Week of March 16, 2015
Michael Kachmar, Editor

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Our Product Pick

Bematech (Bethpage, NY) has unwrapped its new Android All-in-One POS, the SB8010A. With approximate footprint of 11 in. (H) x 10 in. (W) x 7 in. (D), and weight of 8.8 lbs., the SB8010A has fanless design and low power consumption of less than 10 W. It features 10" five-wire resistive touchscreen, Bluetooth, and 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi. With Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean, it carries Cortex A9 Dual-Core CPU, 1-GB RAM, and 8-GB eMMC. As I/O ports, USB, Serial, and Ethernet (as well as Audio). Integration of the VFD customer display, magnetic-stripe reader, and barcode scanner eliminates issues with device connectivity, mounting compatibility, and cable management. "This terminal is perfect for businesses that are looking for a system that is cost-effective with a compact footprint," stated Kayla Kelly, Marketing Manager of Bematech.

Bematech's SB8010A POS

COMPANY BUSINESS

TEAMSable's New Teammate

A new national distributor for TEAMSable POS (San Jose, CA), which has engaged Synnex Corporation. TeamSable's hardware products will be handled through the Synnex STORESolv Group (Greenville, SC), which addresses complete store management solutions, from hardware and software, to service and support before and after the sale. Since 2006, TeamSable has provided all-in-one touchscreen computers, receipt printers, cash drawers, tablet devices, and other core peripherals for POS.

"We are pleased to work with a dynamic POS hardware and software distributor like Synnex Corporation," stated Michael Hsieh, COO of TEAMSable's POS Division. "Together, we are able to provide VARs with POS hardware and software choices of superior quality and value. Furthermore, we are excited to work with Synnex's STORESolv Group because of their expertise around POS solutions and outstanding VAR support and services."

TEAMSable POS will continue to offer its industry-leading three-year warranty service on most products, with free lifetime phone tech support. In addition, it maintains its complimentary overnight rapid replacement program valid for 60 days after date of purchase for all VARs of Synnex STORESolv. A new POS terminal, entitled Vision POS, will be coming soon from TEAMSable. It features Intel Celeron J1900 Quad-Core CPU at 2 GHz, fanless and zero-bezel design, 15" resistive touchscreen, adjustable tilt, and Windows O/S.

Synnex Will Distribute TEAMSable POS

A Sputnik at ScanSource

ScanSource POS and Barcode (Greenville, SC) has announced ScanSource Satellite, its secondary, non-linecard assembly of vendors. In soft launch for the past several months, this new program allows the distributor's resellers to purchase products from companies in complementary technologies--such as tablet stands--as well as from companies as yet unsigned by ScanSource--such as AML, Bixolon, Evolis, and TSC America. It runs through the ScanSource Services Group.

"This program is an excellent way for us to welcome new and smaller vendors, while fulfilling total solutions for our reseller partners," observed Mike Burns, President of the ScanSource Services Group. In conversation with RRN.Com, Burns explained that products from participating vendors are handled on a consignment basis by ScanSource. This leaves vendors responsible for any merchandising, training, and product management. "We place the order for resellers, in response to their requests," noted Burns. "We don't own the inventory [which is housed at the ScanSource Distribution Center]."

Advantages for resellers include the distributor's capability in order fulfillment, obviously. As well, "one-stop" shopping eliminates the need for second sets of invoices--or deliveries--since scheduling and billing flows through ScanSource. Customer service agents will support such products within the ScanSource Services Group. "An easier way to get products that they're going to get anyway," summarized Burns, citing early success.

Mike Burns, President, ScanSource Services Group

Worth Your While

TransAct 15
Electronic Transactions Association
March 31 - April 2
San Francisco

Retail Realm Technology Conference
"Microsoft for the Retail Sector"
April 25-27
Las Vegas

WERC
Warehousing Education Research Council
May 3-6
Orlando

NRA Show 2015
National Restaurant Association
May 16-19
Chicago


ALL IN THE FAMILY

Posiflex Cuts Clutter

Posiflex USA (Hayward, CA) has unveiled two new terminals, mid-range (Model XT3815) and high-performance (Model XT5315), for its XT POS Series. Both feature fanless and zero-bezel design, 15" projected-capacitive, scratch-resistant touchscreen with adjustable tilt, and POS Ready 2007, Windows 7 Pro, or Windows Embedded 8.1 O/S. Significantly, the XT3815 and XT5315 offer an optional Powered USB base for clutter-free install. A backup battery and secondary hard drive are included in this base.

