This is a tremendous day for DPD and fantastic recognition for all the hard work, from so many people, that went into developing Predict. Our strategy all along has been based on investing in technology, people and service to create the best delivery experience possible for our customers. That passion for innovation and our obsession with customer service really come together around Predict.”
Predict, which was developed in the UK by DPD’s IT department and operations team working with local depot managers, uses a bespoke route optimisation system which is integrated with the driver’s handheld device. The same device also enables the driver and the customer to communicate in real-time about the delivery.
