Vending Machines Blog

Eco Vending on a Roll

Ever thought about throwing your work down the toilet? Well now you can, and save the planet at the same time!

As you may already know, the Japanese are infamous for their strange and unusual vending machines, but this may raise the bar to new levels.

A new type of vending machine was unveiled a number of weeks ago at Tokyo’s Eco Products trade fair which feeds on waste office paper and outputs rolls of toilet paper! It is said that 40 sheets of A4 office paper is the amount required for a roll, and takes around 30 minutes from beginning to end (this process comprises of: shredding, mixing with water, pulping, flattening, drying and rolling).

Contrary to many gadgets born in Japan, this machine is far from compact – standing proud at 6ft tall and weighing just under 600 Kg – so don’t expect to tuck it away nicely in the corner of the bathroom!

Apparently, the White Goat, as the machine is named, costs about 6 pence to create a roll. Comparing this with the typical 40p per roll for a premium brand, it seems a substantial saving; but unfortunately the quality leaves a little to be desired when compared to its luxury brothers.

However, the factor most likely to hinder wide-spread adoption of this machine is probably its price. At a whopping $100,000 (around the £65,000 mark), toilet paper would need to be in extremely high demand in the office for this expense to be a viable purchase and realise any savings.

Posted in: Vending Machine News
Tags: toilet roll vending, vending, Vending Machine News, washroom vending

Cigarette Vending Machine Ban

Cigarette vending machines in England, Northern Ireland and Wales are close to being banned, following recent legislation changes approved by MPs. While Scotland has their own bill regarding this situation, both systems share similarities in their details.

If passed, both intend to first remove cigarette machines from larger stores in 2011, while smaller shops will have until 2013; the decision to implement the changes so far in the future is a result of the current economic climate.

Although welcomed by many, this plan has faced opposition from the tobacco industry and some retailers, who deny the validity of the arguments against them and protest that it will result in substantial loss of sales.

Proposed by Ian McCartney, the former Labour minister, the ban on cigarette vending machines is largely a consequence of suggestions that they are partly responsible for the uptake of smoking by new generations. It is thought cigarette vending machines are too appealing and accessible for children and also help to normalise attitudes towards cigarettes and smoking through brand familiarity.

Posted in: Vending Machine News
Tags: cigarette vending machines, vending machine information, Vending Machine News

US Beverage Industry to Include Calorie Information on Vending Machines

The subject of our last article was Barack Obama’s plans to attempt to reduce childhood obesity by removing sugary snack and drink vending machines from America’s schools. In a related effort, First Lady Michelle Obama has called for action from the beverage industry to help with her healthy families campaign.

It seems this call may now have been answered by the non-alcoholic beverage companies which are members of the American Beverage Association (including The Coca-Cola Company, Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Kraft Foods, PepsiCo, Red Bull North America, Inc. and many other major brands). The ABA has volunteered a new initiative which intends to present calorie information on their products in a more clear and useable manner.

Vending machines and product labels are two main areas which will be focussed on by this initiative. Vending machine beverage selection buttons are set to contain details of product calorie counts, while information on products themselves will be improved by additions such as per-serving calorie totals on the labels of items with higher volumes.

Only vending machines controlled by respective beverage companies will be affected by these changes, but perhaps it may prompt other operators to follow suit if the idea is welcomed by consumers.

Posted in: Vending Machine News, Vending Overseas
Tags: drink vending, Vending Machine News

Obama for Healthy Vending Machines

Last week the Obama administration announced plans to set new legislation in place to remove sugary snacks and drinks from school vending machines. The motivation behind the campaign has arisen from America’s increasing levels of child obesity and diabetes.

Barack is not alone in this war on weight, either. Last month, the first lady, Michelle Obama, also declared plans to lead an initiative aimed at reducing obesity levels amongst their younger population. The “Let’s Move” campaign has been created to try and encourage healthier and more active lifestyles.

The response to this initiative has been generally positive and has received a great deal of support. However, for many American citizens, Obama’s plans to regulate vending machines in schools have not been met with such enthusiasm.

It won’t really come as a surprise to anyone that the food industry is particularly unhappy about this idea, some retaliating with counter-campaigns to try and keep the junk food in the vending machines.

Some other people argue that it will be too expensive and also that the majority will be unfairly disadvantaged as a result of problems among the minority.

Results from the American National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) conducted in 1971-1974 showed obesity levels among school-aged adolescents, aged 12-19 years was at 6.1%. The latest figures from the 2003-2006 data set showed this figure had increased to 17.6%.¹

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Posted in: Vending Machine News
Tags: healthy vending, snack vending machines, Vending Machine News

Vending Machines

Cultures and societies constantly evolve as time progresses. Inevitably this means changes in the retail sector, especially as technological advances provide new possibilities. In recent history, we only need to look to the Internet for an example of a drastic change in consumer shopping habits.

Vending machines are no different to any other piece of technological equipment. As advances are made, new machines are always developed and adapted to take advantage; vending machines continually get smarter, faster, cleaner and more reliable.

Isn’t it about time your business took advantage of one of the biggest, most versatile retail sectors? You can. All you need is to invest in a vending machine from Intelligent Vending. We provide you with the best quality vending machines, with great information and unbeatable service, so that you can become an active vending entrepreneur.

