FEC & Arcade Debit Card Systems with full redemption and membership program by CORE Cashless Inc.

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Fun! - the ultimate product

CORE Cashless has the FEC solution for you!

The CORE system goes above and beyond a cashless arcade debit card system making it a perfect solution for a family entertainment center. CORE brings together all the areas of your site involved in accepting payment. By tracking your games, points of sale, redemption, party bookings, and loyalty program within one system, you can use the data to improve your operation while enhancing customer satisfaction.

CORE’s system can be found in all types of entertainment centers, big and small, including:

•unattended game rooms in resorts and cruise ships,
•pizza buffet restaurants using CORE to sell admissions with game play, and
•full blown FEC’s with games, attractions, batting cages, snack bars, huge redemption counters and substantial birthday party business.

Our comprehensive system can provide you with whatever functionality you’re looking for, or we can also keep it simple if that’s your preference. We will configure a system to meet your specific needs.

Hardware Overview:

While we know no two sites are exactly alike, we do see some consistencies among FEC’s for the hardware they require. A typical FEC using CORE usually consists of any or all of the following:

•2 or 3 POS Stations at the front entrance for play card sales and entrance fees.

•1 or more POS Stations for group and party check-in and payment.

•Card Reader Kits for each of the video games, merchandisers, and redemption games.

•Monitoring Controllers for each of the coin action redemption games.

•2 or 3 Unmanned Kiosks for guests to recharge or buy play cards.

•2 or 3 Redemption Kits for handheld redemption of prizes with inventory tracking.

•2 or more POS Stations for F&B sales, typically in a snack bar set-up.

•1 or more POS Station for retail sales, if retail is featured at the site.

•A Back Office set-up consisting of 2 “E-Bank” computers connected to a network and protected with a firewall.

This list is just a starting point to help you decide what aspects of the CORE system will best achieve your goals. In order to determine what aspects of CORE’s system would work best for your site, this document will run through the various aspects of the system.

Game Reader Kits:

The most prominent feature of CORE’s cashless system is the cashless arcade readers. Depending on your equipment budget and card reader expectations, CORE has two hardware options for your games. You have the choice between our versatile, high-end “Morph” Reader, and our basic and less expensive “PAD” Reader.

A Reader Kit consists of a card reader (either model) with mounting gasket and screws, an EX/R Controller Board with power cable to be mounted inside the game, a Game or Redemption Interface cable to connect to the coin input and the ticket output meter, and a CAT5 network cable to connect the game to the site’s network.

A Reader Kit is necessary for all games, except coin action games. This includes video games, most redemption games, merchandisers, kiddy rides, and air hockey tables, but not coin action games (also known as token roll-down games). Those coin action games are ones that require a coin or token to be used as a play piece thereby eliminating the need for a card reader. For these games,you simply need a Monitoring Kit which includes the controller and cables, but no reader. This kit is not required, however we do strongly recommend it so that you have all of the game play information included in your CORE system reports.

The Morph Kit is usually our recommended option as it is our more functional and robust reader hardware. “Morph” is a 2-button, barcode-reading device with a built-in graphic display. The dual buttons on the unit make it perfect for a 2-player game with a right and left player.

Two very important features distinguish the CORE Morph reader from competitive readers:

1. The guest can swipe their barcoded play card in any orientation (face up or down, and from either direction), making it easier for players of all ages to use. (Most systems require a swipe in a specific orientation.)

2. After the guest swipes their play card, the graphic display shows them their current account balance along with the price to play the game. The game value is not deducted from the guest’s account until they press one of the lit sensor buttons. (Most systems deduct the value immediately from the guest account, not allowing the guest to check their balance at the game.)

We can customize the Morph reader for your site or the game type by attaching a black, royal blue or bright red overlay. (Some clients use red Morphs to signify a redemption game, blue overlays on all other games, and black overlays on the token dispensers and ticket eaters.)

While the Morph reader is mounted to the outside of the game (typically in place of the coin door), we mount a small EX/R Controller inside the game to act as the brains behind the reader. The Kit is completed with an interface cable (model depends on the game type) and a network cable.

If you prefer our less expensive (and less-functional) PAD reader, we can reduce the per reader kit price by over $100 from the Morph Kit.

CORE’s Buttonless PAD is a single-sided barcode reader with a 2-line display and no activation buttons. The reader housing is available in royal blue or black, and the overlay can be customized for the site.

When a guest swipes their card through a PAD, the value of the game is automatically deducted and their new account balance is displayed. This reader is similar in functionality with competitor’s offerings.

