All blog posts in Intermec Forum

The Future and Beyond

DanBodnar — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 20:07:31 GMT

By now, we’ve talked about various ways police departments are benefitting from e-ticketing. From safety, to productivity, to revenue, ROI and more, the list can go on and on. However, police departments aren’t the only ones benefitting from this type of asset collection and tracking.

In fact, Intermec is currently working with companies who are responsible for tracking crime scene evidence, with Intermec’s mobile label printers being used to help sort and organize important evidence. Once items are labeled and scanned, there’s no need for manual records.

The US military has also used Intermec’s mobile computers and printers to help track war-time assets. After deploying rugged mobile computers paired with PM4i thermal printers to track 13,000 military locations and manage tens of millions of inventory, the U.S. Army was able to save more than a half a million dollars in permanently lost or misplaced inventory. You can read more about this instance here.

The list could continue on. As law enforcement agencies continue to stretch tight budgets, e-ticketing and mobile solutions will increasingly offer a streamlined, efficient option to stretch dollars and free officer time for other non-administrative tasks.

The accuracy and ROI of these systems will offer agencies a clear choice for future operations as needs increase.

To read more on this topic, visit: http://www.intermec.com/solutions/public/safety/index.aspx.

The Case for Evaluating TCO

DanBodnar — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:30:14 GMT

Total Cost of Ownership, or TCO, is often considered for e-citation applications in large part due to the mission-critical nature of law enforcement.

Here are some key takeaways around TCO:

First, a critical aspect of any successful TCO analysis needs to include the business elements of TCO.

These include anticipated length of deployment and planned replacement cycles, failure rates and causes of failure, the opportunity cost of lost productivity—to name a few.

Of equal importance to TCO is an analysis of the end user’s needs based on their work flow and work environment.

Second, to determine "true" TCO, it is imperative to consult both hard (or direct) and soft (or indirect) costs.

Downtime costs, including any productivity loss and lost revenue streams, factor in here. VDC’s research shows that over 70 percent of the cost of owning a mobility solution can come after the initial purchase.

Third, understanding soft costs and being able to marry the best possible mobile system with the target user and application is ultimately what will set apart mobility innovators.

It is imperative to balance the user, application, deployment environment and—perhaps most importantly—the mission criticality of the applications.

In my next post, we'll discuss the future of e-citation and other industries it's being used for.

A Case for Mobile

DanBodnar — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 21:27:51 GMT

It’s not only mobile printers that can ease data collection for police officers. In the case of the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office in Washington state, it was mobile computers.

After experiencing increased errors and safety issues due to their paper-based system, Snohomish County officers have found the Intermec CN3 mobile computers to increase not only productivity, but also safety.

And, with the inclement weather frequent in Washington, the CN3s hold up much better than paper in the outdoor, rainy environment.

Here’s an excerpt from an Intermec case study that describes just how Snohomish County uses Intermec CN3s on a daily basis:

“Cutting through the chilling rain while carefully shifting between traffic, Deputy David Crandall’s motorcycle advances on a speedster barreling down a rural Snohomish County road in western Washington. Red and blue LED lights come alive as the siren breaks the cacophonic roadway. The violator eases up and stops along the shoulder. Parking behind him, Deputy Crandall dismounts and, from the right saddlebag of the motorcycle, withdraws a device smaller than a two-way radio. With his gun hand free, he uses the device – a rugged mobile computer called an Intermec CN3 – to scan the violator’s driver license and registration and select applicable variables on a software-based Probable Cause Affidavit. Then he prints a citation for the driver as an electronic version is sent back to the headquarters in real time. It’s just another night for the cutting-edge Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.”

Similarly to Snohomish’s experience, the San Jose Police Department also deployed the Intermec CN3 to aid in their own e-ticketing roll-out, experiencing a major reduction in errors in the first month:

“Now, when citizens are pulled over for a traffic violation, the officer simply swipes the violator’s driver’s license to record the driver’s personal information. The officer then identifies additional details regarding the citation using the CN3’s touch screen. Drivers sign the ticket on the screen or on a printed hard copy. In the first two weeks, 1,000 citations were issued with less than a two percent error rate. SJPD hopes to lower this rate to zero percent.”

It’s hard to imagine agencies not wanting to use this system. In fact, police departments all over the U.S. are increasingly using e-ticketing type programs. News stories like this one are becoming more and more popular every day.

There’s even a Twitter handle for furthering the e-citation cause aptly titled the “Paper Police.”

In my next post, we'll take a closer look into the TCO involved, as well as the future of this technology.

