All-In-One Terminal Meets A Grocer's Need For Speed

Checkout is two to three times faster at the Econo Nuñez grocery store, thanks to new point of sale (POS) terminals.

The Econo Nuñez Supermarket is a busy, eight-lane grocery store in Manati, Puerto Rico. Store owner Papo Nuñez needed to control his inventory and reduce customer waiting time at the checkout. Nuñez turned to VAR Dorta Cash Register Service (DCRS) (Arecibo, Puerto Rico) for help. Abimael Dorta, president of DCRS, had installed NCR 2123 point of sale (POS) terminals in the store several years before. DCRS has four employees and has been in business for 15 years. According to Dorta, the sales cycle took one month and included a demonstration of the new POS solution to Nuñez.

"While the store is considered small in size, it serves many customers," said Dorta. "There wasn't room to add more counters or terminals." Speed at the checkout had to come not only from the cashiers, but also from the terminals and scanners.

DCRS worked with Mike Mattas at Irvco Distributing (Schaumburg, IL) to provide the grocery store with eight POSIFLEX PST-6000 terminals, eight NCR 7875 combination scanner/scales, and Dynatech Express Lane software. The POSIFLEX PST-6000 integrated POS terminal features an Intel Pentium 233 MHz processor, 32 MB RAM, and a 112-key programmable keyboard with a built-in magnetic card reader. Other features include pre-installed Windows 98 software, four serial ports, one parallel port, and two universal serial bus (USB) ports. The NCR 7875 Bi-Optic Aggressive Read Scanner Scale features a seven-inch scanning zone to read bar codes on the first pass. The NCR 7875 accommodates the various scanning techniques of the cashiers. The Express Lane software is designed for use in grocery stores. It features 99,999 PLUs (price look ups) and currency conversion.

Bar-coded items are scanned and removed from inventory via the Express Lane software. Inventory is updated in two ways – immediately when the item is scanned, and in batch mode at the end of each cashier's shift.

Routine Training And Installation
DCRS installed the system over a two-day period. Integration and system programming, including entering 15,000 PLUs, was done prior to the installation and took two months to complete. "We spent one day training the cashiers and two days training the store managers," said Dorta.

Customers are now moving through the checkout lines two to three times faster with the new system, according to Nuñez, who is pleased with the new system. Nuñez can now order inventory based on actual product sales and in a more timely manner.

Dorta admits the installation was challenging in two respects. "It was our first installation that included scanner integration," said Dorta. "And, our customer had high expectations for improved speed and accuracy." Dorta plans future upgrades to the system when the newest version of Express Lane is released.