An often-overlooked consequence of the rise of ecommerce is the correlated increase in shipping and handling of packages. Multi-tenant living spaces were not designed to receive the number of packages that flood their mailrooms today, leading to myriad logistical issues.
Smart technology has been moving into mailrooms across America, and Florence Corporation, a Kansas-based smart mailroom provider, attended AIA in New York City to increase its footprint and showcase the Package Concierge electronic locker.
“Multi-family properties used to receive 10 or 20 packages a day, now they are receiving 75 to 100 a day,” architectural sales manager Mike Travisano said. “So it is a much bigger responsibility and it is time consuming for property managers.”
By automating this system, package delivery providers are able to scan barcodes to open mailboxes of different sizes depending on the package, and alert the tenant via email that their package has arrived. This way, space can be best utilized and property managers do not have to manage a mailroom.
Residents have a digital profile stored on the system which allows them to unlock each compartment that they have mail in at one time. This also removes the need for tenants to sign for packages on the spot, making the process more efficient.
“The property manager no longer has liability, because if they are receiving 75 to 100 packages a day, you can imagine there’s a significant dollar value there, even if each package is worth 50 bucks, there’s a lot of money there, and that’s every day,” Travisano said.
Florence’s smart mailroom systems are designed to have slots small enough just for envelopes and big enough for dry cleaning. However, existing buildings still need space to house this mailroom, which is an issue the company has to work around. Travisano said the company is working more with architects to install these lockers in future projects, where they can be better implemented into designs.
Apartments are not the only area that Package Concierge technology is being applied. University campuses, office space and retail centers are also spaces that Florence is targeting.