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Posted in: Intelligent Vending Ltd, Vending Machine News, Vending Service
Tags: vending, vending machines

Introducing Krüger Water Coolers

We have just added the exciting Krüger water coolers to our website. These water coolers are of the highest quality and come packed full of great features – not to mention they look fantastic!

Floor standing and tabletop models are both available to suit all environments and the highly aesthetically pleasing design is certain to compliment any office or workspace.

Refresh yourself in style this Summer with freshly filtered ice cool water, available any time at the touch of a button. Whether you are looking to buy or rent: we highly recommened you consider Krüger water coolers.

Please view our water coolers page for more information, including downloadable brochures and technical specifications.

Posted in: Intelligent Vending Ltd, Vending Machine News
Tags: drink vending, kruger, pou water coolers, water coolers, water dispensers

Post: AVEX 2009 International Vending and Water Exhibition

Last month, the 2009 AVEX vending exhibition was held at the Birmingham NEC. The AVEX exhibition has always been a great opportunity for sneaking an insightful preview of all the latest vending innovations, and this year was no exception. In between all the hand shaking and coffee drinking, we got a chance to look close in to the not-so-distant future of vending.

As we are always on the look-out for new things to offer our customers, we were excited to see what products were going to be featured – hoping to find potential additions for our own catalogue. Numerous interesting displays caught our attention during our time at the exhibition; however, there were a few in particular that stood out from the crowd.

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Posted in: Intelligent Vending Ltd, Vending Machine News
Tags: avex, Intelligent Vending, vending and water exhibition, Vending Machine News

Winds of Change

The world we live in today is ever changing. Nothing stagnates and there are always upgrades for yesterday’s products coming out. The minute a product is launched it becomes outdated because we start working on a newer, better one to replace it with.

The same goes for lifestyles and trends. Nothing ever stays the same, not even for a whole season. There are new ideas for your lifestyle coming out every single day and new research is delivering new results each day. So where does all this change leave you as a vending machine owner?

Time to adapt

There has been research and surveys into the working lives and habits of people across the UK and there is a shocking rise in the amount of people that work from home or are on the move. That is not shocking for the rest of the world, but that increase is shocking for vending machine owners and operators.

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Posted in: Product Help & Advice, Vending Help & Advice, Vending Machine News, Vending Service
Tags: Intelligent Vending, vending, Vending Company, vending machine, Vending Machine Supplier, vending machines

Pre: AVEX 2009 International Vending and Water Exhibition

The AVEX International Vending and Water Exhibition has arrived again. It will be running from Wednesday 10^th – Thursday 11^th June at the NEC in Birmingham. The AVEX exhibition provides a unique opportunity to see the latest vending innovations and technologies as well as offering a chance to network and do business with key suppliers.

AVEX is only held every two years and attracts visitors from all over the world. Over 100 different stands will be on display, exhibiting some of the most exciting new and existing vending products and services. For anyone involved in vending, this is an event not to be missed.

No matter which vending sector you are in, there will be plenty of displays related to your area. Whether you are a vendor or an operator there are stands to cater for everyone.

In addition to the many new innovations to be seen, there will be a number of useful seminars offering help, tips and ideas on concepts including optimising sales and effective cost management. Other more specific topics will also be covered such as sustainability, telemetry, IT and scale control.

Entry to AVEX is free, subject to prior web or phone registration. More details on the AVEX exhibition can be found on the AVEX website.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Posted in: Intelligent Vending Ltd, Vending Help & Advice, Vending Machine News
Tags: avex, Intelligent Vending, vending and water exhibition, Vending Machine News

Stationery Vending Machines

Vending stationery equipment isn’t something new for us here at Intelligent Vending Ltd: back in 2005 we had a stationery vending machine proudly on display at the AVEX International Vending Machine Exhibition at Earls Court in London. The vending machine was a great success – even back then at the early stages of the project. Since then there have been numerous developments with our machines which allow us now to offer very cost-effective solutions.

Interest in stationery vending machines seems to be rapidly growing. This is an exciting prospect for us as we are able to provide outstanding stationery equipment vending solutions for clients.

Of course, stationery vending machines do not need to be limited to vending stationery equipment alone; office equipment and IT consumables (PC supplies such as USB Keys, headphones/headsets , printer cartridges, etc.) and other similarly packaged items are also ideally suited for these machines. Our machines have a delivery system designed for dealing with fragile products. This helps protect items during vending and allows peace of mind when vending delicate and higher value goods.

When we refer to stationery vending, we do not mean just pens, pencils, sharpeners and erasers. Pretty much everything you could want to dispense is an option with these vending machines. Staplers, hole-punchers, calculators, batteries, A4 pads, notepads/jotters, art sets (paints, brushes, etc.) and sketching and drawing sets are just few of the items which can be vended with no problems whatsoever.

Stationery vending machines are great additions for schools, colleges, universities, offices or anywhere else where such equipment is frequently used and is an essential requirement.

Posted in: Customised Vending, Intelligent Vending Ltd, Vending Machine News, Vending Service
Tags: customised vending machines, stationery vending machines, vending machines