Cracking the geo-code with what3words and Geo-System

Geo-System is Poland’s leading provider of geoportals – web portals used to find and access geographic data. The service powers over 1,700 geoportals, including those used by local government and NGOs. Geo-System is the first geoportal provider in Poland to integrate what3words into their service, helping to make geospatial data more accessible to everyone.

Place and space in Poland

Whether you’re a resident, a business or a tourist of Poland, it’s likely that you’ve used a geoportal operated and managed by Geo-System. The company’s e-mapa software powers 68% of all geoportals in the country, for use on public sector and local government websites. The service has already mapped 4.8 million unique points in Poland and identified over 140,000 of the nation’s streets.

Mapping the municipalities

Access to geospatial data is vital for the businesses and residents that live, work and operate in these participating municipalities. The data is used to provide accurate mapping and navigation services in the region, as well as land parceling and setting boundaries.

However, whilst this essential data can be accessed through these geoportals, interpreting it can be a challenge. The information itself is often complex and detailed, relying on the experience and expertise of a trained professional to interpret.

Addressing the data

To help make this data more accessible – and thus beneficial – to a wider audience, Geo-System has integrated what3words into its web and app services.

what3words offer a far more accessible way to interpret and use geospatial information than latitude/longitude coordinates or GPS-based data. The service uses a global grid of 3m x 3m squares, with each square assigned a unique 3 word address.

3 word addresses provide every point in Poland with a unique identifier. They’re more accurate at specifying location than a postal address, whilst remaining easy to remember and communicate. It means that millions of people in Poland can now discover and share their own 3 word address – where they live, work and play – via the geoportal.

They can also identify 3 word addresses for other points of interest in the country which may not have a defined street address, such as the specific entrance to a building complex, a tourist attraction or area of natural beauty, or even parts of the unaddressed countryside.

As the first of its kind to offer 3 word addresses in Poland, Geo-System will also benefit from the updates and new features provided by what3words as the service is developed. This includes an imminent update to include a Polish language version of what3words, allowing 3 word addresses to be discovered and share in the native language.