Like the other reader kit, the PAD is mounted to the exterior of the game and an EX/R Controller is inside connected to the game with an interface cable, and to the site’s network with a 10BaseT / CAT5 cable.

Attraction Reader Kits:

If your site is going to have attractions in addition to arcade games, we would like for guests to be able to use their same cashless card for both types of fun. These attractions may include rides, mini golf, go kart tracks, or laser tag.

The attractions can use the same Morph and PAD Kits as the games, and can even be mounted to a turnstile. If the attraction or ride is attended and managed by a staff person, we can supply a Motorola MC17 handheld scanner instead of a mounted reader. The attendants can use this reader to scan the guests card as they enter the attraction, and then slip the reader into a holster while they get the ride or game started.

We recognize that in some situations, an attraction may be owned by another party besides the site owner. It may seem like the accounting of the attractions should be kept separate from the game play due to the different ownership, but that can be very confusing for the guest. The CORE system makes it possible for an attraction to be reported as a single device owned by a third party so that a revenue split may be paid to that owner based on the use of their attraction. So the system is seamless for the guest and the staff, while the reporting is as segregated (and confidential) as it needs to be.

CORE has operated the system in this way for quite a few of our clients and their vendors.

Token Dispenser Kits:

If you intend to have coin action games in your site (as most FEC’s do), then you will need a token dispenser. While CORE does not manufacture dispensers, we are able to connect our card reader kits to the products offered by Rowe International, Standard Change-Makers, and American Changer.

CORE recommends equipping each token changer with a Morph reader kit. Guests can use their barcoded play cards to purchase tokens by swiping at the 2- or 3-button Morph reader installed on the changer. The special 3-button configuration allows you to offer the guest token purchases at three price levels. For example, you can offer $1, $5 or $10 worth of tokens depending on which button the guest selects after they swipe their card. The 2-button configuration allows only two price levels. Rowe and American Changers will accept the 3-button Morph kit, while Standard Changers will only accept a 2-button configuration.

There is also the option to take cash at the token changers, instead of or in conjunction with play card value. To do this, a CORE controller can be installed in the token changer to monitor and report on cash deposited into the changer.

Ticket Eater Kits:

CORE’s system is capable of issuing “e-tickets” directly to the guests’ play cards rather than spitting tickets for the games. This feature is included in CORE’s software at no additional charge. However, most FEC sites still want the paper tickets dispensed to give the kids some excitement. CORE can work within a ticket environment by adding hardware to the site’s Deltronics or Benchmark ticket eaters.

At the ticket eaters, we have two options available, depending on how the site wishes to operate.

1.Guests to insert their tickets into the machine, then swipe their play card on our attached card reader rather than receive a printed receipt. The tickets will be automatically added to the guest’s ticket account balance, to be used at the redemption counter immediately or saved for a future purchase. Each ticket eater (or side of a multi-sided ticket eater) will require a Morph or PAD Reader Kit.

2.The other alternative is to print a barcoded ticket receipt from the ticket eater (standard operation mode for most ticket eaters) which would eliminate the need for the Reader Kit. The guest would take their receipt(s) to the redemption counter, where the receipts would be scanned using CORE’s redemption hardware and the tickets would be transferred onto to the guest’s card. This option would reduce the cost of the overall system, but is a more labor intensive option and involves management of receipt paper in the eaters.

Whichever option makes sense for the site, CORE can make it happen. You can even change your mind down the road if want to switch options.

Redemption Stations:

At the redemption counter, CORE recommends at least two of our handheld redemption devices, allowing ease of use and complete wireless mobility for your redemption cashiers. Each device consists of a Motorola MC17 handheld wireless barcode scanner loaded with CORE’s Redemption software, a charging station with power supply, and a protective foam cover. We also often quote a shared router for wireless operation of the MC17 devices, or the MC17’s may be able to connect to any existing wireless set-up you may have.

A redemption cashier will scan the guest’s card (or ticket eater receipt), check the scanner’s built-in display to determine how many tickets the guest has on account, then scan the barcodes associated with the various prizes selected by the guest. The entire transaction is accomplished using the handheld scanner, without any other hardware needed at the redemption counter.

While the handheld solution is our most popular, it isn’t the only option. If you prefer, we can put a complete touch screen POS at the redemption counter and allow the cashiers to use the touch screen to manage multiple guests accounts. In this scenario, that station can also do double duty as a point of sale terminal with just the push of a button.

