Home Bargains, inspired by Aldi, introduces a new system

 

The Discount retailer Home Bargains has followed Aldi’s lead and has introduced a new system to help control the number of shoppers in its 550 stores across the UK. It is the traffic-light infrastructure.

This solution has been implemented in the hopes that it will encourage customers to remain socially distant while shopping. Earlier this year, a similar system was launched by Aldi. How will Home Bargains’ facility work? The traffic lights will be controlled by sensors and they will be placed at the entrances and exits of all shops to oversee how many people are inside. Those waiting outside will be able to get in when the lights turn green. The supermarket company has used Hitachi’s 3D LiDAR Motion Sensor system. Thanks to this, it can monitor the numbers in real-time.

Additionally, this digital system is also equipped with the capability to track a customer’s journey around a store. It will do so by “directly detecting human shape and movement, identifying where they stopped and who they passed by”. Unlike CCTV cameras, this system does not invade on clients’ privacy because it does not collect personal information. Joe Morris, of TJ Morris, the firm responsible for Home Bargains, said, “Over the past few months, retail environments have changed, and we’ve had to quickly adapt to new ways of operating”.

Home Bargains introduces the traffic light system © Royalty-free image