A 2-Minute Read by E&I, Featuring Pitney Bowes
Smart Lockers on Campus Improves Mail Centers and Parcel Management
Digital upgrades to your mail room can help manage volumes of inbound parcels, help with space limitations and labor-intensive delivery processes.
An E&I 2-Minute Read
As the number of students and parcels grows, there is a need for schools to modernize student parcel delivery with smart lockers. These parcel delivery tools can be placed across campus to streamline parcel management, plus enhance student services. Campus shipping volumes grow at almost 15% annually. Small campus mail centers, built for a package or two per student per year, are overwhelmed by the surge. The flood of incoming parcels includes more than just care packages and online orders, mail centers handle administration documents, research samples, and supplies for facilities.
The future of school parcel delivery is automation. Colleges are deploying smart locker solutions, combined with automated tracking systems. Smart locker systems allow for accurate status information, ability to process parcels fast, messages about pick-up that are automated, and tracking.
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5 benefits of a smart locker system for colleges and universities
1) Improve operations in the mail center and other distribution points
As thousands of packages come in, space is freed up for other deliveries, staff can focus on other tasks and the mail center hums along regardless of inbound package volume.
2) Track inbound packages and high-value assets
Tracking packages and assets accomplishes more than just identifying and locating lost or misrouted items. Together, smart lockers and tracking software can provide analytics and data reporting across the full chain of custody to help identify and remedy issues, identify opportunities to cut costs, optimize operations and enhance the student experience.
3) Automation of manual processes
Many campus mail centers are still using pen and paper to capture relevant package details like the number of parcels received daily, when each was received, who it’s for and when it was picked up and signed for. Automating these manual tasks can reduce student parcel delivery times from days to hours.
4) Reduce loss, theft, and unauthorized use
Barcode scans confirm receipt and delivery and provide an automatic record of when an inbound package arrived and when it was picked up. In the case of a campus or department asset, you’ll know who used it, when they used it and what condition it was returned in.
5) Promotion of 24/7 on-demand services and the student experience
Lockers can be used 24/7, without any staffing. Smart lockers for schools are the next evolution of campus-life services.
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Benefits of Cooperative Agreements for Higher Education
Higher education institutions face increasing pressure to provide high-quality education while controlling costs. To control costs, schools can leverage the power of cooperative agreements to stretch procurement dollars. Volume discounts and favorable contract terms typically provide a better deal than an individual college or university could secure independently. Besides discount pricing, cooperative agreements create tremendous process efficiencies by eliminating redundant tasks. Developing effective solicitations, negotiating contracts, and properly documenting procurement decisions requires specific skill sets and an investment of staff time and resources. Cooperative agreements enhance product choice, compliance, risk-mitigation, and shared expertise and thought leadership.
