JCM Global, the world leader in transaction and payment technologies, drew a lot of eyes to its booth at the Global Gaming Expo. Its robotic automation in the count room is expected to be a big hit in the industry after a successful year in operation at MotorCity Casino in Detroit.
JCM continues to innovate with ICB ASAP, a system of industrial-grade robots and robotic automation. ICB ASAP streamlines count-room operations, increases efficiency in the count process, and supplements the extensive manual labor process, said Dave Kubajak, JCM Global senior vice president of sales, marketing. and operations. He called it the biggest technological advancement in the count room since JCM first introduced its ICB Intelligent Cash Box system more than 20 years ago, also at MotorCity.
“We showed this technology over the last five years and one of the biggest things we’ve faced with customers is, ‘It’s awesome, but I don’t want to be first,’’’ Kubajak said.
MotorCity is a partner that has served as a first user of a lot of different JCM products and technology over the years, Kubajak said. Their management embraces new technology and has looked at robotics for their bars, security, and housekeeping before turning to the count room to help supplement staff and make them more efficient.
Since MotorCity is the first to show that it works and has proven the results, the interest at G2E was crushing. Group after group saw it in operation on the tradeshow floor and wanted to talk to the Detroit casino, Kubajak said.
“It’s been running for over a year now in MotorCity and has processed more than 200,000 cash boxes at this point. They love it,” Kubajak said. “MotorCity Casino Hotel Chief Information Officer David Nehra put out an open message to the industry that if anybody wants to talk about the system, he’s happy to talk about it. Having a customer advocate who is that passionate says a lot about the product.”
Only one person is required to manage ICB ASAP and all operators in the count room at MotorCity have been trained and supported by JCM throughout the process, Kubajak said. Using industrial-grade robotics, ICB ASAP automates the count room, enhances productivity, reduces human contact, boosts security, improves throughput, and increases reliability.
“In a count room, a vault with money, people are locked in for x number of hours going through and processing all of this cash,” Kubajak said. “The big thing for them is a lot of repetitive movement over time, so people can get worn down with injuries.”
The system allows one person to do the equivalent work of four, because the box is put on an inward-bound conveyor, Kubajak said. The conveyor scans the box, reads the data, opens the box, removes the cash with a robotic hand, closes and locks the box, and moves it to an outbound conveyor. It takes that cash and stores it in a secure cassette.
“Now, you just have one person loading and unloading the conveyor,” Kubajak said. “All of the movement in the middle has been eliminated and is now done by the robot. You get a guaranteed four boxes per minute every minute for as long as you run the machine. The robot does the same thing 100% of the time without fail. The efficiency increase is massive. Any kind of shrinkage or financial risk is lessened. When people process and handle cash, bad things can happen. It’s human nature. Robots don’t care. It’s just another piece of paper to them all day.”
The robots come from the automotive industry and thus are designed for 20 years of continuous use, Kubajak said. Once every three months, maintenance is done for a few hours off shift. “It’s performed phenomenally,” Kubajak said. “The property is ecstatic about it and they’re willing to tell the world.”
Nehra said in the fast-paced world of casino operations, efficiency and accuracy remain paramount. He called the JCM ICB ASAP system “a game-changing solution designed to streamline the cash-handling processes like never before. With the implementation of robotics and sensor technology, we remove the human-error variable from the cash-counting equation. It’s not just a machine; it’s a strategic investment for the future. JCM has brought us the long-needed innovation to our count-room process.”
ICB ASAP is a network of four industrial-grade robots and industry-standard automation equipment that operates in one secure unit that meets all robotic safety requirements. Its technology manages the unlocking, opening, bank note/TITO ticket removal, closing, and locking of all cash boxes, Kubajak said.
ICB ASAP accommodates JCM’s UBA and iVIZION cash boxes and processes up to 240 cash boxes per hour.
This means ICB ASAP processes up to 4,000 bank notes/TITO tickets per minute, almost twice as fast as the
highest-speed-count sort machines, making the overall count process significantly faster, Kubajak said.
JCM owns more than 170 gaming licenses and that shows a commitment to the industry: It will be there to support and service customers on the casino floor and back of house.
JCM was recently licensed in New Mexico and Colorado. The Colorado license allows JCM to install its table-game automation product, TITA, that allows ticket-in-ticket-out at a table game and do debit transactions at table games. In New Mexico, JCM can provide installations, maintenance, and ongoing support without having to go to a third party. That involves installing bill validators, printers, and systems technology.
JCM also showcased its digital-sign technology at G2E. It highlighted its CLEAR product line, transparent technology that won the most innovative product at the 2023 tradeshow. JCM has taken it a step further by designing the CLEAR technology for ceilings. It can go up in atriums, transitory areas, and convention centers and makes ceilings more attractive with various images.
