Configuring Vend Prices
In most cases, vend pricing is set through the Laundroworks system using the web Portal.
But in some cases, it is the laundry machine that controls the vend pricing directly.
The following is a list of machines where vend pricing comes directly from the machine itself, and is NOT set through the Laundroworks system:
- Dexter C-series washers and dryers
- Speed-Queen Quantum Touch washers and dryers
- Maytag Gen2 controls
- LG
- Any vending machine, including VendRite
If you need to configure prices for the above machines, you'll need to do that through the laundry machine's interface.
Once the price is set on the machine, the machine will instruct the Laundroworks card reader as to what price to display, and charge, to the laundry card.
For all other machines, read below.
Prerequisites
Before you can begin setting prices, you need to ensure that:
- The Value Add Center (VAC) is online (if there are multiple VACs, then ensure that VAC01 is online, since it's the primary unit that communicates with the readers).
To confirm VAC01 is online, log onto the Portal, click on your location, and confirm that you see VAC01 and that it is NOT indicating a status of Offline - The readers that you wish to set the prices of are Activated (using the Activation card for this specific store location), are visible online on the Portal, and their status is not currently indicating an error (like Machine/Serial Communication). Their status should contain OK
VAC01, and all readers, are online and ready to be priced
Manage Groups - Creating Machine Groups
Before setting any prices, it is strongly recommended that you first create Groups and add readers, representing the same machines, to those groups.
This will allow you to apply price changes, to all the readers in the same group, using one operation (another benefit of grouping is that this will allow you to run revenue reports on an entire group of machines)
To accomplish this, click the Manage Groups button in the top right corner of the Machines table:
Inside the Machine Group Management page, Click + Add New Group.
Give the group a meaningful name, such as "18lb washers".
Then use the dropdown control, in the group box, to select a reader that are installed on an 18lb washers, and then click +Place Into this Group button.
Continue selecting readers and pressing the +Place Into this Group button until all of your 18lb washer readers are listed in the group.
Then continue adding more groups, for all of your different types of machines, including dryers.
Note: When trying adding readers into a specific machine group, you are only able to add readers, that have the exact same reader settings.
If you have machines that are not all of the same model type, it is probable that the reader settings will be different for the different model machines.
In cases like these, if you have 2 different types of 45lb Washers, you will need to make separate groups for each type of 45lb Washer model you have.
(for example, you cannot put a 45lb Dexter Washer in the same group as a 45lb Alliance Washer)
If the system is not allowing you to add a specific reader to a group, it is most likely because that reader is installed on a different model of machine; so you will need to create separate groups so you can group the same model of machines together
Bulk Pricing - Setting Vend Pricing
If you've grouped your readers, you can use Bulk Pricing feature to apply the same price changes to all readers in the group.
Click Bulk Pricing button in the Machine header table:
Depending on the type of machine our reader is connected to, you will see different pricing fields representing the price settings that the machine allows our readers to affect.
Usually a reader has several price fields corresponding to different cycles and options on the machine. These are shown in the group boxes.
When changing the prices of your groups, it is recommended that you only change one group a time.
Chose a group, and click the check-box for all the price settings you want to change. You will not be able to edit the price you see in these settings until you've clicked the check-box for that particular setting:
Once you've entered the price that you want each setting to be, scroll to the bottom of the page and click Submit Price Change Request
This will send the price list to the VAC01, which will then forward it to all the individual readers in this group, one at a time.
The process may take a minute to finalize and be confirmed on this page. This is why you should do this only one group at a time.
Price synchronization
The Bulk Pricing feature is simply a way to send a ONE TIME command to all readers to have their price updated. This means that prices of readers do not automatically stay synchronized just because they are in the same group.
For example, if a year from today you add a new card reader, or you change a circuit board in an existing reader, that card reader will not automatically have its price changed - even if that reader is inside a group.
You'll need to update the reader individually (or update the pricing on the entire group)
Dryer reader's Time Unit (mins) setting:
On many dryers, you will see a setting called "Time Unit (mins)"; but this setting does NOT control the actual drying time of your dryers.
For reader's that have a Time Unit (mins) setting, you need to set the actual drying time on the machine itself, and then enter that same dry time into this reader's Time Unit (mins) setting so the reader knowns how long the dryer will run for, every time a card is placed on the reader to add top off time.
This setting is so the reader can display a busy message, for the correct amount of time while the dryer is running.
Any reader that has this setting does not communicate with the machine's control board directly, so the reader has no way of knowing how much time gets added to the dryer whenever the card is used to add top off time, unless you enter the top off time into this setting.
Setting Vend Pricing - Individual Reader
You can also set prices on specific readers. Grouping is not required for this.
Simply click the wrench icon next to the reader you want to configure:
Then click Edit Machine Settings, set your prices, and then click Update Settings.
If you only need to adjust the price of a single reader, it's faster to make the change at the individual reader, than using the bulk pricing menu to update it's setting.
Mobile Only Bulk Pricing Settings:
This section only applies to store locations that have our LaundryCat Mobile app enabled for the store.
On select machines, where the price of the machine is controlled by the machine itself, you may see a bulk pricing setting labelled as Mobile Only.
For stores that have the LaundryCat mobile app enabled for their store; with select machines that control the vend price, you also have to put the vend price into the reader settings so that Mobile App users are charged the same amount a Laundry Card users.
So if your bulk pricing menu has Mobile Only settings, and your store has the LaundryCat Mobile app enabled, you will want to enter the vend price in the reader settings as well as setting the price on the machine itself.
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