Self-service makes sense

Given the economic malaise gripping the global retail vertical market, immediate investments in retail automation technology are falling victim to enterprise-wide budget cuts, says More RFID.

Retailers are finding themselves under increased pressure to reduce costs, improve operational efficiencies, and enhance the customer experience.

These objectives are consistent with the benefits provided by self-service solutions, which are fast becoming a center of convergence for transaction automation, branding, and customer support.

The city of Austin may choose to update its approach to on-street parking with a 'pay and display' system of kiosks, states Austin Business Journal.

The city council will take up a proposal for a nearly $8.4 million (R88 million), three-year contract with Parkeon to provide the hardware and software associated with up to 750 pay station kiosks in and around downtown.

Each solar-powered kiosk would cover an entire block face and allow users to pay via credit and debit cards, in addition to coins. The kiosk would issue a printed receipt that the user would then put on their dashboard.

Driven by significant advances in Internet, mobile and kiosk technologies, and the rise of the well-informed, empowered consumer, the time seems ripe for the emergence of personalised self-service healthcare, where consumers play a more active role in the evaluation and management of their medical well-being, reports Self-service.

As smart technology, infused with intelligence, continues to make pertinent information more accessible, healthcare experts believe such progress could ultimately lead to increased compliance with treatment regimes, a healthier population and potentially lower healthcare costs.

In some quarters, it is already happening. Self-service technology is currently available to help healthcare patients register for services, retrieve information, navigate their way through a facility and settle accounts.