Retail 4.0: Scale and Data Management in Modern Grocery Stores

The retail business has already arrived in the middle of the digital revolution. This entails more than just a transformation from static to digital trade or strategies for online marketing and e-commerce. Basically, the success model is not new, and traditional mom-and-pop stores have shown the way: Digital traders with a customer-centric strategy turn out to be successful. What are the implications of this for controlling scales and data?

For retail chains operating many scales at different locations, it is a challenge to ensure identical configurations, software revisions and operating procedures on all devices. Retail chains can use management software to automatically install, configure, monitor and maintain their scales in all their stores. Software features and modifications can be retrofitted locally on all devices without user intervention. Administrative overhead is low even for complex installation tasks. Costly service calls and downtimes can be reduced and uniform data revisions on all devices can be ensured by automatic failure notification.

Scale applications and specific retail applications can be installed remotely without any local intervention by service technicians. Massive roll-outs that previously took months can now be done quickly and without any traveling. After being unpacked at the store, new scales are powered up and connected to the network. The software will then take care of all subsequent installation steps. An integrated monitoring feature actively notifies the administrator whether the installation or configuration is completed successfully or with a fault. Any failures can be repaired by remote maintenance before the store opens, ensuring smooth operation.

To be successful, retailers must listen to the requirements of the market and their customers. This includes flexible expansion of their weighing systems for a variety of applications. For instance, origin data and orders can be managed directly in the scale. Other scenarios include the integration of advertising campaigns into the store concept or the execution of time-controlled messages and campaigns, enabling retailers to quickly respond to latest market trends. After all, devices must adapt to their customers, and not the other way around. Retail companies that successively expand the functionalities of their weighing systems can prepare themselves for the challenges of the future.

Bizerba offers its customers in industry, trade, and logistics a globally unique solutions portfolio of hardware and software around the central value "weight". This portfolio includes products and solutions related to slicing, processing, weighing, cashing, checking, commissioning, filling and labeling. A wide range of services from consulting and service, labels and consumables to leasing complete the portfolio.

Since 1866 Bizerba has made a significant contribution to the developments in the area of weighing technology and today is represented in 120 countries. The customer base includes globally operating companies in trade and industry as well as retailers, bakeries and butcheries. With around 3,900 employees worldwide and with its headquarters in Balingen, Baden Wuerttemberg, Bizerba has been in the same family for five generations.