Point of Sale and Kiosks:

A point of sale (POS) is a location within the facility where a guest can make a purchase. This can be at the front counter where guests buy play cards, at a guest services station where birthday parties and groups check-in, a retail area for the sale of souvenirs, or a snack bar selling food and beverages.

CORE has three types of POS stations:

-IBM Touch Screen POS consists of an IBM SurePOS touch screen with built-in computer, attached mag stripe reader and customer display, an IBM locking cash drawer, an Epson thermal receipt printer, a Symbol barcode scanner, and an uninterruptible power supply for electrical back-up. None of this hardware is manufactured by CORE, but we will configure it with our software. If you prefer to purchase this hardware from another vendor, CORE will provide you with the specifications and ask that you have the POS screen drop-shipped to CORE for configuration.

-FastPAD POS is CORE’s alternative to an expensive touch screen station. The FastPAD is perfect for snack bar locations where there is a set menu and sales need to be made quick and easy. The FastPAD POS station includes a CORE keypad, a mag stripe reader, customer pole display, a Epson thermal receipt printer, a Symbol laser barcode scanner, and a cash drawer all mounted on a stainless steel base for easy cleaning. All of the components that make up the FastPAD can be supplied by CORE, or we may be able to use some POS components that you already own. We are happy to review a list of your existing POS hardware to try to ‘recycle’ as many of the items as we can.

- Kiosk is our automated station where guests can buy new cards or add value to existing cards. These unmanned terminals should be located within the game room so guests don’t need to walk too far to find a place to add value to their card account. The kiosks can include any or all of our available components: 12” non-touch screen w/ selection buttons, mag stripe reader for credit cards, bill acceptor, coin/token acceptor, thermal receipt printer, card dispenser, barcode reader, and even a bank-issued pinpad for debit card acceptance.

For a typical FEC, we would quote at least 2 IBM SurePOS touch screen POS stations to be located near the front entrance, where guests can purchase play cards, and maybe a third unit to check-in and pay for parties and group events. All of these stations can also perform guest services. If you are running a snack bar, we would assume a need for 2 FastPAD’s for food and beverage operation. The POS solution would be rounded out with 2 or 3 Kiosks to be located throughout the game room. We often recommend one kiosk for every 30-50 games in the game room, though it really depends on your game layout and the flow of the room.

Like the attractions, we understand that your site’s food and beverage offerings may be run by another company. This is not a problem for CORE. Our system can report the sales of each POS separate from the rest of the system so the vendor knows their actual sales and statistics. However, the POS would still be part of the overall system allowing for seamless integration to the other CORE features.

Back Office & Network:

CORE’s entire system is based on a back office database that contains all the data for the games, the guests, and every sale. The guests use their cards to access their bank account in the CORE system; there is no information held on the card itself.

In order for a database system to work, everything must be connected to the network. This requires a site to be wired with standard CAT5 (also know as 10BaseT) cabling which is common in all new buildings, or a wireless network put in place after the building is constructed. Because CORE follows network standards, you will not need to purchase any proprietary network equipment from us.

The database resides on two servers which CORE calls “E-Banks”: a primary and a back-up E-Bank operating in constant data replication in the unlikely event that a switchover should become necessary. CORE configures our E-Bank software onto two computers (typically Dells or Mac Minis, your preference) that are installed in a secure room at your facility. They are connected to the network so that each card reader, POS, and kiosk can send transaction data to the database. The E-Banks can be accessed from the outside world (through a secure tunnel internet connection with user ID’s and passwords) once a Firewall is in place. CORE can supply all of the back office hardware including a 24-port data switch, a UPS, a monitor, a 2-port KVM switch, a keyboard and a mouse in addition to the configured Firewall and the E-Bank computers. Or, we can provide the specifications for this hardware if you have another source from whom you prefer to buy these types of components.

By having an online (networked) system, you will be able to access the CORE system anytime using the internet. This allows you to manage your site from your home, from the road, or at the site. The CORE reports are set-up to give you simple at-a-glance information so you can see how the site is doing at any given time, as well as incredibly detailed reports that help you run and plan your business.

Project Management & On-Site Assistance:

When you purchase a system from CORE, that is just the beginning of our relationship. We will assign one of our project managers to your account who will work with you to understand the system and get it configured per your needs and wants. The project manager will be in contact with you during the sales process, the order fulfillment, the launch of the system, and its continued use for years to come.

