Norfolk Line Ferries Install Advanced Credit Card Terminals
Ocius Vx510 DatasheetAdvanced Chip & PIN – Keeping payments above board
Commidea has proved its resilience in one of the most hostile retail environments – on a passenger ferry in the middle of the sea.
Customers who set sail with Norfolkline Ferries can now purchase goods quickly and securely from the middle of the English Channel and soon on the Irish Sea, using the Ocius Vx510. Developed by card payment processing specialist Commidea, the Ocius Vx510 allows card payments to be authorised from remote locations, which then show on accounts quicker than paying in cash or cheques.
Previous struggles to obtain immediate payment authorisation on board its ferries and issues with resilience had left Norfolkline exposed to fraud and unsatisfactory levels of customer experience. It was therefore imperative that they introduced a reliable and effective solution.
“Ships are in probably the most hostile retail environments, in terms of being able to authorise cards and successfully manage payments,” commented Andy Watkins of Norfolkline. “Our biggest problem is that if customer’s want to pay by card and can’t that is lost revenue. We don’t have the luxury of shoppers returning - once the ship has docked they have gone and so has the sale. Any downtime in terms of connectivity is therefore not acceptable.”
With over 2.2 million customers accounting for £4million worth of sales each year, of which around 45% is on cards, a reliable and robust card payment was therefore imperative.
So far 27 terminals have been installed in bars, restaurants and onboard shops across three ships. Each terminal has been fitted with a Verifone SC5000, also from Commidea. This is a separate, portable PIN pad providing added flexibility to ensure the ferries comply with current DDA regulations. Market leading retail solution providers Quintek set up the terminals, ensuring that all customer requirements were met.
Due to the distant and ever-changing location of the point of sale, i.e. the sea, the Ocius Vx510, a state-of-the-art Chip & PIN solution, was adapted to use high performance satellite technology known as VSAT. This enabled swift and reliable ship to shore communications.
“We were impressed with the robustness of Commidea’s solution and the support the company are able to offer,” continued Andy. “The Ocius Vx510 solution has provided us with a reliable solution that will enable Norfolkline to offer shoppers a high street equivalent experience whilst on board.”
At the heart of the solution is the renowned Ocius software - the envy of the card payment processing market and the result of a huge amount of investment in time and money by Commidea.
It has all the features and functionality you would expect from a Commidea solution, including report production, voucher reprint, reordering of consumables, PIN number and user ID changes, contactless payment and E-Top Up.
As part of the solution, Norfolkline are using Commidea’s ICP service. A fully managed, hosted card payment processing solution, ICP provides retailers with first rate, fast and reliable processing for all major card types. It also eliminates any IT implications associated with installing and maintaining card payment processing servers.
As part of the project, Commidea’s implementation team worked closely with Quintek and Norfolkline to ensure a seamless transition. Supported by a large UK based technical support team any issues can be resolved quickly. Commidea also have a web-based Management Information System. This enables merchants to configure account information and access advanced reports online, anytime, anywhere –