Yoghurt for on the road
How it works
The Application
The application has a menu bar at the top of the screen. There are a few options in the menu bar:
About
In the ‘About’ submenu, general information about the application and the concept of ‘YoRoad’ can be found. Also, terms & conditions are implemented in this submenu.
Locations
The submenu ‘Locations’ contains an interactive map that shows all stations who are in possession of an ‘YoRoad’ device.
Order
Here, the meal can be composed and ordered. Personal favourites can be added in the application. Besides that, the customer is able to compose a new combination. In top of the screen, a pop-up will be visible. The pop-up shows how many toppings still can be chosen. After making the combination, a screen with an overview of the order will pop-up. The order can be placed or canceled.
My orders
In ‘My orders’, an overview of placed orders is available. Here, the orders can be canceled. Also information about the order, such as the QR code, are available.
Account & Settings
In this submenu, personal preferences can be modified and added. In addition, a subscription can be selected and modified.
Interface Explanation
When the use of the application isn’t eligible, there is the possibility to order your yoghurt with help of the interface on the vending machine itself. A part of the user interface is shown. It shows the start screen at first. By tabbing the screen, it is possible to start to order.
At first, there is the opportunity to choose between a small, medium or large size. The price of the yoghurt is already visible. Then, there is the option for a normal or Greek yoghurt. After these steps, the menu for toppings will be shown. For people in a hurry, there are standardized combinations to choose. For other people, there is the possibility to choose between muesli or cruesli, and three other toppings which you prefer. For more toppings, the costs will increase. Because just a part of the user interface is designed, the note for this during the order isn’t added yet, even as the possibility to order a second yoghurt.
After this process, there is the ability to pay with your debit card.
Technical aspects
When the vending machine starts an order, a cup gets dispensed from one of two big columns.
It falls on a conveyor belt. The conveyor goes underneath all the different ingredients.
First, the belt leads the cup to the chosen yoghurt flavor at the left side of the dispenser.
The yoghurt is stored in bags. The yoghurt is squeezed out of the bag via a rotating mechanism.
There is also a roll pressing down on the bag with gravity to get the most out of it.
If the cup is filled, it goes further along the line, passing under every kind of topping.
All the toppings are stored in columns and dispensed in controlled portions.
When every ingredient is in the cup, a lid gets pushed on. If the order was placed on the spot, the cup goes on to the pickup point.
If the order has to be stored to be picked up later, it enters the backside of the machine. It gets picked up by an automated storage.
This is comparable to the way a soft drinks vending machine prevents bottles from falling down but then reversed.
The cup sits in the storage until it gets picked up by the customer.
The vending machine is optimized to make and hold 400 cups of yoghurt. This means that there are enough cups, yoghurt and storage for 400 cups.
The number of toppings dependents on the demand for certain items. In every column is between 25 and 35 liters of space.
The whole machine is kept at around 5 degrees Celsius. This means that it has to be isolated properly.
There is a small door behind the pickup points to prevent air from leaking.
The machine keeps track of everything that is going on.
This information is passed on to the maintenance personnel, so they know exactly when it is the best time for service.
Combining this information with the information gathered from the app, it is also possible to analyse the needs from the customers and adjust the offered products accordingly.
Because the machine is placed in a public area, it has to be able to withstand severe assaults and fast changing weather situations.
The large glass plane needs to be both isolating and strong. Existing vending machines use triple layered glass for this.
For the exterior housing, steel would be the best option. Although expensive, it is more durable than other materials like wood.
Plastic would be difficult to mold at this size. Although we give the sides a wooden look, this would be made from steel as well.
The interior is made from a lightweight metal frame, this only has to withstand the weight from the exterior.
After that, the yoghurt will probably weigh the most.
The columns with toppings will be made from a shiny plastic that has to look like glass.
Real glass cannot be used because the tubes will be transported twice each day and therefore have to be light and durable.
Maintenance
The vending machines of YoRoad need to be refilled twice a day because YoRoad delivers a fresh product.
Even so, YoRoad has to deliver on demand. There is one office and one storage, in the future there will be three.
The office and the first storage are located in Utrecht.
From there, a van will be driving to Rotterdam via Den Haag and a second van to Amsterdam and Amersfoort.
This transport takes place before the morning rush hour and in the midday.
This way there will be enough and fresh Yoghurt for both the people who order in the morning and the people who order for the rest of the day.
One person will be responsible for driving to the location, cleaning the machine and restocking it.
Restocking happens via the front side of the machine. The glass and screen can be opened. Then the columns with yoghurt, toppings, cups and lids can all be replaced.
At the central storage, the yoghurt bag will be placed in a holder that will fit in the machine.
This is done because the bags will hold around 50 liters of yoghurt and would be very unwieldy to place manually.
If the columns still have goods in them, they will still be replaced. At the central storage, the leftovers will be “recycled”.
Collaboration
First of all, we wanted to have the opportunity to buy some drinks for by your breakfast. We came up with juice because we already had dairy. We wanted it to be sustainable, to give the customer a healthy and fresh meal. But to produce our own juice and make the packages is too expensive for the benefits we have. That’s why we choose to find a sustainable brand. We found Innocent. Innocent is not only sustainable; they want to treat the earth with care and leave it better than they found it. They try to make the negative impact on earth to a neutral or even positive impact. They also have their own foundation to help the local farmers and fight against hunger.
Possibilities business subscription
As a company, a certain package can be bought for the employees. The company can choose between some packages, stated as follows:
- With or without drinks
- Three or five times a week (amount can be discussed)
- A combination of the two options above
For prizes, a personalized offer will be made. There is the opportunity to make a personal appointment. In this appointment, the specific needs of your company will be discussed. Or you can fill in the online request and an offer will be sent to you online.
