Tackling the impact of parcel delivery on facilities and property management | Quadient (formerly Neopost)
Tackling the impact of parcel delivery on facilities and property management
Tuesday, Apr 21st 2020
We recently looked at some of the broad challenges and opportunities that ‘last mile delivery’ presents for organisations. Here, we look more closely at how trends in rented accommodation, coupled with increasing volumes of package deliveries have an impact on residential facilities management, and what can be done to mitigate it.
Key trend: Build to Rent
The number of UK residents renting privately has doubled over the past decade. Currently, 20% of households (30% in London) are in private rented accommodation.
There are many socio-economic factors influencing whether households buy or rent, but once it has been established that a household will be living in rented accommodation, the marketplace for somewhere to live is extremely competitive.
In recent times, a key growth area in the rental market has been build to rent. Institutional investment has driven a rise in developments, many of which are sited in inner-city locations and are designed to appeal to professionals.
In order to attract tenants, add-on services and facilities are increasingly important. Tenants are offered amenities, such as gyms, communal lounges, cinema rooms and, of course, concierge-type services which will include things like accepting packages on residents’ behalf.
For the managing companies that must receive packages for their residents, particularly in luxury developments, they will have to be prepared to accept responsibility for high-value items. For facilities managers and concierge staff, the security of mail for residents will be a growing concern. Assuming this responsibility will not go unrewarded, though, as residents will not have the inconvenience of picking packages up from the local sorting office, and hence their satisfaction with the managing company will be increased.
That being said, accepting parcels is not going to be the sole responsibility of on-site staff and, should they be away tending to other matters, residents may still need to organise re-delivery or collection.
Key solution: Automated Parcel Lockers
Automated parcel lockers address the situation by removing the need for various undesirable human interactions, facilitating a high degree of security and convenience. A user interface can alert residents on the arrival of packages, they can collect at a time that suits them, and they can be assured that their items will not be vulnerable to loss, theft and damage.
If you’re interested in finding out more about the issues that are creating the need for mail management solutions like lockers, Apex Insights has produced an in-depth market report. You can find out more about the benefits and features of our locker system here.