MEI Gives Your Machine A Voice in 2012 and Beyond

Give Your Machines a Voice- Thats exactly what MEI intends to do this year with its latest telemeter, the EASITRAX Advance 5000. And in advance of the 2012 NAMA OneShow, where the Advance 5000 will be unveiled for the first time, MEI is detailing its plans to operators on just how they expect to do that. That roadmap has two distinct paths with directions towards both an offline and online capability.

The journey begins at the offline machine. MEI understands that the ROI to take every machine online is often not fully justified. The Advance 5000, modular in design, not only allows operators to choose the machines they want to bring online but it uniquely gives the offline machine a bigger voice with the industrys only Offline Data Recorder (ODR).

The ODR, inside the base telemeter, intelligently queries an offline machine between operator visits and records the machines daily granular sales and alarm data. This more granular set of data enhances the predictive modeling output generated from the MEI EASITRAX software solution. Operators will benefit from improved operational efficiencies and increased cash flow from subsequent inventory reductions, improved customer satisfaction and higher sales volumes. The device is highly configurable so operators may choose the time intervals they wish to record. This collected data is then transferrable via a convenient USB port or handheld from the machine to the back office.

Never before has the industry had a tool like the ODR. It queries to the offline machine every day, every hour, without a need for an operator visit to download the data more often, said Advance 5000 Product Manager, Don Finley. It saves time, money and inevitably gives the machine a new voice to tell the story of what occurred day-by-day, in the offline machine. MEI anticipates the buzz around this Advance 5000 feature to be loud to at NAMA. Don continued by saying, I think when operators talk to us at NAMA theyll be excited about whats coming from MEI. We know weve got something special here.

The online machine takes another route with the Advance 5000. It delivers both
the highly anticipated telemetry for full-line capability from MEI
and a flexible cashless solution.

Real-time machine data, talks to the back office as it happens. Once communicated to the back office, full-line operators can look to leverage the next release in the EASITRAX vending management software suite, EASITRAX Advance , to interpret their Advance 5000 online and offline ODR data. Due out in late 2012, EASITRAX Advance, coupled with the base reporting module, Easitrax Core, gives operators the necessary tools to make even more intelligent decisions about their machines. Field trials are already under way for this powerful duo of software and hardware with results due out mid-year.

Once a machine is selected to go online for telemetry, cashless or for both, Advance 5000 machines can be easily networked in a LAN or WAN configuration to ensure communication coverage in even poor cellular coverage locations. Dual IP capabilities allow both cashless and telemetry communications to be directed independently, providing more choice when it comes to data security and communication costs. Its flexibility is also reflected in its ability to talk over a 2G, 3G or CDMA network. The Advance 5000 is conveniently agnostic to card processors through MEIs gateway partner, Apriva, and will have the option to enable 2-tier pricing at the machine, providing operators an additional cashless revenue source.

Packed with unique features, the Advance 5000 is the next generation telemeter and expands the voice of every machine, whether theyre online or offline. Stop by the MEI booth, # 1013, at the NAMA OneShow in Las Vegas later this month to learn more about the Advance 5000 and to ask how it can give your machines a voice.

About MEI:

MEI, headquartered in West Chester, Pa., holds the worlds largest installed base of unattended payment systems, handling over two billion transactions per week in more than 100 countries. The company developed the first electronic coin mechanism in the 1960s, followed by the first electronic non-contact bill acceptor, and more recently its credit card capability and vending management solution. Recently, MEI reached a milestone of selling more than four million bill acceptors and five million coin mechanisms worldwide. Its products are in widespread use in the vending, soft drink, gaming, amusement, transport, retail, and kiosk markets

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