‍Survey equipment specialists REALIT Solutions ship high-value laser scanning technology to clients across North America with Envio's Artac e-ink labels fitted to every shipping case.

Industry: Reality capture, laser scanning technology sales & rentals

‍Region: United States & Canada

‍Solution: Artac E-ink shipping label, Envio Dashboard & API

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About REALIT

REALIT is a Leica Geosystems Diamond Partner that sells and rents 3D laser scanning equipment to surveyors, construction firms, engineers and manufacturers across the US and Canada. Their range covers the Leica RTC360, P-Series and BLK scanners.

The rental side of the business has an unusual problem. A single scanner can cost as much as a sports car, but unlike a car, it spends most of its life in transit. A scanner gets packed into its shipping case, handed to FedEx, used on a job site on the other side of the continent, then shipped back. Often it goes straight out again to the next client.

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The Challenge

Renting out high-value equipment across two countries creates logistical headaches, and they grow with the business.

Every rental needs at least two shipping labels: one to get the scanner to the client and one to bring it home. Traditionally the return label is printed in advance and tucked inside the case, where it can be lost, damaged or mixed up with paperwork from another job. If a rental gets extended or the kit needs to move on to a different site, someone has to generate a new label and the client has to find a printer. Every manual step is a chance for the wrong label to end up on the wrong case.

Then there's the visibility problem. Once a case leaves the warehouse, tracking traditionally ends at the carrier's website. For scanners worth six figures, "out for delivery" isn't good enough. REALIT needed to know where its equipment actually was at any moment, whether that was on a FedEx truck, on a client's job site or somewhere it shouldn't be.

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‍The Solution

REALIT fitted Envio's Artac e-ink labels directly into their Nanuk 925 shipping cases. Each Artac is a rugged 4x6 inch digital shipping label and GPS tracker in one, so every case can be relabelled and monitored remotely.

The labels have standalone cellular connectivity built in, so they don't rely on WiFi or nearby devices to stay online. Artac devices connect over AT&T, T-Mobile, Bell and Telus, covering both sides of the border.

REALIT has also integrated with Envio's API, connecting their in-house CRM and rental management platform so it can pull the latest tracking information and update labels directly.

In practice, that means:

• Labels are pushed, not printed. The team uploads a FedEx label to the Envio dashboard and it appears on the case's e-ink display, whether that case is in the warehouse next door or with a client three time zones away.
• Returns take minimal effort from the client. When a rental ends, REALIT pushes the return label to the case remotely. The client just hands the case to FedEx. No printer, no hunting for packing slips, no support call.
• Relabelling issues disappear. Because each label is sent to a specific device on a specific case, the wrong label can't end up on the wrong scanner.
• Every scanner is tracked in real time. GPS gives the operations team live visibility of the whole fleet. It protects equipment against loss and theft and shows at a glance which units are where when planning the next rental.
• The cases handle life on the road. With a GorillaGlass protected display built to withstand water, dust and impact, Artac survives the same job sites as the scanners it travels with.

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‍The Result

"Integrating Envio's e-ink labels into our shipping cases has helped us streamline our equipment rental processes, both internally and for our clients. Being able to push shipping labels to the cases saves us and our clients time and frustration while eliminating the potential for errors." VP Operations, REALIT

Rental logistics that once depended on printed labels, manual coordination and blind spots in transit now run from a single dashboard. Outbound shipments, returns, extensions and redirects are all handled remotely, and every case reports its location in real time, from warehouse to job site and back.

For REALIT's clients, renting a scanner now feels effortless. The case arrives correctly labelled, and sending it back is as simple as handing it over. For the operations team, the fleet is more secure, planning is sharper, and the rental experience matches the calibre of the equipment inside the case.

"Being able to geo-locate our equipment in real time is key to securing our rental fleet, and it supports our logistics and planning as well. Envio's solution has helped us achieve a level of professionalism and efficiency in handling equipment rentals that sets us apart in client satisfaction." REALIT

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Ship Smarter with Artac

Rental fleets, loaner kits, flight cases if your equipment travels, Artac keeps it labelled, tracked and coming back so you can optimise utilisation. Get in touch to see what Envio can do for your logistics.