A Practical Application

DanBodnar — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 22:05:09 GMT

The great thing with e-ticketing is that with simple software you can really use a wide-range of products to execute.

Washington state joined the e-ticket trend in 2007, outfitting several state police cars with devices to permit electronic citations. Washington’s program is part of an effectiveness study backed by Gov. Chris Gregoire and is expected to expand statewide eventually. With state-wide approved e-ticket software, Washington state police agencies can really select the set-up that works best for them and their budgets.

In fact, a local police department close to Intermec’s corporate headquarters recently made the switch to Intermec mobile printers to assist with their e-ticketing goals. They’d been happy with using small netbook computers but needed a rugged, fast mobile printer that would help increase process speed and overall productivity.

They deployed Intermec PB51 mobile printers (seen above) and quickly saw tickets begin printing 10 times faster than previous printing systems. They liked the system so much that they’ve been referring other local police departments toward the same route.

The PB51 is a rugged, mobile receipt printer and talks directly to the officer’s netbook for a quick turnaround. One key word not to miss here? Rugged. As you can imagine, not only do police need something quick, reliable and easy to use, but with their highly mobile profession, they need something that can withstand the rigors of frequent outdoor use, bumps, drops, coffee spills and more. Plus, it prints 20-30 percent faster than most other competitive products.

This local department is just one example of how mobile printers can help speed processes while still perfectly aligning with the netbooks the officers already had.

Next, we’ll discuss how mobile computers can also be applied and specifically how two police departments deployed e-ticketing systems for instant improvements.

Just the (e)Ticket - Part II

DanBodnar — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 18:26:45 GMT

In my last post we talked in general about the benefits of e-ticketing, but here’s a more in-depth look at what organizations can expect from making a switch.

Increased Productivity:

Average time to issue a moving violation with a paper-based ticket: 10-15 minutes
Average time to issue an electronic ticket: two minutes

Huge difference, no? The time savings, when applied to multiple officers each day, saves thousands of hours of paperwork time each year.

Increased Accuracy:

It’s easy to imagine the errors associated with hand-written tickets. Names spelled wrong, addresses transcribed wrong, missing information – the list can go on and on. Errors, which national studies have claimed 20-30 percent of all tickets contain, invalidate citations, causing them to be dismissed after court review. Legible, accurate citations can provide a deterrent to challenges, allowing for increased revenue. With even a 10 percent reduction in errors, revenue and overall ROI would increase dramatically.

Increased Revenue:

If you think about 20-30 percent of tickets having errors causing them to be dismissed, that’s a lot of revenue that budget-strapped agencies are missing out on. Think of it this way - an average city might issue 200,000 citations a year, and with a modest 10 percent decrease in errors, at an average of $70 per ticket, agencies could experience more than $1 million in increased revenue when multiplied by the 20,000 additional citations they might collect on per year.

Increased Efficiency:

With e-ticketing systems, whether using a mobile computer, laptop or PDA, tickets are sent directly into the court system. According to Edmonton, Ontario’s police trade Blue Line Magazine, most agencies handle tickets by sending carbon copies of the original citation to three separate entities, which can include police records and court case management, often taking up about an hour of time total. As you can imagine, this process is usually backlogged and can take several days or even weeks to process. With e-ticketing the information is immediately available in the records database.

Increased Safety:

A recent Associated Press article noted U.S. police fatalities have increased by 43 percent in 2010, with half of the deaths coming from car or motorcycle crashes where the officers were outside of their vehicle. One of the major contributors is the officer’s dangerous proximity to oncoming traffic, and the longer the traffic stops, the longer the officer is at risk standing on the side of the road. An electronic ticketing solution enables officers to process traffic stops almost 44 percent faster, significantly increasing officer safety, according to an article on government site Stateline.org.

So, it’s clear the benefits for e-ticketing are in the officer’s favor. Next, we’ll discuss the hardware that can make e-ticketing happen and get into a few practical applications of this budding technology.

Post 4: Practical Application

The great thing with e-ticketing is that with simple software you can really use a wide-range of products to execute.

They deployed Intermec PB51 mobile printers and quickly saw tickets begin printing 10 times faster than previous printing systems. They liked the system so much that they’ve been referring other local police departments toward the same route.

This local department is just one example of how mobile printers can help speed processes while still perfectly aligning with the netbooks the officers already had.

Next, we’ll discuss how mobile computers can also be applied and specifically how two police departments deployed e-ticketing systems for instant improvements.

Just the (e)Ticket: Part I

DanBodnar — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 19:59:49 GMT

Have you ever gotten a speeding ticket?

