Intermedia Kiosks And Telequip Team Up To Create High-Tech Dining Solution At University Of North Carolina

The kiosk is fast becoming an ubiquitous part of our "on–the-go" culture. With continued demands for speedy service, the self-service kiosk has become increasingly popular in food service establishments, allowing consumers to place orders and pay by either cash or credit. Rather than wait in potentially long lines, customers can now approach a touch-screen kiosk, order their food, pay and be out the door in a matter of minutes. Adding to this "futuristic" concept is the fact that there are no cash registers or cashiers.

Such is the scenario at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, where a total of seven kiosks from Intermedia Kiosks, Inc. of Owings Mill, Maryland, a value-added reseller, have been installed in four dining locations throughout its campus. Along with the Telequip Transact 2+ coin dispenser, this complete kiosk solution has proven to be a boon for the University in terms of cost savings, labor allocation and reduced shrinkage.

According to Sharone Shani, Software Engineer for Intermedia Kiosks, "The money the University has saved on not having to hire full-time personnel is obvious. The fact that there are no cash registers means they no longer have to employ cashiers." No cashiers means no errors. States Shani, "Accuracy eliminates overages and shrinkages because the Telequip coin dispenser gives correct change every time with no mistakes. The lines are also shorter because the kiosks get the students through quicker."

Shani also cites labor allocation as an integral part of the kiosk solution. "The employees that used to staff the registers can now be re-directed to other important tasks," he said. "The entire concept is very high-tech, almost futuristic, which really appeals to the students as we move toward an IT world."

The success of the UNC installation is matched overseas as well, where Intermedia's United Kingdom division has installed similar kiosks with the Telequip coin dispensers in several Burger King locations south of London.