Parking Management Software: Automation That Will Solve Your Employees’ Problems For Good
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It can be hard to figure out what PMS (Parking Management Software) is all about.
With all the various types of technologies and businesses advertising their own solutions, it isn’t always easy.
Keeping this point in mind, we have compiled this comprehensive guide to deliver you an overall picture of PMS so you can make the best decision for your company.
A comprehensive guide on PMS
In this article, we’ll look at PMS as a whole, including many of its functionalities, advantages, working mechanisms, and who should use it.
It will give you an overview of the software and put your organization in a good position to choose the most appropriate one.
PMS: An introduction
Companies can use this tool to monitor their traffic, make their parking lots easier and safer, make the most of their parking areas, and include another layer of protection.
It took some time for car parks to change. The old pay-and-display system, where you have to find a few coins and put them in a slot, is ineffective and feels old.
This upgrade of a simple system has made it possible for companies in all fields to add PMS to their organizational ecosystems.
It impacts both your employees and the people who come to your business, as well as everybody in between.
There are many different kinds of apps. Some are as uncomplicated as digitized tracking of car numbers and parking lot spaces. Others use alert systems or colored LED lights to direct vehicles to open spaces.
Key elements of PMS
What are the most important parts of this sort of technology?
Also what should this be able to do? Let’s look at what PMS is made of.
Each platform will have its own functions and uses, so we’ll just talk about the big ideas that make up PMS.
a) Track traffic
PMS is capable of keeping records of both people coming in, as well as people going out, whether they are walking or driving a car. This could be as easy as keeping track of empty spots or how many vehicles have gone through within A hours.
b) Set up your own criteria
With PMS, you’ll be able to handle different kinds of parking, like VIP, disabled, permanent, and temporary. This makes it easier for you to manage and operate your parking lot.
c) Multi-location
This means being able to control and set up parking in more than one place, like on multiple floors of a parking garage or in different spaces. Even though this technology can be used by any scale of business, it will be used more by larger businesses.
d) Provide reports
Among the most valuable aspects is being able to understand and record data that could be utilized to ease congestion, offer analytics, and just figure out the return on investment (ROI).
Instead of having insufficient data points, you get more authority over and access to your car parks.
e) Give payment options
Adding or integrating some kind of processing payments or tender transferring technologies can make PMS much more effective. Again, it might not apply to all businesses, but commercial parking lots usually have systems for payments in advance.
When searching for PMS, the ability to give out and keep a record of parking passes or permits with different locations and times is essential. It might be a pass for staff members and visitors or short-term permits to get into the parking lot.
How does PMS operate?
As we’ve said, there are different kinds of PMS, but the main ideas are the same.
It is a category of smart technology, which has been used in the personal, commercial, administration, and armed services sectors, among others. We can change how we engage with the environment around us via this technology.
When a vehicle arrives at the parking lot, it will be monitored and watched. Usually, this is done at the entrance, but also can be done automatically with sensors. Once the car reaches the parking area, its information is saved, and a couple of things might happen. The driver can be led to an area, told where the parking space is, or asked to locate a space by themselves.
Based on the location of the car, the PMS will usually only store information about it for a short time.
For example, take the parking lot of a shopping complex. Once the buyer has made the payment and driven away, there is no reason to keep their information. However, if you use the platform in a corporate parking lot, you could store information about company cars or staff license plates to make parking faster and more efficient for regulars.
Some software lets temporary visitors in or lets you specify permissions. Such mechanisms can be utilized with access control for cars and individuals to make a more reliable system that works together.
So, to summarize, PMS can function in a number of ways, making your, as well as, your parkers’ life much easier and less stressful.
What are the perks of PMS?
Possessing a PMS system can help solve problems and take the stress out of parking, which can help your company in various ways. Let’s focus on some of its benefits.
We have put the advantages into 3 groups: general, operational, and environmental. The groups cover some of the ways that PMS can help.
Each company has its own rationale for installing PMS, but this should give a better idea of what types of support it can bring.
General benefits
Here are a few general benefits of using an PMS:
a) Greater accountability
If you add a PMS system, you would be capable of keeping better track of how your parking lot is being used or how it is watched.
b) New analytics
A further benefit is that you have access to the latest insights via data analytics about your parking customers and your parking lot, which you probably didn’t have before. It can allow you to optimize traffic flow, get rid of traffic jams, evaluate customer (parker) behavior in parking spaces, and keep an eye on the site easily.
c) Better security
A parking space that is safer and better has a multitude of perks by itself. But if you can record license plate information and keep track of which cars are coming and going, you can make the parking lot safer for anyone who uses it.
