The world of smart tech never stops evolving and the world of smart lockers has been taking many business sectors by storm, providing businesses with agile solutions to many everyday problems while delivering time and cost savings on processes that are traditionally labour intensive.
While lockers may not be at the forefront of everyone’s mind when thinking about smart tech, stopping for a minute and considering where and how they are transforming and disrupting markets may make us think twice.
From office and staff storage to asset management and IT equipment distribution they are everywhere, that doesn’t even touch the surface when you consider school, sports, warehouse, medical and residential placements. Lockers are everywhere, you just haven’t noticed them.
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The rise of smart click and collect lockers
Inevitably when thinking of click and collect lockers, parcel delivery lockers spring to mind, and with good reason. Adoption of publicly accessible parcel lockers by some of the world’s biggest online retailers have made these highly visible on the high street, convenience store locations and shopping areas.
Additionally, bricks and mortar retailers are also adopting them for click and collect convenience for customers. The rise of ‘buy online – pick up In store’ has also driven adoption in the high street.
In different sectors they are more commonly being adopted as ways to reduce administration around asset management of tools and devices, IT device management and even in medical environments to manage, track and distribute drugs, safely and securely saving pharmacies and hospitals considerable time and admin.
It is clear the use of these smart lockers will continue to grow, this is where the development of a screenless click and collect locker system comes in.
What are the benefits of screenless click & collect?
The current click and collect locker solutions available, although efficient and cost effective in their own way, do suffer from a few limitations.
The first is user convenience and experience. Currently at busy locations users have to queue while each uses the screen, loads or unloads the locker and then closes up. This one person at a time approach can cause queues in sometimes already busy locations.
Screenless click and collect lockers can speed up the process considerably, allowing for multiple concurrent users at the locker. When lockers are in busy locations this is invaluable, users really appreciate the fact they know they do not have to queue. Additionally there is no need for a mobile app to be downloaded as the locker is opened via smart GPS and a simple text or email.
Secondly, consider security and privacy. Imagine a scenario where there is a large bank of lockers (some may be out of direct sight), in this instance the user needs to open the locker from the screen and then travel to the locker to collect their property. This disconnect between opening and collection is a security and privacy risk.
With a screenless option that works via smart GPS the user must be at the locker location, ensuring the removal of that disconnect, a much more secure and private transaction takes place.
The third is the cost of the screen system itself. Screens cost in the region of £15k,are often the first things to break on a system through vandalism or misuse, and require additional maintenance, cleaning and updates over time. In a bank of 50 lockers the cost equates to at least £300 per locker for the screen, and large installations may require multiple screens.
It may be obvious to say that without a screen, initial costs and ongoing maintenance of a locker system can be reduced, while improving security, privacy and user experience.
The benefits of screenless click and collect lockers from eLocker
24 hour hands off access. Allows a business to supply products to customers 24/7 without extending opening hours. Once the product is placed in the locker the customer can then access it without further interaction with the vendor.
Reduce loss. The security built into the locker management system means everything is trackable stopping theft and loss. Combined with CCTV makes this as secure a system that is possible.
Low or no power requirements. The system can run off a sinple plug socket, with no requriement of a 12A or 32A power installatoin.
Cloud management. Provides usable data to managers allowing them to manage deliveries and collection with data, removing the guesswork from identifying high usage times and managing traffic flow. In asset management situations it allows for far more efficient use of assets making sure the usage time for each item is maximised.
Cost effective. As described above there are considerable cost savings to be made with a screenless click and collect locker system over the standard smart locker set up. When considering that standard eLocker systems can save up to 94% in management time and the associated costs, add the savings from going screenless and you have a real winner.
Retrofittable. The eLocker system is retrofittable to current hardware, reducing costs even further.
How to get one
eLocker’s screenless technology is the most advanced solution on the market and has already been successfully implemented in a number of large businesses. The system is easy to install, requires no ongoing maintenance costs, and offers a quick return on investment. It is also flexible enough to be adapted to any existing storage locker system.
The evolution of the smart locker to a screenless model is underway and being driven by eLocker, one of the market leaders in smart tech for lockers. Their innovative screenless click and collect lockers take a step into the future of customer service and asset management.