Software and lockers for laundries: assessing costs and organisation

Describe your starting point

Choose a specific process: receiving orders, garment drop-off, collection from the point or return delivery. Note who handles it, when they do so and any difficulties they encounter.

For example, observe whether requests for clarification concern unclear instructions, missing order information or changes to opening hours. Also record the work that already runs well: it will provide a reference for the comparison.

For a new locker point, gather information on users’ needs and the conditions at the location. These are assumptions to check on site, alongside the laundry’s willingness to organise the service.

Compare proposals with the same scope

Make a list of the items that apply to the project:

• hardware and locker configuration;
• activation, software subscription and selected modules;
• transport, installation and site preparation;
• connectivity and operational equipment;
• training, support and maintenance;
• any integrations or custom development.

For each item, state what it includes, who provides it and when the cost arises. Check the options and the activities left to your organisation. If a proposal includes fewer items, the remaining activities need to be considered in the same comparison.

If you already have hardware, add the checks needed to connect it to the software. A software-only setup may require specific adaptations and testing.

Consider people’s everyday work

In an SLC-WA project with smart lockers, the platform coordinates orders, compartments and digital steps. The laundry continues to inspect garments, carry out processing, organise transport and look after customers.

Assess the time and people needed for unloading, preparing clean garments, loading, handling exceptions and providing service support. If the point is off-site, consider staff travel and access. The host looks after the space and the conditions at the location; garment handling and processing remain with the laundry and its service partners.

Learning the new process also requires preparation. Define who receives training and how instructions are shared among operators.

An additional service point.

With a locker, you can add a drop-off and collection point in places your customers visit, even away from the shop. The service may be accessible beyond counter opening hours, depending on the host site’s opening hours and the specified time windows.

To assess the project, consider demand for the service, the available compartments, how long they remain occupied and the visits the laundry needs to make. Relate these factors to operating costs and to the usefulness of the new point for customers.

Compare different assumptions, then observe the results

You can describe a scenario with limited initial use, one with more frequent use and one with periods when orders are concentrated. For each, check whether the planned compartments, visits and staffing are appropriate. These scenarios are tools for thinking through the project, not demand forecasts.

After launch, compare the actual work with the assumptions: orders handled, compartment occupancy, uncollected garments, support requests and time spent on visits. Combine the information available in the software with operators’ observations and the costs actually incurred.

Decide what to adjust before expanding

Your observations may point to instructions that need clarification, steps to review or a different configuration. Define the change and check its effect on the work again.

LockerClean™ develops software solutions for the laundry sector. The discussion starts with the processes to be managed and identifies the relevant product, modules and integrations, keeping the proposal’s terms explicit.

Explore the adoption options or discuss your needs with us.