“As someone who gets very excited about storage, I can tell you that day-use lockers get people’s attention,” says Linda Skelton, a Patterson Pope sales representative who loves the product’s flexibility. She is on the front lines every week, talking with customers and architects/designers about the myriad options available to those seeking fun, flexibility and incredible functionality.
“When I talk with people about day-use lockers, I find that it’s important for them to understand that the lockers can be designed in any configuration, using any lock, and any material.” says Skelton. “They can, for instance, be made of steel, wood or laminate, and locks can be digital or RFID and coded to a work badge. The interior can be outfitted with USB or power and we can integrate benches and lighting overhead. We really can meet any need, for any application.”
Storage is often a subject that doesn’t get the attention it deserves. As times change, however, that reality is shifting. Day-use lockers in particular are becoming more widely used, more readily recognized, and more enthusiastically adopted in a variety of settings. That’s because in addition to their myriad design options, the lockers dynamic uses are becoming apparent. From corporate settings to institutions of higher education to medical facilities, more and more organizations are seeing the value of adding day-use lockers to their environments. In our on-the-move society, having a safe, easy-to-access place to house “stuff” for shorter periods of time – without the hassle of managing keys – is a big deal.
Day-Use Lockers in Academic Institutions
Today’s college and university campuses are a lot larger than those of yesteryear. Many of the country’s largest institutions have footprints that stretch as far as multiple square miles. The distance from dormitory to biology lab to student union to gymnasium to library can be large, to say the least.
Today’s spread-out campuses mean that students and faculty are usually pretty mobile. A student might be in the library for a few minutes, but then need to rush off to class a couple blocks away. Adjunct faculty, meanwhile, might come into a building and only need to be there for a few hours at most, after which they may leave campus entirely. Colleges and universities are leading the curve when it comes to accommodating these realities. For them, it might be about providing space for rented laptops or bookbags; lockable protection for an adjunct professor’s personal effects; or keeping items protected during in-building meetings or class gatherings.
Homework has taught the industry that day-use lockers are no minor addition – and they skip the major investment.
Day-Use Lockers in Healthcare Facilities
If any group of people knows the importance of precision planning, it’s medical administrators. Given the burgeoning size of America’s hospitals, clinics and other facilities, being able to expertly plan and utilize that space is as essential to patient well-being as it is to design. Just as every part of the human body has a purpose, so much every space in a new, multi-million dollar medical building.
Day-use lockers offer a quick, convenient place for those visiting for an out-patient procedure – or even the doctors performing those procedures – to store their personal items. Many physicians rotate between different facilities and/or institutions, giving them all the more reason to trust the secure, reliable design of a day-use locker. With schedules being in such flux, day-use lockers eliminate the need to assign individual lockers to permanent staff. Shifts change. Priorities change. Day-use locker sturdiness and utility are constant.
Day-Use Lockers in Corporate Settings
If your office is like a lot of others these days, you may have noticed that there are an awful lot more open cubicles than there used to be. Rest assured, that’s not a sign of a lagging economy; rather, it’s an indication of a current trend. Thanks to the dependability of today’s technology, telecommuting is a popular option for individuals and companies. It provides freedom and a change of scenery for employees, and it provides additional space for companies large and small.
In corporate settings, day-use lockers are ideal for office hoteling, in which workers dynamically schedule their use of workspaces such as desks, cubicles, and offices. Think of the growing popularity of “hotspots” – open offices that welcome freelancers and entrepreneurs into their space. Or, as another example, consider the lockers’ utility for auditors who may be working at a company’s site temporarily. Whether because they’re only going to be on-site for a few days to a few weeks, or because they’re shuttling between different companies during a single day, day-use lockers provide an easy, secure place to lock down important tools.
Today’s business world is on the move – giving a whole new meaning to “corporate mobility.” Those same doctors mentioned earlier will tell you that the human body was made to move. Well, the increased usage of day-use lockers is proof positive that that’s no theory; it’s a fact.
Custom is our Standard
In the furniture industry, customers are given a variety of “standard” choices from which to choose an item. If they find that they like the general look and/or feel of a piece but would like to customize something here or there, there is a price attached to that option. At Patterson Pope, “custom” is our standard – minus the mark-up.
“We don’t have a warehouse of lockers sitting out there in the middle of America. Everything we do is custom tailored to your application,” says Skelton. “Whatever you need, and however you want it to look and perform, we’re making that product when you order it. If you need a 27-inch wide laminate locker, we can do that. Need steel, wood or laminate? We’ve got you covered. Need unique buildout of the interior and/or different locking options? No problem.”
Providing the right outcome is always the goal. Taking the necessary steps to make that happen is the passion.
“The ideal scenario is when we’re offering a solution that happily marries the customer’s needs and the design intent,” says Skelton. “It’s about performing that needs analysis on the client side, sure, but also about being a conduit who helps a designer’s vision become a reality.”
Form and function. That’s what day-use lockers offer. The day-use philosophy, short and sweet? Drop it. Lock it. Leave it.
