Choosing Vending Machines

First of all, you need to choose the products that will be available in the vending machines.

Do you want hot drinks like coffee, soup or hot chocolate?

There are three types of hot drinks:

• Instant products (powders)
• Instant coffee (the same you would get for coffee machines)
• “Pre-dosed" items (pre-filled cups to which water is added by the vending machine at the last moment eg, soup) It is important that you have access to a water supply point near the vending machines.

Do you want vending machines with cold drinks?

Many suppliers offer different products for all tastes: fizzy drinks, fruit juices, mineral water, and even Fairtrade drinks. Having a choice of hot (coffee, hot chocolate, soup or tea) and cold drinks in your vending machines gives the user variety of choice as well as providing refreshments all year round.

Do you want vending machines that offer snacks, confectionary, sandwiches or salads?

Some vending machines stock chocolate bars, biscuits and fresh food like sandwiches, salads or fruit. If you decide on a fresh food vending machine, you will need to carefully monitor how it is restocked and kept clean, and make sure that the unit is maintained at its recommended low temperature. You will need to manage the “best before” dates very carefully and ensure the cooling temperature in your vending machines is correct at all times. It is important to note that, if you opt for in-house management of your vending machines, fresh products are more difficult to manage than ordinary snacks.