Automatic minibar company Bartech has upgraded its line of minibar and in-room point-of-sale products to meet the technology needs of a variety of property types and room configurations.
With today's travelers seeking to minimize contact with hotel staff and other guests by avoiding public hotel areas such as on-site food-and-beverage venues and retail shops, Bartech solutions provide properties with an alternate source of room revenue. Bartech's products ranges from standalone eTrays to fully automated refrigerated minibars and the BarTouch Cloud.
Bartech's eTray lets hoteliers sell nonrefrigerated products in the guestroom without the need for an existing minibar. Costing approximately a third of the price of a full minibar, the eTray offers full wireless operating abilities using a module that is directly integrated into the solution's electronics. This provides hoteliers with the ability to remotely monitor and manage individual guestroom inventory levels, so staff only needs to replace products when notified by the system, reducing unnecessary room entries and minimizing direct contact with guests. Any items removed are automatically transmitted as purchases to the property-management system to ensure appropriate billing while directing employees to restock and sanitize eTray units and merchandise once a guest checks out.
The company’s other automated in-room POS solutions, including the eDrawer, C32 and DD46 automatic minibars, have a customizable design along with a choice of three methods of central server communication between the minibars and hotel's property-management system. To streamline hotel operations, simplify inventory control and minimize loss, Bartech's automatic minibars have infrared, magnetic or micro-switch sensor technology that notifies the PMS when an item has been removed.
Bartech's BarTouch Cloud solution lets hotels with manual minibars track inventory levels and issue restock requests using any smart device. Through its integration with the hotel PMS, BarTouch Cloud enhances a hotel's ability to run operations remotely, allowing employees to monitor and manage F&B services using either Wi-Fi or 4G/5G from virtually anywhere in the world. BarTouch Cloud helps to lower operational and maintenance costs, allowing limited labor resources to balance F&B needs with other responsibilities, overseeing and managing all IT activities with regards to minibar operations. BarTouch Cloud is compatible with any manual minibar brand and model. It can even provide the ability to manage and bill nonrefrigerated items from snack trays and display units.
The company’s Minibar+ upgrades Bartech's manual minibars with semi-automatic functionality, a "plug and play" solution that is available as a downloadable application. The app adds semi-automatic functionality to Bartech's manual units to give hotel operators the ability to control key functions of these devices without having to set foot in the guestroom. Minibar+ also lets hoteliers control costs by letting them adjust internal temperatures remotely using tablets or smartphones, helping managers adjust their energy consumption based on occupancy, prevent refrigerators from running at night or automatically set the devices to shut down during pre-set periods of low occupancy. Other features include the ability to remotely lock and unlock minibars individually or by floor, reducing staff and guest pilferage, and allowing hoteliers to offer higher quality items in the guestroom. Maintenance staff can also schedule defrost timing remotely.
All Bartech minibar solutions can be customized to adapt to any specific need or guestroom design. This includes availability in virtually any size, color and finish along with the option of adding glass and leather.