Case Study: Cardtronics

Cardtronics, recently acquired by NCR, is the largest independent cash machine provider in the UK, with over 18,000 machines installed and maintained in convenience stores, petrol forecourts, motorway service areas, train stations, food and drink outlets, shopping centres and entertainment venues. Across the UK, Cardtronics carries out 15 transactions every second and much of the population relies on this safe and secure service.

In 2019, Cardtronics began looking for a vehicle CCTV solution to replace their incumbent supplier, who was exiting the market. They were looking for a supplier that would be able to take over the management and service of their existing CCTV cameras installed in their fleet of security vehicles whilst providing a new solution for future additions to the fleet. Fleet Manager, Mark Leardodd explains that “we had to move quickly to find a system that would give us what we needed, whilst minimising disruption to our operations.” He continues by explaining that “we needed a solution that would ensure no loss of connection and continuous uptime, due to the nature of what we do.”

Mark explains that “we chose Contel as our new supplier, based on their experience of working in the cash in transit sector and their customer service. We have worked with Contel for over 12 months and I have been really impressed. They have been able to offer new solutions that are not only smarter but more competitive and reliable”.

Contel Managing Director, Andy Kelly explains that “when Cardtronics approached us to assist with the support of their fleet CCTV, we were faced with a mix of numerous solutions from companies such as Synetics, SerVision and Vision Techniques. We quickly created a formula to support all these solution carrying out repairs where required”.

Mark adds that “although Cardtronics were initially looking for a supplier to support our existing systems, we were impressed with our experience of Contel and are now working with them on new solutions.”

Commenting on securing the contract with Cardtronics, Andy says “We were all so proud to secure the work with Cardtronics. The team at Contel have a long history of working within the CIT industry. As a matter of fact, our team were responsible for the first live cellular access Mobile DVR into the UK market, this was as long ago as 2009, so we really are pioneers in this area with unrivalled experience.”

The CCTV is internally monitored by an operational team who are “very happy with the system”, says Mark. He adds that “we have a quick response plan in place across our UK network of depots, should we require support and Contel have met all of our SLAs.” Service before Sales is Contel’s overarching ethos and Mark comments on this saying that “the Contel system is very cost effective. Their approach has always been to work with us to ensure we have exactly what we need, and they’ve advised us on the suitable technology.”

Commenting on engineering and service coverage, Andy explains that “national coverage is crucial for support of clients such as Cardtronics. As our client base grows, so does our support team, with strategically placed field service engineers to ensure our clients support requirements are not just met but surpassed.”

Looking to the future, Mark explains that “working with Contel has meant that as we add to our fleet, everything is in one place. The transition has been smooth and we are impressed with their new technology.”

Adding a final comment, Andy says that “we’re excited to be supplying the new Cardtronics fleet with some of our latest high specification components such as High Definition DVR’s along with our exceptional DAYLIGHT HD IP 69K Cameras. These are our latest evolution in camera design technology providing daytime image quality even in times of darkness.”