Intelligent pusher shelves stock management solution demonstrated by ONIUM at “Stay Connected, Internet of Things Seminar”

Real time stocks monitoring, affordable logistics costs, high levels of predictability for adjusting production and distribution as necessary and fully compatible with the existing infrastructure in stores or shopping malls.

When we started ONIUM, we faced the standard dilemma of a dapper gentleman shopping for a new suit. What should one choose: made-to-measure or bespoke? Most of the people would think they are just one and the same: they both take measures, they are both specialized methods of tailoring, but… As always, here comes the infamous “but” hiding around the corner – hem within some standards or start from the ground up? When going made-to-measure, you still need to follow a certain standard that will fit the average person, then you make some fine adjustments and there you have it, your brand-new shiny suit. Still, it won’t fit you like a bespoke suit will do, because bespoke is all about starting from scratch, then going through a systematic process where a new fitting is built from a previous fitting. Two or three months and 4-5 fittings that translate to 20-25 measurements will be necessary, but rest assured – in the end, your suit will fit you like nothing else. So that’s what we thought when we decided to go the startup route and establish ONIUM: the bespoke equivalent for your needs, but with a price closer to made-to-measure, only to have the best services at an affordable price. It’s not that we hate “evil corporations”, went against the system, blah, blah, the usual anarchistic PR blurb – no, out of the question. After all, we come from a corporate background and working in a corporate environment helped us tremendously to build up our expertise and hone our skills. However, nowadays, we beg to differ as it’s not always all about maximizing profits and how to make it cheaper or faster. Sometimes you need to nail “the fit” perfectly, even if it’s going to take more time and a lot more effort. We believe it’s about picking whatever suits you the best, about being perfect, not just okay.

All these considered, Stay Connected – the IoT seminar by OrangeFab Romania, EBV Elektronik and SimCom was the ideal opportunity to show the world that we say what we mean, and we mean what we say. Per se, we designed, built and demoed a working prototype for real time intelligent management of different goods stocks on pusher shelves in shopping malls. In order to achieve the “bespoke” method mentioned earlier, we tailored the software and hardware around Orange LTE-M communication and by using parts provided by EBV Elektronik and SimCom. Our solution gives real time information of existing stocks on each slot of the monitored shelf. Stock variations are collected and transmitted on a secure connection (GSM, Wi-Fi or any other communication protocol) to a central server where data is thoroughly processed and analyzed. Results would be included in detailed sales reports based upon various criteria (brand, location, time stamp), graphic representation/charts of sale evolution, real time notifications (email, text messages, mobile application) for out-of-stock items, compatibility with ERP systems etc.

 As you may have already guessed it, the solution comes with some obvious advantages: real time stocks monitoring, affordable logistics costs, high levels of predictability for adjusting production and distribution as necessary (or when stocks drop to zero) and, extremely important, it is fully compatible with the existing infrastructure in stores or shopping malls. To playfully summarize this, we imagined our solution as the Big Brother of stock management: if it is on a shelf, we can find out almost everything about it. Well, at least without the totalitarian vibe from George Orwell’s novel.

We expect to have the shelf management solution available for purchase and customization in the next few months, so if you are interested or do you find it suitable for your business, feel free to make all your inquiries at office@onium.ro  and we will get back to you shortly. You should, also, visit our website from time to time as we keep it updated with news, facts and information on the products we develop and the events we attend. Glad to have you here and until next time, keep close!