Posiflex XT5315 offers choice of three powerful embedded processors: Intel Celeron G1820, Core i3 4330TE, or Core i5 4570TE. It carries standard 4-GB RAM, upgraded to 16-GB. Also new to the XT Series is an optional eight-port USB hub kit with 150-W power supply. For lower-cost environments, the Posiflex XT3815 delivers an Intel Celeron J1900 CPU at 2 GHz, and standard 2-GB RAM, upgraded to 8-GB.

"I love the new XT Series," remarked Johnny Donaldson, Hardware Specialist at ISV Siriusware (Taos, NM). "The design is really eye-catching and the performance is outstanding. All of the available options for these models make it really easy to implement future functionality when needed." It particularly fits larger customers with extended roll-out schedules, noted Andre Nataf, Director of Business Development for Digital Dining (Springfield, VA).

Powered USB Brick for Posiflex XT Series

Cherry Flavors EMV

Cherry (Pleasant Prairie, WI) has shipped its new G80-7040LUVEU-2 POS Keyboard. With an eye towards legacy and future systems, it supports both standard three-track magnetic-stripe reader (MSR) as well as customer-facing PC/SC EMV Level 1 smart chip card reader with ISO-7816. Cherry's "MX" key switches are rated at fifty million actuations for long lifetime.

This new keyboard includes 43 reprogrammable keys and 15" form factor. Its smart card reader ensures two hundred thousand card insertions and its magnetic-stripe reader ensures one million swipes. The G80-7040LUVEU-2 features Cherry Tools software for easy programming as well as the capacity to work with UPOS.

It comes with three-year warranty, and will be handled through the company's authorized distributors and resellers. Evaluation units for qualified recipients are made available through Russell MacKenzie, Product Marketing Manager. As many readers know, Cherry is the registered brand of ZF Electronic Systems.

Cherry's EMV Level 1 POS Keyboard


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Week of March 9

Week of February 16

Week of February 9

1

ENVIRONMENTS/PLATFORMS

A Token Weighing 2 GB

Certain Safe (Colorado Springs, CO) has developed an advanced data security scheme described as "second-generation micro-tokenization." It increases the amount of data that can be effectively tokenized from what was 16 bits to the firm's new standard of 2 GB. This facilitates end-to-end encryption, securing data in rest as well as in motion. Additionally, this process is conducted within PCI-DSS Level 1, along with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Certain Safe offers an Application Programming Interface (API) for integration with POS.

"The concept of protecting 'data around the card' with the use of tokenization has long been needed for storing sensitive information," relayed Steven Russo, EVP of Certain Safe. "Our revolutionary micro-tokenization process allows for near real-time speed. The data is not only ultra-secure, but also readily accessible at near real-time performance so as to have very little impact on the user experience."

"Card numbers alone are only part of the complex issue that payment processors are attempting to address," added David Schoenberger, Chief Innovation Officer at Certain Safe. "Card numbers are important, but so is the available and complementary PII data such as addresses, names, and order information. The more data a hacker gets, the more complete profile of an individual they obtain, making the data they steal that much more valuable." PII, readers will recall, stands for Personally Identifiable Information.

Certain Safe Rolls Out More Powerful Tokenization

Checkpoint: See Your Shrink

A pair of specialized labels from Checkpoint Systems (Thorofare, NJ) should help reduce shrink and simplify merchandise display. Checkpoint's iS AutoPeg tag offers retailers secure protection for high-risk peg-hook packages such as batteries, razor blades, and ink cartridges. It snaps quickly and safely on single- or double-hole packaging and can be easily removed at the POS. In reusable format, iS AutoPeg preserves product branding, may be upgraded with RFID, and can be applied at the source.