It was probably a long piece of carbon copy paper with all the information handwritten by the officer.

While this option worked just fine for years, (and in many stations’ cases is still in use) police departments, like everyone else, are looking to increase proficiency and reduce risk at the same time.

The paper system is highly manual and requires extra time to collect information. With paper systems, all citation information is hand-written. As you can imagine, writing any sort of information by hand leaves it open for increased errors. Historically, smudges, poor handwriting and content omission or errors have lead upwards of 20 to 30 percent of tickets to be dismissed on average. And, while we hate to admit it, tickets lead to revenue for police stations – money they use to help serve and protect.

Electronic citation (also known as e-ticketing or e-citation) systems enable law enforcement agencies to meet ever-growing data collection and reporting requirements without compromising officer effectiveness. Officers can use mobile computers and mobile printers to help complete traffic stops faster and more accurately.

They can scan driver’s licenses with a mobile computer with an integrated barcode scanner or a hand held scanner and use e-ticketing or e-citation software to submit all information directly into the court system. They can use a mobile printer to quickly print off the ticket with uploaded information, preventing errors and increasing processing time. They could even use a laptop, net book or PDA. Without many of the hand-written errors, e-ticketing can lead to more enforceable citations that improve collections and reduce court administration time.

According to an article in the Idaho Statesman, a recent e-ticketing deployment by the Idaho State Police is expected to decrease ticketing time by more than half and improve accuracy by 10 percent, as the information will go directly into court databases. This will reduce administration time for both the police and court - and this is just one example among many.

Next, we’ll take a deeper dive into some of the additional benefits public sector organizations can expect to gain from e-ticketing and some of the products making it happen.

Have you ever gotten an e-ticket?

DanBodnar — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 20:02:21 GMT

What is believed to be one of the first speeding tickets in the United States

The flashing blue lights appear in your rearview mirror.

A minor panic ensues.

“Ugh, how fast am I going?” you wonder.

As you sit in your car, embarrassed, as traffic whizzes past, you impatiently wait for the officer to process your information – and wish nothing more than to grab your ticket and be on your way, right?

Police, among a growing list of public sector organizations, are increasingly looking to speed productivity. And, no matter how much we all wish traffic citations, parking tickets and more would just disappear, having officials speed up the process a bit more would not only help them streamline their efficiency, but also improve safety, increase revenue and reduce errors.

With declining budgets and increasing demand for services, public sector organizations are under more scrutiny to tighten processes and spend tax dollars wisely. In short, they are expected to do more with less.

Intermec has long been helping public sector organizations do more with less, with products being used in a wide-range of public safety applications like e-ticketing/e-citations, e-parking, evidence collection and tracking, background checks, incident reporting and more. T2’s upcoming series will explore how various applications like e-ticketing are offering police especially a new way to reduce their risk and improve overall ROI.

So, I leave you with this question: have you ever gotten an "e-ticket?"

Labeled for Success

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:59:04 GMT

There are lots of ways to get things done. Here is now one New England-based franchise solved three problems with one very Smart Printer.

FABricating a Smart Printing Application

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:59:44 GMT

By now you’re all excited about putting computing power into your Intermec Smart Printer – but how do you go about creating that killer app? Read on for the answer …

If the Printer Fits ...

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:00:30 GMT

Just like most other things in life, Intermec Smart Printers come in all shapes and sizes. You might be surprised to see where they’re found …

Positive (a)ID: Fingerprinting your Printer

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:01:18 GMT

Brilliant printers don’t just happen. It takes work and a powerful logic-processing capability to make a bar code label printer do the work of a PC, as well. Read how our strangely-named programming language, Fingerprint, lets Intermec Smart Printers do what no other printers can.

The Emerging Mobile-Smart Trend

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:02:55 GMT

As the demand for mobile solutions increasingly involves label printing, enterprises looking for ways to control costs see mobile smart printing as an economical solution.

Video: A Smart Printing Success Story

kg — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:57:34 GMT

Check out this video case study to see how one company improved productivity by 40 percent with Smart Printing.

Which Smart Printer to Choose?

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:03:45 GMT

Intermec has short Smart Printers, long ones, even portables. How to choose?

Now that's smart!

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:04:45 GMT

Now that you've heard a bit more about the benefits others have seen from Smart Printing, here's what a few of our partners have to say.

Not only do they attest to the unique and customizable solutions Smart Printing is able to offer, but also note its ability to reduce complexity, increase productivity and increase accuracy. That sounds, well, smart.

Check out a quick video showing how Smart Printing worked for three of our partners.

Get Rid of Your PC?

