InterGame speaks with Andy Crowson of Cummins-Allison and discovers it is about more than just cashing in on technology
Cummins-Allison UK is a subsidiary of Cummins Corp USA, which has been manufacturing cash handling products for over 60 years.
Cummins UK was set up over 20 years ago to provide cash handling solutions to the UK and Ireland and has become a leading manufacturer and supplier of cash-processing equipment in those countries.
A significant moment for the company was the original introduction of the Jetsort into the UK just over 20 years ago. With it’s innovative ‘sorting disk’ technology, the Jetsort revolutionised the way money was counted in amusement arcades up and down the UK, making an incredibly laborious job much easier and quicker.
After this, the next significant change was the introduction of the new 50p and £2 coins, which resulted in many new sales of the Jetsort coin sorters, due to the unique sorting design enabling old and new coins to be processed during the transitional period through the various configurations of sort-heads that were available.
More recently of note would be the introduction of the adult gaming centres, which subsequently led to the introduction of note acceptors and the requirement to process notes as well as coins.
Initially, these provided a boost for the amusement sector, but the reduced number of jackpot machines, the introduction of the smoking ban and constant changes in regulations have had a detrimental effect on the industry across the board, which is taking time to recover from.
Cummins supplies both the street sector and the casino market. The company’s Andy Crowson told InterGame: "Despite the introduction of note acceptors to many machines in the street market, the casino sector still remains more dependent upon note-processing equipment in much higher volumes.
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"The nature of the casino business also lends itself towards more security and we have assisted in this through integrating with CCTV and secure data-capture software systems."
The company has always been able to draw on the experiences of its US-based parent company. "In the US, Cummins has become a pioneer of coin and note processing products," said Crowson.
"It has continued to extend its developments to the international market to meet the changing shape of the cash-handling sector and now has a wide range of cash-counting equipment to meet the requirements of both the street market and casino sector."
He added that Cummins-Allison’s development is based upon reacting to the needs and requirements of customers. "We would not be as successful as we are if we developed products without consulting with our customers and reacting to their specific requirements."
Cummins has gained a reputation for quality, reliability, accuracy and speed with very knowledgeable sales and engineering staff that strive to maintain a friendly and efficient sales and after-sales service. The company also has offices in France, Germany and Canada, as well as distributors throughout the world supplying approximately 70 other countries.
How is the company coping with the recession? "Cummins-Allison does not manufacture products that could ever be described as impulse buys. They are products that, once used, prove to be an integral part of a cash office operation and as such need replacing on a regular basis.
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"We may have customers who, due to the current economic climate, put off purchasing a machine for as long as possible. Or they may prefer to get it fixed rather than purchase a newer model, but by and large our business levels have been maintained through 2009. What the future brings and whether the economy has bottomed out yet, is the big question of the moment and I guess only time will tell.
"I don’t envisage any major changes in the near future in the amusement/street market, other than keeping up with the latest gaming technology to maintain their market share. As far as Cummins goes, we will continue working closely with our clients using the latest in new technology developments to ensure that we continue providing the equipment required to enhance their cash-counting processes."
