Johannesburg, 06 Mar 2012
Bytes Managed Solutions has been awarded a contract, worth over R100 million in total, to refresh the existing point-of-sale (POS) hardware infrastructure at all Pick n Pay stores over a two-year period.
The Pick n Pay Group is one of Africa's largest and most consistently successful retailers of food, clothing and general merchandise. Under the Pick n Pay banner, the group includes more than 600 stores of the following formats:
* Hypermarkets
* Supermarkets
* Franchise
* Daily
* Express
* Pharmacies
* Liquor
* Clothing
* Home shopping (online shopping)
A change in technology - both hardware and software - was required to support Pick n Pay's overall new in-store architecture, which will provide customers with an enhanced shopping experience into the future, while also providing business with additional functionality, flexibility and support. In addition, Pick n Pay will be taking advantage of the green issues that are available with the new technologies.
New POS software had been identified and the existing NCR POS hardware platform, being more than 12 years old, was simply not able to support the new technologies and position Pick n Pay for the future. The hardware platform therefore needed to be replaced before the software implementation could take place.
After an intense closed tender process, which included the direct engagement of the three leading suppliers of POS hardware worldwide, the NCR RealPOS solution was finally identified as the most appropriate, and a contract for the hardware, maintenance and rollout services was awarded to Bytes Managed Solutions.
NCR International played a significant role in identifying the most suitable platform and architecture, and engaged in a human factors study with Pick n Pay to identify opportunities to improve the productivity at POS and to determine optimum checkout lane quantities.
In summary, the contract calls for the complete replacement of some 8 000 lanes across all Pick n Pay stores over a two-year period. As of 1 January 2012, Bytes Managed Solutions had rolled out some 4 500 NCR RealPOS 80XRT POS units, mainly into the corporate base. The balance, including all franchise stores, will be completed this year.
Apart from laying the foundation for the new POS application, the new hardware solution will provide both Pick n Pay and its customers with increased performance and productivity at the checkout point. In addition, it will contribute significantly to sustainability and cost savings through reduced power consumption and a significant reduction in maintenance costs.
As per previous generations of NCR POS hardware, Pick n Pay will enjoy the assurance of longevity; NCR hardware supports extended life cycle management and is targeted to last a minimum of seven years. In addition, Bytes Managed Solutions provides all hardware maintenance support to Pick n Pay on a national basis.
“Pick n Pay is a highly important client for us,” says Bytes Technology Group CEO Rob Abraham. “It has been a privilege to assist them with these technology implementations, which will impact the lives of millions of South Africans every day and add significantly to Pick n Pay's bottom line.”
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