Its counterpart, the 4210 EP food label, is one of very few such products to be microwave safe, according to the vendor. With small size and slim silhouette, this RF inlay integrates into price/scale packaging. Like the iS AutoPeg, it can be applied in-store or at source. Notably, it works in conjunction with Checkpoint's Counterpoint iD RF (CPiD) deactivation system, which ties to the bioptic scanner at the POS.

"Food retailers are increasingly challenged by shrink," counseled Uwe Sydon, SVP of Innovation for Checkpoint Systems. "In fact, the latest Global Retail Theft Barometer shows that supermarket/grocery retailers are experiencing the third highest shrink rates among retail verticals. Our latest solutions were designed together with food retailers and mass market retailers specifically to ensure merchandise remains safe and available while improving ease of use and reducing losses."

Checkpoint Unwraps New Loss Prevention Labels, Including the 4210 EP for Food Packaging

Code Corner

Honeywell Scanning & Mobility (Fort Mill, SC) has unveiled Operational Acuity, its new solution for maximizing efficiency in the distribution center and warehouse. Scheduled for general release this summer, this suite of software supports the company's mobile technology. It features two initial products, Vehicle Performance and Workflow Performance. As its name indicates, Vehicle Performance extends vehicle-mount computers with its sensor, badge reader, and video cameras. This enables the following: vehicle access control and driver authentication, videotaping of vehicle operation and worker performance, and detection and documentation of any vehicle impact--even minor bumps of pallets. It provides management with insights into worker safety and compliance, analyzes damaged goods incidents, optimizes vehicle use, and helps control vehicle operating and maintenance costs. On its part, Workflow Performance measures worker proficiency using voice solutions by Vocollect, which came to Honeywell as part of Intermec. In addition to assessing the value of process enhancements, and identifying and eliminating causes of inefficiencies, Workflow Performance facilitates worker training and support opportunities. "Operational Acuity allows customers to derive tangible value from their Big Data initiatives," commented Jay Armant, GM for Software at Honeywell Scanning & Mobility. "It helps customers reduce their total cost of ownership by finding new ways to leverage their existing technology investments."

1

NOTES FROM THE FIELD

PowaPOS Punches

Powa Technologies (Roswell, GA) has bundled its PowaPOS T25 with Zero POS software from Retail Cloud (Concord, CA). Notably, merchants license Zero POS, and pay no monthly fee. Introduced last year, the PowaPOS T25 assembles peripherals into one neat package, including tilting/swiveling tablet stand, high-speed receipt printer, two-dimensional scanner, cash drawer, and credit card reader (with so-called PowaPIN EMV). "A top-notch technology for SMBs in North America, and soon worldwide," as the combination was described by Kevin Colaco, CEO of Retail Cloud.

"The Zero POS solution is a terrific option for small to midsized retailers looking for a fully customizable POS software with a different financial model," suggested Michael Struttmann, SVP and GM of North America for PowaPOS. "Couple that with the sophisticated, advanced PowaPOS T25 hardware, and retailers are able to harness a strong Android-based solution for their point-of-sale needs." A Software Development Kit (SDK) and Application Programming Interface (API) support efforts in the channel with PowaPOS, including iOS, Windows, and Android.

Elsewhere, Powa Technologies has supplied its smart-phone-based mobile commerce platform, PowaTag, for L'Oreal USA. Alongside access to print and electronic advertising, as well as social media, purchases may be completed online through PowaTag. "Mobile devices have become the go-to method for people to explore and connect with brands and PowaTag is rapidly becoming the standard for the world's leading companies," exclaimed Dan Wagner, CEO and Founder of Powa Technologies, which sprung out of the U.K.

PowaPOS T25 With Retail Cloud Software

Eating the Peach (for Restaurant O/S)

Peach Works (Southfield, MI), formerly known as When To Manage, has closed $4 million in Series A funding led by Allos Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm. Peach Works will use the proceeds to scale up its sales and marketing capabilities and build out its suite of next-generation, cloud-based tools for restaurant management. It recently debuted Peach, its new "open platform" software, as well as the Peach App Store (and so the company name change).

