With the approval of the new university and Memorial Union vending contract by the Board of Regents, the Union is moving to replace and increase service from what the previous vendor, TAVCO, offered.

“[University officials] were unhappy with the vending on campus for some time,” Warren Madden, vice president for business and finance, said.

Union officials said the goal of the Union is to provide more food and vending options as well as to make an effort toward selling healthier foods.

“There is a certain interest in having an array of things that could be construed as healthy,” said Kathy Svec, marketing director of the Memorial Union.

However, Svec said the first job of the Union is to replace the machines that were previously in the buildings.

“Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we should have the new machines in by early next week,” Svec said.

Svec said one of the main goals of the Union is to increase customer service and satisfaction.

“We’re going to try to make changes in selection, maintain a standard of quality in the items and establish a way for customers to communicate with us,”she said.

“We’re going to be really monitoring sales to find out what people want,” she said. “We want a way for customers to make requests and communicate with us.”

There will be several boxes where people can drop vending suggestions or requests, Svec said. There will also be a phone number printed on every product the Union makes or packages.

Svec said the quality and variety of the prepackaged vending food will be greatly increased by the Union.

“We intend to have a rotating menu [in the vending machines] so customers can expect something different every day,” she said.

Svec said the Union is very excited about the new vending manager, Tom Carne, who is an ISU alum and has training as a chef.

“We think he will bring a very unique point of view to the operation,” she said. “He will be someone who is very concerned about what the customer experiences.”

Overall, Svec said the Union is looking forward to the venture.

“This is another way for the Union to serve the ISU community,” she said. “We’re very excited to have that opportunity.”