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Turku and Salo, Finland. (June 15, 2006)
- Viola Systems, a leader in industrial-grade wireless
M2M connectivity solutions, and Nordic ID, a leader
in handheld AutoID and data capture instruments for the retail sector
and beyond, have today jointly announced a customer success story
that is a rewarding result of a long-term and efficient collaboration
between Viola Systems, Nordic ID and the S Group.
The S Group is a major group of retail and service
businesses in Finland. In 2004 the group had net revenues around
8 billion euros, 1371 outlets, and over 26 000 employees. The S
Group includes 20 Sokos department stores and seven Emotion stores,
each of which deploy a unique wireless data collection system called
Nordic ID RF600.
Nordic ID is a leader in handheld AutoID and data
capture instruments for the retail sector and beyond. Today several
of the largest European wholesale retailers have thousands of Nordic
ID handheld instruments in daily use.
Re-inventing the wheel?
Over the past few years serial-to-Ethernet converters have become
increasingly important part of the wireless data collection system.
“Since 2001 we had been testing several serial-to-Ethernet
converters from leading brands in connection with our own products,”
says Esa Kymäläinen, Area Manager at
Nordic ID.
“Unfortunately we experienced lots of reliability and interoperability
issues with the tested serial-to-Ethernet converters. Our business
partners even asked us whether we could engineer a reliable serial-to-Ethernet
converter but we were not too keen on re-inventing the wheel,”
Nordic ID’s Kymäläinen continues.
Nordic ID meets Viola
Nordic ID and Viola got to know each other through a common customer.
A collaboration to ensure Viola’s ESERV-10 optimal fit with
Nordic ID’s systems began. In early 2004 Nordic ID found out
that the Sokos department stores were remarkably dissatisfied with
Viola’s competitor’s serial-to-Ethernet converters they
had been using as a part in Nordic ID’s wireless data collection
system.
Sokos had a big problem
“We had lots of problems. The competitor products
often went down when electric surges occurred. In general they didn’t
withstand well any sudden changes in the power supply,” Marko
Mört, System Analyst at the S Group responsible for
the chain management of the Sokos chain, remembers sadly.
“Furthermore, the competitor products often jammed; they actually
responded to pinging but didn’t pass on any messages to either
direction, which is really their primary function – to convert,”
adds S Group’s Mört.
A successful pilot
Nordic ID quickly introduced Viola’s ESERV-10
product to the Sokos department stores. A pilot project was executed
first in two selected department stores. The pilot project went
as planned afterwhich the competitor products were replaced in every
Sokos department store. To be soon followed by all the Emotion stores.
”It’s a Swiss clock”
“The ESERV-10 works like a Swiss clock. It
always works and has clearly been designed with robustness and simplicity
in mind,” System Analyst Mört laughs.
Flexibility
Viola and Nordic ID wanted to walk the extra mile
to make the S Group truly satisfied. The ESERV-10s that the S Group
uses are delivered through Nordic ID and they come with a preconfigured,
customer-specific firmware. This improves interoperability further
and makes deployment faster, even fun.
Maintenance-free
Some competitors sell their serial-to-Ethernet converters
20-30 euros cheaper but it is the total cost of ownership that companies
should look for.
“Unlike various competing products we have used so far, the
ESERV-10 has proven to be maintenance-free. It never fails. In addition,
we have minimized the installation effort from around 15 minutes
down to 1 minute per device.,” System Analyst Mört sums
up.
Towards a de facto standard
“Due to very positive experiences, the ESERV-10
is now becoming a de facto standard within the S Group. Actually,
the next roll outs are already on their way,” System Analyst
Mört concludes relieved.
Device manufacturer benefits
The relationship between Viola and Nordic ID has
evolved into a long-term partnership that benefits both companies.
Each new delivery of Nordic ID RF600 practically includes also an
ESERV-10.
“Centralized manageability of our system, a feature highly
valued by typical retail customers, has taken one step ahead, thanks
to Viola,” Nordic ID’s Kymäläinen says.
For adding serial-to-IP connecticity to your product base and thus
greatly increasing the life cycle of your products, the ESERV-10
is a robust and cost-effective solution.
“It is by far the best converter I have ever used. It is a
cost-effective product that beats the competition in its field reliability
and ease of use,” S Group’s System Analyst Mört
concludes.
About Nordic ID
Nordic ID is a leader in handheld AutoID and data capture
instruments for the retail sector and beyond. Today several of the
largest European wholesale retailers have thousands of Nordic ID
handheld instruments in daily use. For more, please visit at www.nordicid.com.
About Viola M2M Solution™
Unlike many competitors who sell boxes, Viola delivers
a total secure end-to-end connectivity solution that seamlessly
integrates remote devices and sites to centralized management systems
such as SCADA or HP OpenView. No changes to existing systems are
needed. Viola M2M Solution™ is an install-and-forget-it, hassle-free
approach. In addition, Viola M2M Solution™ is operator-independent;
it allows customers to implement two-way data communications in
a similar manner all around the world.
About Viola Systems
Viola is specialized in advanced, industrial-grade wireless
M2M (machine-to-machine) connectivity solutions that seamlessly
link remote devices and sites together. Reliable remote access to
device information leads to increased productivity and enables new
maintenance business. Viola’s solutions are used in a wide
variety of applications from substations and distribution transformers
in the electricity networks to base stations in the telecommunications
networks to the transfer of video feed from remote surveillance
cameras. Viola’s solutions are sold through a global network
of sales partners. Viola’s customers include ABB, RFI –
a division of the Italian State Railways, Vattenfall, Freescale
Semiconductor, EBV Elektronik, Digita, and the Finnish Road Administration.
Viola’s headquarters are located in Turku, Finland. For more
information, please visit www.violasystems.com.
Editor contacts
Viola Systems Ltd.
Mr. Jyrki Penttonen
Chief Executive Officer
Tel. +358 (0) 40 570 5775
E-mail: jyrki.penttonen@violasystems.com
Nordic ID
Mr. Atte Kaskihalme
Director of Sales and Marketing
Tel. +358 (0)2 727 7700
E-mail: atte.kaskihalme@nordicid.com
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