When it comes to installing the system, we can assist as little or as much as you want. The card reader kit installation on the games can be performed by your staff or your game supplier simply by following our installation guide. The back office set-up and POS placement is typically performed by a CORE technician, though it can be done by one of your technicians if you prefer. When it comes time to train you on the system, we bring in your project manager to spend some time with you and your staff learning the ins and outs for the CORE software.

We don’t expect you to learn everything at once, so we are here to provide additional training and assistance as needed.

Play Cards:

As previously stated, the CORE system is completely based on a database and the cards do not hold any value. In order to access a guest’s account, they must swipe their barcoded play card at one of CORE’s game readers or POS stations.

Our clients typically purchase barcoded play cards directly from their supplier of choice. We’ve seen prices as low as $ .04 per card, and as high as $ .15 per card, depending mainly on quantity of cards ordered. By purchasing the cards direct from the card vendor, you will not be paying CORE to act as a middleman. We know our place as a technology provider and don’t want to get in your way by acting like a card printer or supplier.

The site will be asked by the card manufacturer to provide graphic artwork for the front of the card, and disclaimer text for the back. We have many samples to help get you started. Once you’ve selected your card vendor, the CORE Support team will send that vendor a file of barcode numbers to be used specifically for your play cards, and a specification document that shows precise tolerances for placement of barcodes on the cards. We provide this service at no charge.

Of all the lead-times involved in a cashless payment installation, play card printing is often one of the longest! As soon as you select the CORE Cashless System for your site, your assigned project manager will prompt you to get started in selecting your vendor and designing artwork. We can recommend several vendors who have done superior work in the past, if you’d like.

If, for some reason, you do not have your cards available when you go live or you run out of cards, CORE can supply some generic play cards to help you out.

Online Event Booking System:

Many Family Entertainment Centers rely on birthday parties and group events to fill their facility throughout the year. CORE’s system makes it easy for you to manage the parties, and even easier for your clients to book the events.

Once you have your web site up and running, we will create a portal from it to another web site of our design. This one will have the same look and feel of your site, but will be set-up to process party reservations and take deposits with credit card payment. All of our clients who use this feature have discovered that a majority of their parties are booked when the site is closed. It’s seems that the busy parents of the world are waiting until some quiet time after the kids go to sleep before they start researching birthday opportunities. By allowing them to choose their party package and reserve the date, we have discovered that many people will go ahead and pay a deposit online.

More and more people are relying on the internet for these types of reservations and we don’t want you to lose a possible party sale due to not having this feature.

This entire aspect of our system includes on-site and on-line capacity-controlled reservations for birthday parties, group events, special events. And, unlike our competitors, CORE does not charge a per-reservation fee for events booked on-line.

In addition to online event booking, we can also set-up online portals for advance play card sales, gift card sales, and even season passes. There is no hardware needed for CORE’s online systems as your staff can access the information using any PC with internet access.

Gift Cards:

Offering gift cards to your site is a wonderful way to generate more income and promote your site beyond your regular users. CORE’s system can offer the sale of gift cards on-site at a POS terminal and online if you select that service. Those gift cards can then be brought back to the site and used at any point of sale terminal in the facility to purchase play cards, retail, food & beverage, or whatever else you allow.

The best part about this program is that CORE does not charge a per-transaction fee for the Gift Card system.

Employee Timeclock & Scheduling:

A family entertainment center is more than just games and POS stations; we know you need to manage your staff as well. CORE’s system includes a timeclock feature that allows you to factor labor costs into the CORE Revenue Reports, and or course, provides payroll data (hours worked and rates) to a third party payroll system.

Software License & Support:

One of the big differences between CORE and our competitors is that our quotes do not include a software license fee. CORE has moved away from the standard “up front” software license purchase model, where you’re hit with a large license fee at the start and then hefty annual fees for support.

Instead, we bundle the software license fee and on-going support into one fee. And, to make the fee fair for all clients, it is based on the specific features of CORE that the client uses, and the number of operating months for the client.

This fee is charged beginning on the first day of operation and is on-going for the life of the system. In return, your site will receive a license to use CORE’s system for the selected functions, software upgrades for those functions as they become available, and phone and online support from CORE’s staff during business hours on weekdays. Remember, no up-front license fee is paid which allows you to cover this expense from your operating income.

Summary:

CORE has the system, the experience, and the dedication needed to get succeed at your project. We would be happy to provide you with a detailed quote once we can find out more about your site, your needs, and your expectations. Please contact CORE to arrange a call with one of our project managers so we can discuss the system in detail and how we can make it work for you.

We look forward to working with you!