How to Design a Smart Locker Solution
A guide to designing a strategy that ensures the successful implementation of Smart Lockers into a business. This eBook shares the experience we have developed over years of successfully delivering Smart Lockers for customers in almost every industry.
A guide to designing a strategy that ensures the successful implementation of Smart Lockers into a business. This eBook shares the experience we have developed over years of successfully delivering Smart Lockers for customers in almost every industry.
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HOW TO DESIGN<br />
A SMART LOCKER<br />
SOLUTION<br />
A step-by-step guide <strong>to</strong> designing a <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong><br />
solution that maximises the benefit <strong>to</strong> your business
CONTENTS<br />
Introduction<br />
What are you planning <strong>to</strong> use your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> for?<br />
What type of <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> should you choose?<br />
Where should you install your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>?<br />
<strong>How</strong> <strong>to</strong> integrate your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong><br />
<strong>How</strong> <strong>to</strong> mitigate problems when integrating <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s<br />
Beyond Integration - Built On Now Application<br />
Decision Time<br />
4<br />
7<br />
9<br />
13<br />
15<br />
19<br />
22<br />
24<br />
A guide <strong>to</strong> designing a strategy that ensures<br />
the successful implementation<br />
of <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s in<strong>to</strong> a business.<br />
This eBook shares the experience we<br />
have developed over years of successfully<br />
delivering <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s for cus<strong>to</strong>mers<br />
in almost every industry.<br />
This is a must read for anyone wanting<br />
<strong>to</strong> make sure they get the best return on<br />
investment for their commitment and their<br />
<strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution delivers results.<br />
3
INTRODUCTION<br />
For the investment of time and money you are going <strong>to</strong> get your business <strong>to</strong> make in implementing<br />
a <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution, it’s important <strong>to</strong> make sure it’s going <strong>to</strong> deliver the results you commit <strong>to</strong>.<br />
<strong>Design</strong>ing <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s for your business seems like a simple task, but <strong>to</strong> create a solution which<br />
maximises its Return on Investment (which we covered in our first ebook in this series ‘<strong>How</strong> <strong>to</strong> Build<br />
a Business Case for <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s’) and is adopted and used by both your support teams and employees<br />
can be complex <strong>to</strong> get right.<br />
The successful delivery of <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s in<strong>to</strong> your business will bring significant benefits, but at Velocity<br />
we also use the “R = Q x A” model <strong>to</strong> make sure these benefits are realised. Even if you have the best<br />
solution in the world, if no-one uses it, you won’t deliver the results you wanted.<br />
In talking <strong>to</strong> countless cus<strong>to</strong>mers, we’ve found that the way you design and implement <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s<br />
really can be the difference between a solution which will make a Return on Investment of a few months<br />
or a solution that fails <strong>to</strong> get used and never makes the return that was promised at the outset.<br />
To make sure you achieve the former not the latter, we have compiled a guide of the <strong>to</strong>p most do’s<br />
and don’ts in how <strong>to</strong> design a winning <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution. We’ve learnt what works and what<br />
<strong>to</strong> avoid through years of successfully delivering <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s for cus<strong>to</strong>mers in almost every industry.<br />
This guide covers four main questions which you need <strong>to</strong> think through when designing<br />
a <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution:<br />
What are you planning <strong>to</strong> use your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> for?<br />
R = Q X A DESIGN MODEL EXPLAINED<br />
For example<br />
Bad Adoption<br />
1<br />
Results<br />
= 10 x 1 10<br />
= Quality x<br />
Bad <strong>Solution</strong><br />
= 2 x 5 100<br />
Adoption<br />
Great <strong>Solution</strong> and Adoption<br />
= 10 x 10<br />
What type of <strong>Smart</strong> device should you choose?<br />
Where <strong>to</strong> install your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>?<br />
<strong>How</strong> <strong>to</strong> integrate your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>?<br />
Each of these areas contain further elements worth considering, with their own specific pitfalls.<br />
So let’s explore each one in turn.<br />
5
What are you planning <strong>to</strong> use your<br />
<strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> for?<br />
First things first: you need <strong>to</strong> have worked out what items you want <strong>to</strong> use your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> for and what<br />
are the “use cases” or ways in which you plan <strong>to</strong> use the locker? Some examples for these are listed below.<br />
SMART LOCKER ITEMS<br />
IT equipment examples<br />
Keyboard<br />
Mouse<br />
Lap<strong>to</strong>p<br />
Tablet / Mobile<br />
HDMI cable<br />
LED projec<strong>to</strong>r<br />
Non IT equipment examples<br />
COVID<br />
testing kit<br />
Face mask<br />
Room keys<br />
Handheld RFID<br />
scanner<br />
High visibility<br />
jacket<br />
Medicine<br />
7
What type of <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> should<br />
you choose?<br />
SMART LOCKER USE CASES<br />
24/7<br />
availability<br />
Break/Fix<br />
Borrow/loan<br />
equipment<br />
Employee<br />
purchase<br />
Equipment<br />
rollouts<br />
First things first: you need <strong>to</strong> have worked out what items you want <strong>to</strong> use your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> for and what<br />
are the “use cases” or ways in which you plan <strong>to</strong> use the locker? Some examples for these are listed in<br />
the table on the next page.<br />
Parcel<br />
delivery<br />
Self service<br />
collect/return<br />
New starters Leavers Equipment<br />
return<br />
VENDING MACHINE VS SMART LOCKER<br />
The types of items and the use cases you select will influence what type of device you choose,<br />
where you put them and how they will need <strong>to</strong> be used.<br />
Choosing the correct type of device at the outset is a fundamental decision that must be correct.<br />
The difference between the two is the degree of configurability each provides.<br />
9
Feature <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> Vending Machine<br />
Description<br />
A <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> with variable<br />
number of doors which open<br />
upon verification method<br />
A Vending Machine with Spiral<br />
Vending mo<strong>to</strong>rs<br />
Verification method Barcode RFID reader or barcode<br />
Configurable?<br />
Typical number<br />
of items s<strong>to</strong>red<br />
Can they be “daisy chained”<br />
(linked <strong>to</strong>gether)<br />
Pro’s<br />
Con’s<br />
Yes – provided the item will fit in<br />
the locker cell, a different items<br />
can be s<strong>to</strong>cked every time<br />
To ensure items are dispensed<br />
successfully every time the<br />
machine is configured for each<br />
item type<br />
Changing like for like items<br />
is possible, but may require<br />
physical configuration changes<br />
of the VM for new items<br />
4–36 per locker 60–300 per vending machine<br />
Yes<br />
Easy <strong>to</strong> configure<br />
Very flexible <strong>to</strong> changing items/<br />
use cases<br />
Low Meantime between failure<br />
MTBF (less moving parts)<br />
More user cases<br />
Items can be taken and returned<br />
Low volume of items s<strong>to</strong>red<br />
Less time between res<strong>to</strong>cking<br />
Yes<br />
High volume of items s<strong>to</strong>red<br />
Long time between res<strong>to</strong>cking<br />
Higher MTBF (due <strong>to</strong> more<br />
moving parts)<br />
Less Use Cases<br />
Items can only be taken,<br />
not returned<br />
While a <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> can be dynamically reconfigured via the cloud (dependent on the door sizes) <strong>to</strong> s<strong>to</strong>ck<br />
a variety of items, a Vending Machine cannot be reconfigured so easily. Before you commit, you should<br />
validate the items and use cases you want and check that your chosen device type can deliver those<br />
use cases.<br />
EXAMPLE:<br />
Configuration<br />
To realise the potential improvements and deliver the required ROI, your device needs <strong>to</strong> be<br />
s<strong>to</strong>cked with the correct items in the desired qualities. This requires a calculation that will need<br />
<strong>to</strong> be based on predefined use-cases and supported with real-life data.<br />
What monetary value are the items you are s<strong>to</strong>cking? <strong>How</strong> many items?<br />
<strong>How</strong> many refill trips per month works out <strong>to</strong> be the most economical?<br />
It may be more economical <strong>to</strong> have a higher number of available lockers at a given site, than <strong>to</strong> pay for<br />
a single locker <strong>to</strong> be repeatedly filled every month with several visits. What is more, this data will be key<br />
for the calculation of accurate ROI projections.<br />
11
Shipping & Support<br />
Global shipping, support & logistics all contribute <strong>to</strong> the “non-functional” aspects of your<br />
solution selection, but they are often overlooked, which can be a fundamental error. While<br />
many <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> providers may offer the hardware <strong>to</strong> cus<strong>to</strong>mers, there are few that can<br />
provide a full support and logistics capability on a global basis.<br />
THINGS TO CONSIDER<br />
Where <strong>to</strong> install your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>?<br />
