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University of Bath

"Our new system delivers everything we need and is reliable."
Paul Coombes, EPoS Manager, Students’ Union Services, University of Bath

The Client

As one of the UK’s leading higher educational establishments, the University of Bath boasts an international reputation for quality research and teaching. With its 12,000 students, it is also one of the most popular, and regularly secures ‘top ten’ placements in The Guardian and The Times university league tables.

The main campus at Claverton is home to an increasing number of bars, eateries and convenience stores, including those run by the Students’ Union.

“We are a growing business that needed modern equipment and to be producing better EPOS information. Our new system delivers everything we need and is reliable”.

Paul Coombes, EPoS Manager, Students’ Union Services, University of Bath

The Solution

The Challenge
Many students stay on campus, given its 3-mile distance from the city, and represent a large captive market. The Union runs a thriving and profitable business covering both leisure and retail, and reputably with one of the highest trading turnovers of its kind. There is one shop
selling stationery and memorabilia, and a small supermarket/convenience store that operates a 16-hour day, 7 days a week.

Both sides of the business had previously used old-style tills. With a growing student population came increased trading. That brought with it the need for automated systems and better management information. Fidelity’s G-Pos point-of-sale application was initially installed, followed in 2006 by an upgrade from the cash registers to modern touchscreen tills from J2 Retail Systems.

The Benefits
• The upgrade from old-style cash registers to latest touchscreen technology was slick and rapid, with no disruption to business

• Minimal training is required and staff quickly feel at ease with the new systems

• Support for barcode scanning and on-screen graphics makes for intuitive operation

• Service at point-of-sale is now notably faster, with the tills coping happily with trading peaks in both shops and bars

• The new front-office has linked into the same back-office system without disruption

• Operating the same software and hardware in all outlets makes for flexibility. Equipment can be easily moved around and the cost of ownership is kept down

• More complete information and reporting helps management to measure trading and drive a better business.

The Process

The selected hardware model was the J2 900CX series integrated touchscreen computer. Both its versions are used, with 12” monitors installed in the shops and the 15” equivalent in the bars.

First to go across to the new touchscreens was the Fresh convenience store with its five points-of-sale. Next came the Student Union shop with a further four. Once that process had been completed, the bar and nightclub with their combined six till-points upgraded to J2.

The upgrade was slick, fast and trouble-free. Very little training was required and was easily accomplished. From the outset, staff found the new systems intuitive to operate.

The Results

With G-Pos running on J2 900s, the Students’ Union has a contemporary solution that is functionally-rich and easy to use. It supports scanning of barcodes and uses product images on the touchscreen tills. This is particularly valuable in a context where casual workers and foreign students are often employed.

The convenience store is ‘”absolutely heaving” during lunchtimes and the bars have their equivalent peak periods on Wednesday and Saturday evenings, so speed of use was an important factor. Bar staff are particularly impressed with the combination of G-Pos and the J2 tills and find that the sales process has speeded up considerably.

Routines for system interrogation and reporting ensure that the business has a constant snapshot of trading through all its outlets and can tailor product lines and staffing to run a highly-efficient and profitable enterprise.

Partners

About J2 Retail Systems
J2 Retail Systems is a specialist manufacturer of PC-based touchscreens, LCD touchscreen monitors and point-of-sale hardware to the retail, hospitality and leisure industries. With 50,000+ units installed worldwide, its clients include Vue Entertainment, Greggs and Thresher Group.

By controlling its own design and manufacture, J2 has built a reputation for innovation, reliability and cost-effectiveness. Credited with introducing ‘thin client’ EPoS to the market, J2 uses emergent technologies wherever possible to reduce the cost of hardware ownership.

Sales in the UK, Continental Europe and the Middle East are managed from the company’s Warrington headquarters. J2 Retail Systems Inc. in California covers the USA, Canada and South American markets.

J2 900 CX

The J2 900CX machines deliver great functionality, durability, and affordability. This series represents leading-edge technology for the most demanding point-of-sale, point-of-service, and pointof- information device markets, based upon Intel’s latest M1.2GHz processor.

As an open platform, the J2 900CX can operate a broad range of operating systems and industry-standard peripherals. The unit provides total connectivity and supports a range of options such as Wireless Connectivity, Dual VGA Screens, CD Rom, DVD, and iButton.

Sector: Retail & Hospitality