24/7 Monitoring Solution Maximizes Profits for Ice Machine Owners
An operator of automated standalone ice vending machines for bag and bulk purchases was finding it increasingly difficult and expensive to manage the ongoing maintenance and customer service demands of the ice machines. The cost of DSL was becoming too high, in addition to the long installation times caused by adding DSL lines to new vending machines that were located outside of the host store. Also, the lack of monitoring resulted in many hours of manual labor.
Our team at Encore Networks assisted the organization to switch to a wireless internet system for their self-contained ice makers, which they could provide to their end customers at a reduced rate. In addition to substantial cost savings, the solution turnup for new customers went from months to just days and was also easier to set up, manage, and trouble-shoot. Pre-configured dashboards enable real-time insights in sales data, historical data, status updates as well as trigger notifications should problems occur. The wireless LTE connections have proven to be more reliable and offer greater throughput speeds, if needed, to address newer interactive machines.
The results?
A completely scalable monitoring system for ice machine owners that is accessible from any computer’s web browser or iPhone/Android smartphone. This level of monitoring and insight gives the ice machine owner peace of mind knowing the status of all their ice machines 24×7.
The pre-configured system provides the ice machine owner with real-time information and alerts should the machine malfunction. When faults occur, the owner receives a text message describing the fault and the date and time of the alarm. Through the web interface, the owner can remotely reset alarms, and even vend a bag or bulk to test if the alarm has been cleared.
By switching to this solution, our client was able to substantially reduce the frequency of trips necessary to drive to each machine to fix issues that can now be resolved through the new monitoring website, maximizing profits while increasing customer service levels.
How can Encore Networks provide value to your organization?
