What is White Glove Logistics?

If you’ve heard the term ‘white-glove logistics’ and imagine a bunch of scientists wearing white coats and gloves, you wouldn’t be far from the truth. The white glove logistics company provides essential transportation, handling, and the installation of technical equipment and they must be approved by the equipment manufacturer in order the handle the consignment.

Technical Equipment

The term ‘technical equipment’ might include the following:

• ATMs & other banking equipment.
• Medical equipment – CT and MRI scanners, X-Ray machinery, and even complex surgery robotics.
• Fitness equipment.
• Digital signage.
• Robotics equipment for manufacturing.
• Data Centres – Relocating data centres.
• Access control systems – Found at train and bus stations, sports arenas, cinemas, and shopping malls.

The white glove technician spends a lot of time at workshops, learning about the target equipment and this brings accreditation, permitting the technician to handle the said equipment. This makes total sense; the manufacturer is not going to allow just anyone to handle their technical (and very expensive) products and with the right certification, they can be sure that the equipment is being handled correctly.

White Glove Services

The following services are available:

• Data Centre Relocation – If you have a small data centre at your facility and it needs to be relocated, there are server relocation services from Rhenus High Tech, one of the UK’s leading white glove logistics providers.
• Final Mile Delivery – Large and complex equipment is delivered by the manufacturer to an agreed location, where the white glove team will take possession. The specialists then maneuver the equipment into position, which can be extremely difficult, and once in place, the equipment is secured, installed, and configured, ready for use.
• ATM Maintenance – Installation, replacement, and repairs. A single white glove team would have a certain region to cover, which would include a busy schedule replacing and repairing machines.
• Full Technical Installation – When highly technical equipment is ready to be installed, the white glove team is ready and has the know-how and the resources to carry out the installation, including calibration, testing both offline and online, and configuration for use.

List of Sectors Dependent on White Glove Logistics

The following sectors are dependent on special logistics:

• Banking & finance – ATMs and telecommunication networks for stock markets.
• Retail & digital signage – Touch-screen applications.
• Mass Transportation – Access control systems.
• Fitness – Fitness equipment is installed by white glove technicians.
• Medical – MRI and CT scanners, diagnostic equipment & X-Ray machines.
• IT – Replacing computer hardware, WEEE disposal & asset recovery.

For a complete list of available services, search online for ‘white-glove logistics’ and that will bring up a list of providers. If you are looking to develop project management skills, this article was written with you in mind. Know details of Logistic Management with White Glove logistic.

Product Certification

The working time for the white glove technician is divided into two categories; servicing clients and attending seminars and workshops, to obtain the required certification to work with new equipment. The white glove technician would likely focus on one type of equipment, which might be vending & gaming machines, digital signage,

IT hardware recovery, or medical equipment, and as new products emerge, the technician learns what he or she needs to know.

Reverse Logistics

When a piece of equipment has reached the end of its life or must be returned to the OEM, the white glove team would handle the entire project, transporting the equipment to a specified address. This involves a lot of planning; the equipment must be dismantled and manhandled onto suitable vehicles, which requires special skills that the white glove technician possesses.

Next time you are in the gym, the equipment you are using was installed by a white glove technician, as was the ATM you used this morning. While you might be unaware of their existence, the white glove technicians work tirelessly in the background ensuring that technical equipment works as it should.