SP Industrial Solutions For The Transformation Of Smart Retail

A New Shift in Consumer Behavior

It’s been three years since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, and with the ongoing emergence of new variants that threaten the efficacy of vaccines, there is still seemingly no end in sight. One thing is for sure, though: it has changed the world and our way of living. These changes are likely to remain in place, even after we enter a post-pandemic era. With new normal practices such as social distancing and mask-wearing, one such major trend has been a shift in the way we shop and eat. Online ordering systems, online payment technologies, self-service kiosks, and mobile POS terminals have experienced a significant uptick in demand. In order to serve this shift in consumer behavior, SP Industrial offers a variety of industrial-grade solutions to help customers adapt to this growing trend within the smart retail sector.

The Transformation of Smart Retail

It is no surprise that the pandemic has influenced the desire for contactless transactions. With the increase in consumer demand for online ordering and in-store self-service, the need for retail stores, restaurants, and grocery stores of all sizes to offer these options has switched from value-added to necessary for survival. In addition, consumer tastes and preferences have always been subject to change regularly. Plus, the request to customize or personalize purchases has also increased. Therefore, digital signage and related equipment have become increasingly utilized as easier and quicker means for businesses to adjust and cater to these demands. This transformation to a heavier reliance on digital solutions has also led to a greater number and breadth of applications and memory storage to cope with it.

SP Industrial’s Variety of Solutions for Smart Retail

Mobile POS terminals have become increasingly common in the food and beverage industry. The pandemic has led to widespread use not only in large chain brands but to businesses of all sizes. For these types of devices, SP Industrial offers lightweight and portable M.2 2242 SATA SSDs with fast read and write speeds. Our MDA550S series with long-life pSLC technology is not only durable and suitable for frequent daily use, but it is also equipped with TCG Opal 2.0 security protocols, which allows data to be encrypted and decrypted quickly in the SSD controller without affecting system performance. In addition, our SDT330 microSD series is another good choice. With a Host Lock feature to protect sensitive transaction logs and SMART analysis tools for health monitoring, this is a secure and reliable solution for small mobile POS terminals that are constantly left in open spaces.

As discussed earlier, self-service kiosks have experienced a surge in demand since the outbreak of the pandemic, resulting from consumer desire for less human contact. In addition to the food and beverage industry, other sectors such as public transportation, medical institutions, and retail stores have either started offering this option or increased the number of them to meet this demand. Storage solutions play an indispensable role in these devices and SP Industrial offers advanced PCIe NVMe Gen3x4 SSDs that are built for the task. Equipped with 3D TLC technology, our MEC3K0 series can process information rapidly with read speeds up to 2,600MB/s and write speeds up to 2,000MB/s. It is also shock and impact resistant for greater durability. In addition, our SSD3K0 SATA III SSD series with TLC technology is also suitable for self-service kiosks. Finally, our selection of DRAMless storage solutions is an alternative and more cost-effective option.

To account for regular changes in consumer tastes and preferences, as well as an increase in demand for pick-up and takeaway service that was induced by the pandemic, digital signage has become the preferred choice for retail businesses. Instead of traditional printed signage which must be replaced every time a change is made, digital signage is much more flexible and faster to update. SP Industrial provides advanced PCIe NVMe Gen4x4 SSDs that are specially designed for these devices. With top-tier read and write speeds, wide temperature application, and high performance that doesn’t compromise on bandwidth, our MEC3HSW0 series is the best choice for 4K HD outdoor digital signage.

Closing Thoughts

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed consumer behavior in big and small ways – and the retail sector is responding in kind to adapt to it. Although new smart retail trends have emerged due to the pandemic, we believe they will be here to stay once we eventually enter a post-pandemic era. SP Industrial will continue striving to provide advanced, high-quality solutions to help customers adapt to the ever-changing demands of consumers.