Place<br />
There are several considerations when choosing the right location for a <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>,<br />
the most important being the level of footfall or access that any site offers.<br />
Cus<strong>to</strong>ms requirements<br />
Clear and transparent reporting<br />
of the progress taking place<br />
Incountry Device Certification<br />
requirements for your chosen<br />
countries<br />
Installation and commissioning<br />
once in place<br />
End-<strong>to</strong>-end collection and<br />
‘white glove’ delivery <strong>to</strong> your<br />
precise desired location<br />
Ideal locker locations<br />
High Footfall<br />
Easy Access<br />
24/7 Access<br />
Easy Visibility - Surveillance<br />
Reception Areas<br />
Cafeteria / Kitchen Areas<br />
High volume sites e.g. Main / HQ<br />
Expensive <strong>to</strong> serve, remote sites<br />
Bad locker locations<br />
Secure locations<br />
“The IT guys’ corner”<br />
Basements<br />
Back office corners<br />
Places without power<br />
Locations with powerful internet signal<br />
This is an important aspect of any solution that could prove very expensive if overlooked<br />
in initial calculations.<br />
The ideal are locations with high footfall, access and visibility, such as a reception area, or cafeteria,<br />
as opposed <strong>to</strong> a basement or jani<strong>to</strong>rial area that might seem hidden or inaccessible. There is also<br />
the essential prerequisite of powerful, secure and reliable internet access.<br />
13
Security<br />
The security of the items within the locker and the avoidance of theft or vandalism is of course<br />
is of course important, but so is the safety and sense of personal security of staff who are<br />
retrieving items. Is the location staffed 24/7? Is it well lit? Is it in a location that is easy <strong>to</strong> access<br />
without necessitating long walks or commutes? You will only achieve a high level of uptake<br />
from staff if the location is easy <strong>to</strong> reach and safe and secure.<br />
Space<br />
A common mistake is <strong>to</strong> find the perfect location for a <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>, but <strong>to</strong> fail <strong>to</strong> consider how<br />
the locker might arrive in that place. <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s are large and bulky items that can weigh<br />
as much as 250kg. When choosing a location, a site survey should be undertaken, as well as a<br />
risk and method statement. This can identify the methods <strong>to</strong> get the locker in, the height and<br />
width of the access, the load-bearing strength of the floor, and the methods required <strong>to</strong> gain<br />
access, e.g. stair climbers, trolleys, blankets or skids <strong>to</strong> protect polished floors, and the safety<br />
equipment needed for the job. This can avoid the nightmare of a locker travelling thousands<br />
of kilometres <strong>to</strong> a destination, only <strong>to</strong> become stuck in a stairwell!<br />
More about this is covered in our eBook ‘<strong>How</strong> <strong>to</strong> successfully implement <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s<br />
in<strong>to</strong> your business’.<br />
<strong>How</strong> <strong>to</strong> integrate your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong><br />
This is the area with the highest risk for error, misunderstanding or major overspend due <strong>to</strong> a lack of scope,<br />
a lack of planning, or assumptions about the scale and complexity of the task.<br />
To get the best out of your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution, it’s essential <strong>to</strong> understand the benefits of integration.<br />
It’s also important <strong>to</strong> know that despite what some <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> manufacturers claim, not all integration<br />
options deliver the same benefits.<br />
Why is integration so great?<br />
Most <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s will have a a cloud or internet-based management application which will provide<br />
you with a console <strong>to</strong> do the basic task for managing your smart devices:<br />
1. Adding or removing <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s from your account<br />
2. Adding or removing user permissions who can use the <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s<br />
3. Adding or removing items which can be placed in<strong>to</strong> your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s<br />
4. Reporting on usage and s<strong>to</strong>ck levels<br />
5. Device moni<strong>to</strong>ring and alerting<br />
6. Some may have the ability <strong>to</strong> hold approval (either max. number of items or max. value of items<br />
per month)<br />
15
As good as this sounds (and will be sold<br />
by the locker manufacturer), this isn’t the<br />
<strong>to</strong>ol your support teams use <strong>to</strong> perform<br />
their day <strong>to</strong> day tasks, namely your IT<br />
Service Management (ITSM) platform.<br />
Without ITSM integration the standalone<br />
challenge of this console will create serious<br />
operational headaches as they have <strong>to</strong> use<br />