Paying System
paying in advance
paying at the machine
In advance
When you download the application and you want to use the pre-order system, you have to create an account.
Within this account, you have to register how you want to pay your orders.
In these you can choose between paying for yourself, or that your company will be paying for you.
In the case you pay for yourself, you have to fill in how much money you want on your account.
There is an option for a one-time payment or the option that, when you are below the €5,-, there is automatically an increase of a proposed amount.
After these, you have to fill in your banking details and accept the legal conditions.
For the option of the company who is paying, you have to fill in the personal code, you get of the firm you are working for.
Every time you order, you receive a QR code. With this QR code, you can pick up your personal order at the YoRoad vending machine.
In general, the money of the meal will be paid when the order is picked up.
To make sure people won’t order without any reason, (part of the) costs will be charged when people cancel their order.
The cancellation procedure is shown in the timeline.
Subscription
A subscription is possible for companies aswell for personal use of YoRoad. As a private consumer you can subscribe for a 10 in a row. This means that you buy nine times at YoRoad and you get the tenth for free. Within these 10 in a row, you have to select one size of ordering.
At the moment itself
When you order a menu at the station, you have to pay with card or with wireless money transfer. you can’t pay with cash.
Firms paying for employees
For company subscription, when the package is bought, the firm receives a personal code, which is connected with the amount of people. These personal code can be provide to the employees and when the code is used for the amount what was bought. For example the deal was for 25 people and the code is used 25 times, the 26th person can’t use it anymore.
Paying system for firms
Firms can pay by automatically debt collection or can transfer it by themselves. They can choose to pay it all in once or pay a certain amount each month.
Business Plan
Entrepreneurs
To create YoRoad, there will be 3 people who will start the whole company.
They will manage all the organisation work and make sure the vending machines are produced by other companies.
When the vending machines are in service, they will be working at the office to deal with all the management and financial factors.
One or two of them will also go to the stations to refill and clean the machines.
Storage and Employees
The storage building of all the consumer goods will be in Utrecht, it is in the middle of the Netherlands and the other stations are not that far and easy to reach.
The office will be within this storage building.
Beside the 3 entrepreneurs, there will also be 2 or 3 people hired, so they can refill the machines,
clean the machines at the stations and fix things when they are broken.
In the future, the goal is to get YoRoad vending machines on at least 25 stations spread along whole Netherland.
When this happens, there will be more storage buildings, spread among Netherland, so the distribution cost and time of refilling the machines
will be reduced. By then there will also be an office separated from the storage buildings.
The number of employees will grow up to around 50 people. A part of them will work at the office and a part of them will work to fill and repair the vending machines.
Market and concurrents
At this moment there are several firms who deliver food for train stations or who deliver vending machines.
Examples of food providers on train stations are a kiosk and the ‘AH to go’.
These services aren’t automatically organised and function mostly with the help of a staff.
A lot of firms are active in the vending machine market segment. On train stations, simple vending machines are used.
Some offices or schools make use of more extended vending machines. One of the firms who deliver a various assortment of vending machines is ‘Canteen’.
They deliver vending machines for coffee, fresh food, and even ice creams.
Another franchise is ‘Fresh! Healthy vending’ who offers vending machines with especially healthy food.
Encouraged by their vision to deliver healthy food to fight the obesity epidemic,
they pioneered the healthy vending concept and continue to capitalize on a growing market of health conscious consumers,
partnered with entrepreneurs who share their vision.
Also ‘All real food’ is an active firm on this market.
They take care of the stock of vending machines with local, healthy food.
‘Capita’ rent vending machines with complete services.
They visit the vending machines on a daily or weekly basis to ensure that everything works perfectly and the machine is filled with the fresh products.
They deliver technical support too.
‘Vending group’ delivers vending machines for free by a takeaway of 50 or more.
It may be clear that the market branch for vending machines is very various, but yet there aren’t extended vending machines for train stations.
SWOT-analysis
This analysis gives a good overview about the companies weakness. If these points are clear in advance, the company can integrate it into the process of how the business will be managed and less problems will occur.
The strengths:
Personalized meal
Fresh
Quick
Healthy
Easy to pre-order
Opportunities:
Reach the travelers by train
Responding to the upcoming health trends
Threats:
The product doesn’t get success with the target group
The vending machine isn’t that fast
Not being able to facilitate all the people within time
Service doesn’t connect with the needs of the consumers
Weaknesses:
Maintenance costs:
For this there can be looked into redesign the vending machine. It can be more expensive in the beginning, but in the end there will be less maintenance costs.
Need of often refills:
In the beginning of the start-up, it is probably less necessary to refill the machines. But when there is more awareness about YoRoad and more people want to get a YoRoad meal, there can be looked into the design and create a larger machine, where more of the products can be storaged.
Leftovers:
Hereby there can be tried to give the leftovers to the homeless shelters in the neighbourhood.
Promotion Plan
In order to create a good successful start and brand awareness, a promotion plan has been made.
The YoRoad will be placed at train stations, so the promotion should focus on train stations.
There are opportunities to place big posters, but also banners and flyers on bicycles.
Another efficient way of promoting is the use of social media. A large group can be reached with for example Facebook.
At last, the free newspaper “Metro” is a great medium for advertisement, since this is read only by the target group.
Most promotion needs to be done on forehand and during the launch of YoRoad, for a better brand awareness.
After the launch, the focus of promotion is on keeping customers loyal to YoRoad.
Like our work?
contact us:
emailadres@utwente.nl