Operational benefits
The operational benefits can be highlighted as below:
a) Greater ease
You won’t have to worry about finding a parking spot or adding extra time to your trip. We’ve all left someplace and also been late because we couldn’t find a parking spot. This could help make that worry go away.
b) No contact
Using PMS offers you the advantage of becoming contactless, which is a shift from the mainstream, conventional payment options (like cash) and more toward minimal contact.
c) Cost-effective
PMS is a cheap option, which can aid both your enterprise and the individuals who park their cars on your property.
Environmental benefits
The environmental benefits of PMS are as follows:
Corporate social responsibility, or CSR, is how well a business does in terms of environmental, societal, and economical aspects, as well as how it affects its different stakeholders.
Some companies advertise CSR by other names, like “corporate responsibility,” “corporate sustainability,” or “triple bottom line.” Other businesses would rather handle each CSR issue on their own, such as environment protection, community outreach, people management, etc.
Let us see how PMS contributes to CSR by maintaining a sustainable environment.
a) Reduced congestion
Some systems are able to direct cars to a certain area or space, which will make car parks run smoother and have less congestion.
b) Lower pollution
Using a PMS will make less pollution because automobiles can be directed to open areas. This helps fight concentrated air pollution.
c) Improved conditions
Possessing this application can make illumination and parking effective, which has its own upsides, like making sure parking is taken care of in every kind of weather condition and making it safer.
What kinds of businesses can use PMS?
There isn’t a particular industry that wouldn’t benefit from PMS, but let’s take a closer look at the few places where it could be used.
- Hotels and meeting places
- Parking garages with more than one entrance and exit
- Places of business with multiple parking lots
- Schools, colleges, and universities
- Hospitals and health care centers
- Wellness facilities and gyms
- Business car parks
- Shopping plazas and malls
- Headquarters of offices
- Railway stations and airports
PMS can be used in a lot of different ways, both for formal and informal use. Just understanding some of the illustrations will give you a better idea if this strategy is appropriate for you as well as your business.
The software industry for PMS
It isn’t hard to find the right PMS for your firm now that you know what it is all about.
This solution can help you boost the number of parking spots at your resort or improve the flow of traffic at your business.
As this sector grows and changes, the solutions will only get more beneficial and adaptable.
You can make the best decision if you make a distinction between the leading companies, conventional parking companies, and the sector’s relocation services.
One element is for certain: classic parking is already on the way out. Ticketing machines are being used decreasingly.
As the world moves away from cash and more towards digital and contactless payments, this industry shall only continue to grow.
How to choose the right PMS?
The decision-makers in this industry have customized solutions that are always getting better. Traditional parking organizations and online disruptors are different in the software environment for parking.
Traditional parking enterprises are finding it hard to change how they do business. They are struggling to come up with services that will work for their existing clients and make them remain relevant.
Digital disruptors, on the other hand, are a bit different. They are usually run by business owners and tech behemoths who recognized that parking applications weren’t very satisfactory.
Most of the time, innovation is at the heart of these corporations, and they are always incorporating even more functionalities and valuation. If the provider you want is not available in the market, talk to online disruptors who will understand your requirements.
How to negotiate a parking rental contract?
As you start to negotiate cost and pricing terms to build business relationships, keep in mind that many PMS vendors will demand and favor upfront payments.
As the customer, you might want to pay for it in monthly installments.
Again, negotiating a parking rental contract can sometimes be the worst part. Many businesses have stringent guidelines about how they buy things.
But many people who rent out parking spaces want less strict rules. Talk to a credible car park owner or contractor if you would like a long-term contract. But you will have to spend for this right.
Numerous real estate brokers and online sellers will have car parks they can’t promise to rent out for long periods of time. It doesn’t imply, though, that they won’t be around for a long time.
A real estate developer, for instance, might bet on a patch of property in a city. While they are waiting for planning approval, they could perhaps rent the area out as a parking lot to nearby businesses.
Now, no one knows how long the preparation process will take, which means they might have to wait ten years for authorization. They often don’t want to negotiate deals that last for a long time. If they do get the go-ahead to start building, they will try to move fast.
It’s better to have an open attitude when negotiating to rent parking lot space.
Parking contract terms are not really the main thing that many people who make decisions do. So, they won’t lose sleep if they move away from an agreement.
When you could rent a spot for a long period of time with a contract and a guarantee, this is fantastic. You might get all you need from a more adaptable arrangement if you are open to it.
Conclusion
PMS is a flexible and seamless solution for modern car parking spaces and traffic issues in cities. It offers maximum efficiency, ease, security, and reliability.
In fact, PMS is uniquely positioned to manage the rapidly expanding market across the world.
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