the <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> portal in parallel <strong>to</strong> your<br />
ITSM platform.<br />
Standalone Challenge<br />
Your support teams will have <strong>to</strong> “swivel chair” and<br />
copy each request from your ITSM platform<br />
<strong>to</strong> your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> App, manually raising<br />
every ticket<br />
Requests can only be raised by your support<br />
teams when they receive them<br />
All your user data (user names, email addresses<br />
and security badge numbers) has <strong>to</strong> be copied in<strong>to</strong><br />
the <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> console and then kept in synch<br />
with numerous updates<br />
All your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> transaction data is s<strong>to</strong>red<br />
in the <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> console<br />
All of your catalogue information on what items<br />
can be s<strong>to</strong>cked and are loaded in<strong>to</strong> the lockers<br />
has <strong>to</strong> be maintained<br />
Any reporting out of the <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> console has<br />
<strong>to</strong> be manually exported and then combined with<br />
your usual IT Service Reporting<br />
Operational Headache<br />
Your <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution now creates MORE<br />
work, rather than saving time. You end up with<br />
unhappy support teams who refuse <strong>to</strong> use<br />
the solution<br />
You can only offer a reactive 9–5 <strong>Smart</strong><br />
<strong>Locker</strong> service<br />
You have a security and GDPR problem – how<br />
secure is this <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> console anyway?<br />
Where is the data s<strong>to</strong>red? Do you want all your<br />
important company information hosted on some<br />
third platform?<br />
You have <strong>to</strong> manage and maintain your catalogue<br />
of items in two places – yet more work<br />
You cannot get a real-time combined view of use,<br />
spend or savings linked <strong>to</strong> your existing service<br />
reporting<br />
You have <strong>to</strong> keep checking the <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong><br />
console for alerts<br />
You have <strong>to</strong> check the console for alerts and<br />
<strong>to</strong> check s<strong>to</strong>ck levels. Before you know it, your<br />
support teams forget, the solution runs out of<br />
items and your business loses faith in the service<br />
17
<strong>How</strong> <strong>to</strong> mitigate problems when<br />
integrating <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong>s<br />
All of these problems can be mitigated by integrating the <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> console with your ITSM platform.<br />
<strong>How</strong>ever, while the most popular ITSM platform is ServiceNow, there are still different levels of integration<br />
that affect the quality of your solution.<br />
<strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> manufacturers will often try <strong>to</strong> sell their cus<strong>to</strong>mers their own solution on the premise that<br />
it “Has an ‘Application Programming Interface’ (‘API’) <strong>to</strong> connect <strong>to</strong> ServiceNow” for example, but as we<br />
will discuss, there is ‘integration’ and then there is “Built On” App integration.<br />
Integration is generally through an API, which is the software equivalent of Google Translate –<br />
a software connec<strong>to</strong>r which does a couple of things:<br />
Pre-maps fields from one<br />
application <strong>to</strong> the equivalent<br />
field in the next application<br />
Performs a translation or calculation <strong>to</strong> one set<br />
of variables <strong>to</strong> make them understandable <strong>to</strong><br />
(or perform an instruction in) the next application<br />
19
You can either have a general API (a “port” which enables the application <strong>to</strong> talk “<strong>to</strong> the outside world/<br />
internet”) or a specific API pre-mapped from one application <strong>to</strong> another application it commonly is<br />
asked <strong>to</strong> conec<strong>to</strong>r <strong>to</strong> (i.e. a “ServiceNow API” would have the commonly used ServiceNow fields already<br />
mapped). This will enable one application <strong>to</strong> either pass information <strong>to</strong>, or “call” information from the other<br />
application the API is connected <strong>to</strong>.<br />
If you find a <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> manufacturer who says that they have an API, or even better a ServiceNow<br />
API, challenge over, job done right? Unfortunately it gets a bit more complicated...<br />
Even with an fully functioning API, you (or your ServiceNow development team, or a third party ServiceNow<br />
consultancy) are going <strong>to</strong> now have <strong>to</strong> do the hard job of integrating the way the locker works with your<br />
existing workflows, data models, asset databases, approval models, request forms, agent dashboards…<br />
the list is extensive <strong>to</strong> get the solution <strong>to</strong> work in the au<strong>to</strong>mated, self-serve approach which delivers the<br />
