IBI Manages Cash with Dolphin 7200

Bar code technology has been used to manage inventory for twenty years or more, but it is only recently that this same technology has been used to manage cash. IBI Armored Services, an armored car service engaged in the pickup and delivery of currency and coin, has developed an automated data collection system to reduce costs and improve the efficiency of its routes. The result? Happier customers and a competitive advantage for the company.

The IBI project was started in 1995 by systems integrator Alan Short, now President of IBI Computer Security Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of IBI. At that time, IBI was not using any computer equipment to manage the daily accounting of money bags picked up and delivered by the drivers. Competing services had not automated and this was seen as prime opportunity to reduce costs and improve customer service.

IBI looked at a number of different products for this project. While it was clear that the company wanted some type of computer on board the truck, full-size industrial PCs such as the Telxon 1140 and Norand 6360 were rejected by the drivers as too heavy and bulky. Further, the drivers didn't want a graphical user interface, but something more like a telephone that was light, quick and easy to use. To meet these requirements, Mr. Short suggested the Dolphin® 7200 as an alternative to an industrial PC. The Dolphin had recently been selected by the United States Postal Service for use by more than 300,000 drivers, and was clearly rugged enough to do the job.

Tracking the Cash
Each morning all outgoing manifests are printed using IBI Transportation System software (IBITS). These manifests include the customer name and address, outgoing route number, bank name and address, seal number and a verified count of the bag's contents. Couriers are given money bags with pre-printed Code 39 bar code labels to use for their routes. A typical route has sixty or more customers, and takes somewhere between eight and twelve hours to complete.

As the money is picked up or delivered, the bar code on the bag is scanned and the value of the bag is entered into the IBITS application running on the Dolphin. When the driver returns to the base, he/she simply places the Dolphin unit into a HomeBase® to download route data into the NT-based host system. The bags themselves are scanned as they are taken in and reconciled against the data downloaded from the Dolphin. By automating the process for both paper money and outgoing coin, what used to take forty minutes, can now be done in three or four.

The unique challenge in this application is the fact that the bag is filled with paper money or coin and therefore provides an uneven surface. The slot scanners installed in the IBI base often have difficulty reading the bags, but according to Mr. Short, "the Dolphins will read anything". Further, the Dolphin has proven to be a very reliable and rugged solution and the drivers are now completely dedicated to the system.

This was not a particularly easy implementation, and complete development of the system has taken nearly five years, but the benefits are many. Specifically, the IBITS software

• effectively eliminates the need for the level of local knowledge usually required of a vault attendant, fewer mis-routed bags and a generally smoother base operation,
• increases the efficiency of the check-in and reconciliation process,
• provides real-time tracking information for the customer (a very important issue for some large new customers), and
• enhanced security on the trucks. With the IBITS system, IBI knows exactly what should be on the vehicle and if something is wrong, it is immediately apparent.

While IBI has never calculated a specific return on investment, Mr. Short believes this to be one of the company's best investments. "We have some very large bank and customer relationships which simply would not have happened without our commitment to automation. We believe that companies that do not invest in technology will not stay in this market, and we plan to be here for a long time to come."

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