HyClor Kiosk Web Application
HyClor Australia manufactures and supplies swimming pool and spa chemicals. As part of their customer service, they offer testing kiosk at participating stores to ensure that the chemicals in the customers pools and spas are at optimal levels.
Service Areas
- Custom Website Solution
Technologies
- Spring
- J2EE
- React
Issues
- Downtime of existing kiosk application in areas of patchy internet access
- Imperfect workarounds were in place for updating kiosk application
- Ease of use and time to load can be improved
- Test analytics were not available for existing kiosks
- Visual appeal of kiosks was lacking
- Tests not available for use on desktop computers
Objectives
- Improve uptime of kiosk application
- Improve application architecture and navigation for easier browsing and a more frictionless experience
- Implement a web based application
- Create custom analytics for tests and products recommended
- Utilise technologies that allow for the kiosk application to be used on the web
Research
One of the main issues for HyClor Australia was the inability of the kiosk application to be reliably used in areas of patchy internet. We created an entirely new architecture for the kiosk software that allows them to work independent of internet connection and have in-built smarts to sync data in the background when internet connectivity becomes available. The application we developed also increases the load speed dramatically as the pages load without needing to connect to the internet. We utilised custom service workers to push any updates to the network of kiosks resulting in a significant reduction in admin time required to remedy any issues. Additionally, the updates were performed offsite with custom cache-busting services, further reducing admin costs. A React-based web application that communicates with a Spring based web application using a REST API was chosen for the HyClor kiosk. This enabled rapid development and reusable components between the kiosk, apps and web versions, resulting in less double-up of coding and the ability to have a single set of business rules across all platforms. Using React also allowed for a faster flow between the pages in the application, enhancing the user experience. The application's visuals were refreshed, which utilised the HyClor branding more heavily and was more consistent with their current website. We also created custom reporting tools to allow HyClor staff to identify any bottlenecks in the application and track product recommendations and purchase trends.
Conclusions
The updated HyClor kiosk offers a fast, easy to use application for water testing with a stable offline mode. The refreshed visuals create a significantly stronger brand presence and brand recall. The web and kiosk modes allow for many accessible ways to be able to test pool water. The results for HyClor were significant, with pool test numbers up over 35% from the previous summer with our new system and sales increasing significantly as well.
