Parcel Lockers for Apartments, Offices and Retail in Australia

A smart parcel locker is a bank of electronically locked cells where any courier can leave a parcel and the recipient collects it later with a one-time code. Vending on Track is building parcel lockers for Australian apartment buildings, build-to-rent and student accommodation, commercial offices and retailers. A driver from any carrier delivers at the touchscreen without needing an account or an integration. The resident gets an SMS or email with a QR code and a PIN. Every delivery and collection is logged for the building manager. A small bank typically costs a few thousand dollars, plus a flat monthly software fee of around A$150 per building with no per-parcel fee. We are taking reservations for the first production run.

Quick answer

• What it is: secure cells in a lobby, mailroom or loading dock, opened by a code sent to the person the parcel is for. No concierge is needed to receive or hand over parcels.
• Who delivers: any courier. Australia Post, StarTrack, Toll, CouriersPlease, Aramex, DHL and Amazon drivers can all use the touchscreen like a visitor would. No carrier integration is needed, and we do not claim partnerships with carriers.
• Price: roughly A$3,000–7,000 ex GST for a small bank of about 10 cells, and roughly A$12,000–30,000 for a 50–100-cell building system, plus around A$150 a month per building for software. No per-parcel or resident fees. Ask for a price for your building.
• Who it is for: strata schemes and their managers, build-to-rent and student accommodation operators, office facilities managers, and retailers offering click and collect.
• Availability: reservations open for the first production run, about 8–12 weeks from an approved drawing.

How a delivery works

There is a fallback for parcels that will not fit. If the right size is full, or the parcel is too big, the courier can mark it as left with the building, so the resident is still told where it is. Building staff can open any cell from the portal, and every opening is recorded against their name.

What you get

Locker hardware

• Modular steel cabinets in three cell sizes (standard, large and oversize), and refrigerated cells built to order for grocery deliveries.
• A courier touchscreen with a label scanner on each bank. One bank serves dozens of cells; add a bank when couriers start queueing.
• Mains power and a 4G or ethernet connection.
• Powder-coated finish. Branded wraps are available, and outdoor-rated cabinets can be built for sheltered external sites.

Software

• Resident directory: imported from a spreadsheet or kept up to date by the building manager. Residents can also be added by invitation link.
• Notifications: SMS and email with QR code and PIN, plus automatic reminders.
• Building portal: live view of every cell, uncollected parcels, delivery history and an audit trail of every door opening.
• Courier access: optional time-limited door codes for registered regular drivers, so they can get into the building as well as the locker.
• API and webhooks: delivery and collection events for building apps and resident portals, built on our Programmable Locker controller and its documented REST API.
• Payment at the locker (optional): card or phone payment before a door opens, for retail pay-and-collect and paid services. Vending on Track’s background is cashless payment for unattended machines, and we have not found another Australian parcel-locker supplier that advertises paying at the locker.

What parcel lockers cost

The main things that move the price are the number of cells and the size mix, chilled cells, an outdoor-rated cabinet, and delivery and installation to your site. We do not publish a per-cell price list. We send a written quote for your building instead.

For cell dimensions and how to size a bank, see parcel locker sizes. To check whether a locker pays for itself in staff time, use the ROI calculator.

Where parcel lockers fit

• Strata apartments. Parcels pile up in the lobby or a mailroom, and nobody is accountable for them. A locker is common property, so the owners corporation decides on it at a meeting. Strata parcel lockers explains approval and funding in NSW, Victoria and Queensland.
• Build-to-rent and student accommodation. These buildings have staff, but handling parcels at the desk takes hours every week, and parcels peak when students return. A locker frees the desk and gives residents 24/7 collection.
• Commercial offices. Staff on hybrid schedules have personal parcels sent to work. A locker near the loading dock keeps couriers out of the lifts and parcels off the reception desk.
• Retail. After-hours click and collect, with payment at the locker if needed. See click and collect lockers.

Use cases: find your situation

Each page answers one buyer’s situation, with its own checklist and the cases where a locker is the wrong answer.

• Small strata and townhouse complexes: 8–40 lots with no concierge, a small bank and the cost per lot.
• High-rise towers (200+ lots): multiple banks, Christmas and Black Friday peaks, overflow and lift traffic.
• Apartment lobbies: footprint, finishes and branding, the concierge desk and visitor flow.
• Basement car parks: mobile signal underground, courier access through the gate, egress, lighting and damp.
• Outdoor sites and walk-up townhouses: sun on screens, IP ratings, shelter and vandal resistance.
• Retrofitting an existing building: converting a parcel room or mailroom, cable runs and approvals.
• Buildings with no manager or concierge: courier access, keeping the resident list current and remote admin.
• Parcel theft in apartment buildings: why parcels go missing and every option a committee has, lockers included.
• Build-to-rent operators: front-of-house time, resident app integration and portfolio roll-out.
• Student accommodation: semester and move-in peaks, after-hours collection and intake turnover.
• Retirement villages and seniors living: accessibility, simple codes, assisted collection, and why medicines need separate rules.
• Social and community housing: theft, durability, low running costs and tenants without smartphones.
• Office buildings: staff personal parcels, hybrid work, multi-tenant buildings and end-of-trip.
• New developments: space, power and data at design stage, off-the-plan amenity and handover.
• Grocery deliveries (chilled cells): temperature, power, cleaning and collection limits for chilled cells.
• Key and fob handover: residents, agents, tradespeople and short-stay hosts, and the by-law check.

If you are comparing suppliers, our overview of parcel locker companies in Australia sets out the main types and who offers what. For the basics, start with how parcel lockers work.

Where this is the wrong answer

• There is no power or mobile signal at the spot. Our lockers need mains power and a 4G or ethernet connection. Battery-only keypad boxes exist, but they cannot send notifications or keep a live record.
• Fewer than about five parcels a day arrive. A locker bank and a monthly fee are hard to justify. A lockable parcel room with a sign-in sheet costs less.
• You want the parcels managed for you. We supply the lockers and the software. We do not employ concierges or run a public parcel network.

What is real today, and what you are reserving

The controller, its REST API and the cloud platform behind it are in service today. They are the same Programmable Locker system that is available to integrators through our documented REST API. The building parcel-locker product is what the first production run delivers: courier walk-up delivery, the resident directory, notifications and the building portal. We have no installed buildings to show you yet, so we give you a rough price up front, a written quote for your building, and the option to reserve a slot. Reserving costs nothing. A refundable deposit is asked for only after you approve a layout drawing and a firm quote.

Talk to us about parcel lockers

The quickest route is the price enquiry, where you can add the cell mix and timing. You can also call +61 2 9160 6222 or email contact@vendingontrack.com.

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