Amazon describes the Dash Smart Shelf as a “weight-sensing, Wi-Fi-enabled auto-replenishment scale designed to streamline restocking critical workplace supplies and other essentials for businesses.” It’s promoting the Dash device as an automated online ordering tool for small and midsized businesses to give them and their “employees peace of mind that they will never run out of essentials like critical office supplies, toilet paper or other vital items like hand sanitizer and gloves.”

“We developed Dash Smart Shelf, a new Amazon device, after hearing from our SMB customers that one problem they faced with inventory replenishment was that vendor-managed inventory could be inflexible, with restrictions based on minimum orders or service area,” Amazon says in a blog post. “Also, automated replenishment and inventory management options available today are often tailored for industrial applications, and can be expensive and difficult to implement, placing them out of reach of many SMBs.”

Amazon says businesses can set up the Dash device by “using four AAA batteries, connect to Wi-Fi with the Amazon Shopping app, and then log in to their Amazon Business or personal account via the Amazon Shopping app to customize preferences.”

The Dash Smart Shelf is about one inch tall and comes in three footprints: small (7” x 7”), medium (12” x 10”), and large (18” x 13”).

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