In conjunction with this financing, cloud-industry veteran Mark Symonds, formerly CEO of Plex Systems, has agreed to join Peach Works as CEO. Under the leadership of Symonds, Plex grew into one of the leaders in cloud-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) for manufacturers. Jeff Schacher, Founder of When To Manage, will now serve as Chief Product Officer of Peach Works. A series of roll-outs in recipe and inventory management, analytics, and staff scheduling are planned.

"As more and more restaurant establishments move their business operations to the cloud, Peach Works has proven it's the leader in creating compelling, easy-to-use solutions that are revolutionizing how restaurants and foodservice providers manage their businesses," proposed Dov Rosenberg, Director of Allos Ventures. "This company is building a unique platform of highly customizable applications that is extremely valuable to all of these businesses, from a small owner with a single location to large national chains like Panera." As partners in POS, Peach Works lists Aloha, Digital Dining, Future POS, Lionwise, Micros, and Vivonet.

Mark Symonds, CEO, Peach Works, Formerly When To Manage

Key Advertiser Links

Be sure to visit these vendors for the latest in channel products and offers for resellers.

POS & Peripherals
Bematech
Harbortouch
Hewlett-Packard
Partner Tech
Pioneer POS
POS BANK USA
Posiflex
PowaPOS
TEAMSable

Barcode & Transaction Printers
Brother Mobile
CognitiveTPG
SATO America

Cash Drawers
MMF POS

Data Collection
CipherLab
Code Corporation
Datalogic

Integrated Payment Solutions
Cayan
Datacap Systems
Discover
Mercury/Vantiv

Keyboards & Mobile POS
Cherry, ZF Electronics Corp
PrehKeyTec

Receipt Printers
Bixolon America
CognitiveTPG
Epson America
Star Micronics

Thermal Printers
Seiko Instruments USA

Touchscreens & Monitors
Elo TouchSystems

1

INSTALLATIONS

Sonic - Mobivity's Drive-In

Mobivity (Chandler, AZ) has deployed its Smart Receipt for Mason-Harrison-Ratliff Enterprises (MHR), the largest franchisee group for Sonic Drive-In with multiple owners operating 275 sites. Initial roll-out took place in Dallas, with those to come in Mississippi and Florida. Via Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), Mobivity turns traditional receipts into marketing vehicles with coupons, special offers, or third-party advertisements. Additionally, it provides storage of transactional information with accompanying data analytics.

"Mobivity's Smart Receipt is a game-changing technology for us," maintained Justin Chandler, Director of Operations of MHR Dallas. "We expect the ability to transform our receipts into targeted, relevant, and measurable promotions will increase sales at our Sonic locations. Additionally, the ability to instantly access our sales data and combine that intelligence with our digital promotional campaigns is a breakthrough as we are unable to do so with our legacy point-of-sale systems."

"MHR is a pioneer in applying new technologies in the restaurant space," reflected Dennis Becker, CEO of Mobivity. "We have worked extensively with them to develop successful SMS marketing applications over the past several years and it's stirring to be a key part of their innovation roadmap." Such SMS campaigns have resulted in incremental revenue gains of more than 28%, according to the two parties.

Mobivity Brings Its Smart Receipt Technology to Sonic's Biggest Franchisee Group

A Pretty Smile for Numina

Numina Group (Woodridge, IL) will serve as system integrator for the new 300,000-square-foot manufacturing and distribution center of Sunstar, one of the major suppliers of dental healthcare products. Scheduled to open this summer in nearby Schaumburg, this facility will support omni-channel fulfillment, spanning retail, specialty distributors, and an expanding online consumer business. Numina Group teamed up with Sunstar in the early stages of the project and worked as design partner for planning, sizing, and technology selection.

The new DC's fulfillment and pick, pack, and ship processes will be managed and controlled by Numina Group's Tier 1 Warehouse Control System (WCS), dubbed the "Real-Time Distribution System." RDS will drive order picking and forward storage replenishment via voice technology, specifically TopVox. A two-level pick module with an automated conveyor system and other material handling automation has been installed (i.e., scales, print and apply labeling, shipping sorter).

