ATLANTA -- The Georgia Institute of Technology is offering a 5% discount on all vending machine purchases when students use the BuzzCard campus identification and prepaid medium.
The university's campus services department implemented the discount at the beginning of the fall semester to help offset its first price hike on snacks and drinks in four years. Drink prices increased by a quarter, and snack items cost 5¢ to 10¢ more.
Officials said Georgia Tech's vending provider, Old Fashion Foods (Austell, GA), was forced to raise prices in order to pass along increased costs from product suppliers.
They emphasized that even despite the increase, vending items remain less expensive than those sold at other venues on campus.
The school's focus now is to get the word out by placing static clings on machines to inform students of the discount. Many students are unaware of the new promotion because the BuzzCard readers, reportedly cannot be programmed to show the discount at the time of purchase. Students can see the adjustment if they go online and check their BuzzCard account.
Campus services said its longterm goal is to install BuzzCard readers on all vending machines on campus. Since each reader costs $1,000, official said the project will remain a multiyear process.
