Sheffield Students’ Union EPoS goals
We had worked with Sheffield SU to upgrade their till units but they were experiencing long queues at peak times. The queuing put people off shopping in the main SU retail shop. The main goal for them was to find a solution that would help vastly reduce queues.
They were also looking to implement a new eco shopping option with a zero waste solution. As well as a way of allowing students to place and pay for their own hot food orders within the main shop.
The background:
Started in 1906, Sheffield University Union of Students is steeped in history. Regularly voted the Best Students’ Union in the UK, they employ over 800 people and is the largest SU in the country.
They are part of The University of Sheffield, a member of the Russell Group of leading UK research universities.
The solutions:
Self serve to eliminate queuing
To combat queuing we installed 2 self serve tills. This gave the shop the ability to have one member of staff overseeing three till units. The benefits and success of these were clear immediately, and we very quickly installed two more self serve tills.
With four self serve and one operated till unit, just one member of staff is now overseeing five checkouts. Queues are now rare but Sheffield SU are about to install two more self serve checkouts, so even at peak times they maintain their speed to serve.
Eco shop – zero waste solution
Zero waste shopping options are working across the retail market and the SU wanted to be able to provide this as an option for students. Initially starting in it’s own retail unit, we installed a touch screen weighing scale and barcode printing solution.
The technology worked well but the unit took up a lot of staffing hours, so it has all now been moved to the main SU shop. This is working well for them with the vegan ‘pick n mix’ sweets being particularly popular.
Self serve hot food kiosk
In the shop hot food area we have installed two self serve touch screen tills for students to place and pay for their own food orders.
These, along with the shop self serve checkouts, have enabled the existing staff to move into other areas. Like making the hot food.
“We are absolutely delighted with our self-service solutions. They are working well for us with our staffing levels and outlay, and also for our students by speeding up ordering and checking out. Self ordering and checkout is second nature for this age group so we need to have this technology in place.
The cost savings overtime coupled with the improved user experience is a no brainer for us. We already have additional units in our plans and budgets for the coming months. The support, training, and advice from Fidelity has also been key to landing these solutions well with our team.”
Richard Wain, Sheffield SU
