Storage solutions play an increasingly important role in the design and fitout of today’s buildings, especially in the office and leisure sectors.
A well-designed and practical locker implementation enhances the building, delivers a positive user experience and can drive cost-saving and profit-generating operational efficiencies.
As office-based companies try to attract staff back into the office and adopt hybrid working patterns, including a contemporary locker solution can be an important differentiator for developers looking to incorporate the flexibility that attracts tenants.
In the leisure sector, secure and easily accessible lockers play a role in giving guests a positive experience in the facility.
The right locker solution combines great design and functionality with strong operational benefits. So let’s take a look at two examples of how innovative lockers in property designs have helped to create properties that work harder and create more opportunity for their owners and tenants.
When Reece needed a new head office, one of the things that attracted them to The Works in Melbourne’s Cremorne, was the way it had been purpose-designed and built for the post-Covid hybrid working environment.
This included the Gantner locker solution, which helps to support flexible working patterns.
Staff at The Works can have their own locker to securely store personal items, leave their laptop overnight or keep a cycle helmet or fitness gear.
There is also a bank of ‘dynamic’, or ‘end-of-trip’ lockers for day use. Access is via a wristband fob, so access is straightforward, with staff not having to remember a PIN or carry a key.
Not only do the lockers provide a workspace that makes staff feel engaged and supported but they are operationally efficient too—they’re all managed from a single system, which shows locker utilisation, and which allows lockers to be opened remotely by ops staff if required.
Reece’s Beth Yarrington, workplace experience manager, says: “The incredible tech in this building is part of attracting and retaining great talent.”
In the world of leisure, lockers are a given but the choice of locker solution plays a role in delivering the experience that will attract and retain visitors.
Alba Thermal Springs is a luxury spa destination on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, offering high-end hot springs bathing and a range of indulgent treatments.
They wanted to ensure that the customers’ luxury experience starts from the moment that visitors arrive at the facility.
They specified Gantner as part of the building design and its smart features and integration with their access control and PMS systems are an integral part of delivering the efficient, luxury experience that their visitors expect.
As soon as a guest checks in, the PMS integration allows them to be allocated their locker, which has their luxury robe, towel and slippers waiting for them.
The lockers communicate directly with the housekeeping system, so that staff can see the exact status of each locker:
In use—it is assigned to a guest and is storing their items
Maintenance mode—the guest has finished with the locker, and it is ready for housekeeping to replenish it with fresh robe, towel and slippers
Available—the locker is replenished and ready to be assigned as a new visitor checks in.
This streamlines the visitor check-in process and means that lockers are never waiting to be replenished or used, ensuring maximum efficiency.
Guests’ access to their locker is simple—they use the same waterproof silicone fob that they use for the doors and can move freely throughout the spa without having to worry about keys.
Craig Dodds, the general manager of Alba, says: “We chose the Gantner solution because we wanted to provide a seamless, luxurious experience for our guests.”
The right storage solution can be a key differentiating factor in a building’s design and specification—helping to attract staff to a modern, flexible workspace, or ensure a smooth and seamless customer experience in a leisure facility.
The Gantner solution combines the best of great design with sound operational benefits and enhances the specification of any facility needing simple, accessible and easily manageable storage.
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