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:05:45 GMT

In the label printing game, the tradition has been that the printer takes a back seat to the host computer sending it printing jobs. Is it really possible to get rid of that expensive peripheral with Smart Printing?

Small Investment, Big Return

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:07:09 GMT

There are not a lot of places in business where an $8,000 investment pays off in six weeks. Smart Printing is a notable exception.

Why is Smart Printing, Smart Business?

karlperry — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:08:02 GMT

The barcode label printer industry is abuzz from the term "Smart Printing." Read about this technology here.

Addressing the Unaddressable

kkd — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 19:09:45 GMT

Article from Ian Snadden, Intermec Vice President EMEA. Published in the June 11 Mail & Express Review

The State of DSD (Part 2)

bschulte — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 20:44:27 GMT

In our over 30 years of DSD experience including well over 150,000 installed routes running today, Intermec has a deep understanding of the pain points and industry trends driving the industry forward. More so than ever, the key to success today is operational excellence. Operational excellence is the key to worker productivity, increasing revenue, meeting and exceeding customer demands, and delivering against the brand promise. In the previous post I discussed the shift in labor responsibilities and how technology solutions have evolved to deliver enhanced levels of productivity, while having a smaller footprint and lowering total cost of ownership. In this post we’ll discuss industry trends that are forging the new landscape.

The first important trend is the increased competition and price pressures that CPG suppliers are seeing in the market every day. Accentuated by the recent economic challenges, national brand owners are seeing consumers be much more selective with their spending. Offerings from lower priced competitors and the increased activity by retailers with their own private label store brands have increased the importance of strong, compelling brands. These conditions have put a laser focus on CPG suppliers’ selling activities and their trade promotion spending. The solutions offered by Intermec and our software partners are as critical today as ever to give sales reps out in the field the specific tools and information that they need to be successful.

The second major trend is the proliferation of different flavors and packages types available from suppliers to address the varying, and changing, preferences of consumers. With limited shelf space in stores, it is important to make sure that the specific products that are carried are what consumers are buying and to have the right balance in terms of inventory. For suppliers this means ensuring that the pre-sales and merchandising staff is equipped with the necessary solutions to be able to get and best use prime shelf space. Because of the need to generate revenue and reduce costs, many suppliers are experimenting with different delivery/business methods, with particular emphasis on presales.

A third trend is consumer goods suppliers looking for ways to reduce the amount of time in delivery and receiving processes. For CPG suppliers this time needs to be as short and efficient as possible. Collaboration with retailers, changes to business process and the use of Advance Shipping Notices, DEX and, in some cases, Scan Based Trading all can help reduce this time. In order to do so, the suppliers are turning to software from our partners and mobile computing and printing solutions like the CN50 rugged mobile computer, the PB51 mobile printer and PM4i fixed printer.

Several technologies are enabling CPG suppliers to improve the performance of their field staff. Industry analyst data reflect a significant increase in the purchase and use of wireless enabled LAN and WAN computers. The primary benefit gained with wireless capability is the ability to communicate orders and check product and promotion availability in real-time, while on the route. Another technology that is getting increased usage is GPS, which is being used to most efficiently route temporary staff and to verify that workers are servicing all of the stops on their routes. This ability to track with GPS, also known as breadcrumbing, can validate that all customers are served and all sales opportunities are being harvested.

In addition, the usage of software and imaging technology is helping minimize the amount of paper that is printed, handled and stored by CPG suppliers. CPG suppliers typically need to keep store level proof of delivery acceptance in case of later disputes with retailers. Technologies exist today which allow invoice signatures and store stamps to be captured and stored electronically, eliminating the need to print additional invoice copies. With imaging, sales reps can scan a barcode on an invoice and automatically capture the signature and store stamp, providing electronic proof of delivery.

Additionally, while certain countries and retailers still require a full-page invoice, many CPG suppliers are moving to smaller mobile printers for their invoices in order to decrease costs and better enable the printer to be carried into the store. When a mobile printer is part of the DSD solution, four inch invoices are being deployed the most frequently because they can print detailed line item discount and promotion information. Two and three inch printers are also attractive but for invoices with much detailed line item information the receipts can grow to be quite long. Lastly DEX (Digital Exchange) cables and adapters are another element to the DSD solution environment as it helps to speed the receiving process between a store and DSD delivery driver.

In the end, the deployment of these technologies is helping suppliers improve sales and on-shelf replenishment. Solutions that consist of DSD specific software, mobile computers, and printers make the DSD workforce extremely operationally efficient, productive and accountable, resulting in sales and effective trade promotion spending.