massive ROI which your business will need.<br />
The price of all this bespoke development work? Typically a project of this nature will take over four months<br />
of time and cost a minimum £250,000 ($350,000) <strong>to</strong> implement.<br />
But this isn’t the biggest issue with an API<br />
based connec<strong>to</strong>r; the biggest issue, as your<br />
ServiceNow team will tell you, is a dreaded<br />
concept called “technical debt” – the idea that<br />
a design choice you make <strong>to</strong>day keeps costing<br />
your business time and money in the future.<br />
The technical debt issue with an API is that if either application on each side of the API has any upgrades<br />
installed, the application on the other side of the API has <strong>to</strong> be retested <strong>to</strong> check that the API still works.<br />
This sounds simple, but with ServiceNow installations often becoming complex, and ServiceNow requiring<br />
each cus<strong>to</strong>mer <strong>to</strong> stay with one version of the current release (of which there are two a year), you can<br />
suddenly find yourself facing four or more costly API and application testing mini-projects per year.<br />
Suddenly you’ve added another £50,000 ($65,000) per year just <strong>to</strong> keep everything working. This is on-<strong>to</strong>p<br />
of any additional ServiceNow licences which you might require as you extend your database tables (which<br />
ServiceNow tends <strong>to</strong> charge hefty sums for).<br />
Now this whole <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution begins <strong>to</strong> sound really complex doesn’t it? Failing ROI without<br />
integration or high levels of bespoke development, additional licences, technical debt and mounting<br />
cost <strong>to</strong> maintain. If only there was another way?<br />
21
Beyond integration – Built On Now<br />
Application<br />
This technical debt and ROI value challenge is the reason why Velocity <strong>Smart</strong> Technology embarked on<br />
the ambitious goal <strong>to</strong> become the world’s first and only <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution not <strong>to</strong> be built on a separate<br />
cloud-based console. Our application is “Built On Now”. This means that our application is one that is built,<br />
natively, on the ServiceNow platform. In other words, it’s an application that has the primary business logic,<br />
user experience, and end cus<strong>to</strong>mer value all driven/experienced/designed on ServiceNow.<br />
In simple terms; The Velocity <strong>Smart</strong> Collect TM App which is written in ServiceNow, is certified by ServiceNow<br />
themselves <strong>to</strong> the standard they certify their own products and installs from the ServiceNow App s<strong>to</strong>re.<br />
This means that the Velocity <strong>Smart</strong> Collect TM App installs in a matter of hours and is fully<br />
configured for your specific business needs in a matter of a few weeks. Being a Built On<br />
ServiceNow application, as you would expect, the App uses all your support portals,<br />
existing approvals, workflow, asset management rules, CMDb and reporting.<br />
Remember the R = Q x A concept we talked about? Well as Velocity <strong>Smart</strong> Collect TM is just another<br />
ServiceNow App, all your employees and support staff already have have access and know how <strong>to</strong> use<br />
the App — so you don’t need expensive training and communications. This drives the easiest Adoption<br />
possible, which, when combined with the best solution, will maximise your results.<br />
VELOCITY SMART COLLECT RESULTS<br />
100 Velocity <strong>Smart</strong><br />
Collect Results<br />
= 10 The best X<br />
locker solution<br />
10 The easiest<br />
adoption and use<br />
Better than that, the App is certified <strong>to</strong> work with each new ServiceNow version, so you can say goodbye<br />
<strong>to</strong> costly API testing and technical debt issues.<br />
23
Decision Time<br />
Velocity <strong>Smart</strong> technology can transform your IT support with the world’s first and only ServiceNow<br />
certified <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> and <strong>Smart</strong> Vending solution. The Velocity <strong>Smart</strong> Collect TM App means no new<br />
applications <strong>to</strong> install, which saves time for your support teams and users, offering the lowest <strong>to</strong>tal cost<br />
of ownership by proven, demonstrable savings in support effort and asset procurement costs.<br />
Can the capability of your<br />
prospective <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong><br />
manufacturer cover all of<br />
your use cases and deliver<br />
the au<strong>to</strong>mation savings<br />
you are looking for?<br />
VELOCITY SMART<br />
COLLECT – THE ONLY<br />
COMPREHENSIVE<br />
SMART LOCKER<br />
SOLUTION<br />
FOR MODERN<br />
ENTERPRISE<br />
Hopefully with this ebook we have helped guide you through the design challenges of creating<br />
a <strong>Smart</strong> <strong>Locker</strong> solution for your business which really delivers on the investment you have made.<br />
25
uilding<br />
Velocity <strong>Smart</strong> Technology<br />
16 Red Lion Square, WC1R 4QH<br />
envelope<br />
phone<br />
e: info@velocity-smart.com<br />
t: +44 (0)20 3608 2768