Sunstar will support its multimodal voice-directed picking with hands-free, two-dimensional barcode scanning for capture and validation of SKU and Lot. Overall, Sunstar expects double-digit cost savings across the new operation, but "equally as important is the overall improvement to supply chain performance," related Dan Hanrahan, President of Numina Group. He predicts order throughput will jump 50%, with accuracy of 99.9%.

Automated DC for Major Dental Product Supplier

Channel Factoid

Worldwide shipments of Mobile POS grew by 77.4% in 2014 and this growth rate is maintaining its pace in 2015, according to "Mobile POS Terminal Market Share" by the IHL Group (Franklin, TN). "We are seeing a fundamental change in the market for North America that began as a replacement for cash registers and POS for small retailers that open new businesses," reported Greg Buzek, President of IHL Group. "Vendors have been quite successful and have benefited by the high churn rate of small retailers. These same vendors have struggled, however, in convincing existing small retailers who already have a POS solution to replace those units with Mobile POS." According to Buzek, "the opposite drivers are occurring in larger retailers who have begun with Mobile POS devices as additional checkout positions for customers with the hopes of replacing traditional POS in the future. Most enterprise retailers are looking at Mobile POS as simply one piece of creating a complete new customer experience at the store in this first phase." In terms of market segments, specialty stores still dominate the worldwide use of Mobile POS, with 58% of total shipments in 2014. By comparison, mass merchandisers accounted for less than 1%. Among vendors, not surprisingly, Apple has the largest share of shipments, with 42.9% in 2014 (including iPhones, iPods, and iPads). Interestingly, IHL Group also has released "WW POS Terminal Hardware Vendor Market Share," which indicates that the market for traditional POS grew by about 5%. Even in North America--where many observers expected contraction due to surging Mobile POS--shipments jumped by 5.2%.

HELLO GOODBYE

One Order of Bluefin

Bluefin Payment Systems (Atlanta, GA) has enlisted Greg Cornwell as its SVP and Chief of Security Solutions. Prior to Bluefin, Cornwell served as EVP of Sales for Accertify, where he managed teams in the U.S. and Latin America. His experience includes tenures as EVP of National Sales for RBS WorldPay and Chase Paymentech. Indicating interest in our channel, Bluefin now offers three products in PCI-validated Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE): the PayConex P2PE Enhanced Gateway; Decryptx, which enables P2PE for Enterprises and Tier 1/2 Merchants; and the QuickSwipe P2PE Mobile POS.

"We are extremely excited to have Greg come on board with Bluefin," shared John Perry, CEO. "Greg comes to us with a wealth of experience as a leader of multiple high-level organizations within the payment sector. Greg will have a solid and immediate impact on growing our client base while providing sales leadership in the Security Solutions team."

"As the first North American-based company to receive PCI validation for a P2PE solution last March, and the first globally to receive validation for mobile P2PE in December 2014, Bluefin is truly on the forefront of innovation in payment security," commented Cornwell. "It's an excellent time to join the company and I look forward to bringing my experience in retail sales and security to the Bluefin team."

Greg Cornwell, SVP and Chief of Security Solutions, Bluefin Payment Systems

Citizen Glenn

Citizen Systems America (Torrance, CA) has promoted Glenn Williams to VP of Corporate Strategy and Alliances for North and South America. Williams joined Citizen Systems America in August 2012 as Director of Marketing and Product Management. Well-known in our industry, he served as Product Manager for Zebra Technologies from 1999 to 2012.

"Continuing our overall focus on growing our business through sensible product, marketing, and alliance strategies remains at the forefront of our corporate direction," remarked Ted Masuda, CEO/President of Citizen Systems America. "Mr. Williams has been prominent in driving our visions and actions to date, and we are now looking to move to the next phase in our evolution of products, channel practices, and alliances."

"At Citizen, we will continue to provide best-in-class values to all of our partners," pledged Williams. "Clear product, alliance, and support strategies are the foundation of where Citizen is headed, and I am looking forward to the journey." At its recent partner conference in Cancun, Mexico, Citizen Systems America emphasized its "system level" printing solutions.

Glenn Williams, VP of Corporate Strategy and Alliances, Citizen Systems America

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