There are a lot of reasons why a mailroom needs to function with as few hiccups as possible. The following is a list of 20 benefits of using smart lockers in university mailrooms and student dorms.
20. Security
Smart lockers provide ample security for the packages that are stored inside. The security can range from theft protection to shelter from the weather depending on where the lockers are accessible.
Only the recipient of the code of entry can retrieve the packages, and the rugged designs of these lockers deter any attempts of thievery.
19. Food Delivery Safety
Since the COVID outbreak and all of the precautions that came along with it, grocery drop-offs and deliveries have become a norm. Refrigerated smart lockers have been a solid solution to keep refrigerated groceries from spoiling while in wait for pickup from a student.
18. Convenience
Through the use of smart lockers, the entire process of dropping off packages and receiving packages has become far more convenient than it once was. When smart lockers are placed within an area that’s easily accessible to dorms, all the more time is freed up for mailrooms to deal with other duties.
17. Customizable Appearance
Smart lockers are built to suit the surrounding environment. There are multiple coat colors and combinations available to match the current décor of the mailroom or the university in general.
Some offer screen printing or labels to coat the exterior to stand out as a piece of art, rather than a state-of-the-art locker system.
16. Less Person-to-Person Contact
The need for less person-to-person contact is an important method used to prevent the onset and spread of disease. We all remember how important it has been through the COVID lockdowns.
What was once a person-to-person interaction becomes a person-to-locker interaction with a smart locker at play.
15. Accessible After Hours
When lockers are placed in areas that remain accessible after hours, students are no longer required to try and make attempts to retrieve their items at the risk of being late for class. Lockers don’t clock out and will remain available to be used 24/7.
14. Easy to Keep Clean
Most finishes used on smart lockers are easy to clean and to keep clean. Often a quick wipe-down will take care of any common outdoor issues, and can be easily disinfected as well.
13. User Friendly
The good thing about smart lockers is that you don’t have to be all that smart to use them. Engineers have done all the thinking ahead of time so customers don’t have to.
The touchpads are intuitive and easy to understand as well as operate. Some units only require a swipe of the code sent on a phone or tablet to open the specific locker without touching the pad at all.
12. Customizable Designs
Like the finish, the units themselves are also highly customizable. Some units can be cookie-cutter-type designs available for when there is no real preference desired by a buyer. But for the most part, smart locker construction is highly customizable to best match the space available.
11. Removes Clutter
When packages are delivered into a smart locker, they’re not laying around behind the counter, nor are they awkwardly occupying space in storage room shelves. They are also moving through the system quicker. All of which means that they’re not creating clutter but are out of the way.
10. Handicap Accessible
Smart lockers are built for everyone to be able to use. There are no lockers that are positioned too high for someone in a wheelchair to reach, and installers ensure that there is plenty of space for wheelchairs to pass through for its rider to retrieve their packages with no problems.
9. Saves Time
Smart lockers save time for everyone involved. The carrier, mailroom clerks, and the recipient, all share this one common benefit when smart lockers are being utilized at universities.
8. Variety of Uses on Campus
Mailrooms are the most common beneficiaries in terms of smart locker usage, but there are many more places within the confines of a university that can also benefit. A few are libraries, laboratories, and bookstores.
7. Savvy Technical Appeal
Aside from all the functional benefits, there are other, less obvious benefits to be had as well- such as overall appearance. The presence of a smart locker system gives a campus’s mailroom a modernized appearance, that can also positively reflect upon the school.
6. Full Automation
Smart lockers are called “smart” because they are fully automated. As soon as a package is entered by a carrier or clerk, the student is automatically notified by the locker’s notification system and can retrieve the package at their convenience.
5. Adaptability
One of the unsung benefits of having a smart locker on the scene in a university mailroom is how adaptable they can be. For the most part, the technology is future-proof in terms of upgradability.
Sections can also be modified after the fact. In other words, if some sizes tend to be in higher demand than others, changes can be made to the structure to accommodate.
4. Happier Staff
When the workload becomes more simplified, and through the stability offered by smart lockers, mailroom staff is all the more able to concentrate on customer service duties and other mail-related issues.
3. Parcel Tracking Benefits
Parcels are tracked so that with a few keystrokes, borrowed items can be located. This is especially useful in areas of a university that lend or rent out equipment.
2. Carrier Speed
Don’t forget the carrier! With a parcel locker on-site, a mail carrier can get in and out as fast as possible. Less time to have to interact with staff, leaving staff more available to tend lines and manage other things.
1. One Less Thing for Students to Think About
Students have enough going on in their day-to-day schedules without having to worry about the welfare of their packages. Smart lockers ease the mind of students and allow them to do what they need to do when they need to do it, without the hassle of being at a certain place at a certain time with only a certain amount of time between classes.
Final Thoughts
These are 20 benefits of using smart lockers in university mailrooms and student dorms, but I’d bet that there are more to be had. Smart lockers help us to forget how much of a project it can be to do something as simple as picking up a package and allows everyone involved to move forward to other things.
