This time out we'll take a look at two providers of security monitoring systems that aim to reduce theft by employees.
The restaurant: Almost any operation you can think of.
The opportunity: It is a sad but true fact that some restaurant employees steal from their employers. In the old days, managers had to rely on cumbersome videotape or their own instincts in order to catch employee-thieves --- if they were caught at all.
The advent of digital video recorders and advanced computer systems has made stopping cash shrink at the POS a lot more effective.
The solution: For managers looking for high-tech surveillance capability, the primary trend in quick-serve security is a system that connects the POS system to a series of video cameras in the store. Actions taken on the POS can be programmed to trigger a computer connected to the system to save the videotape of what is transpiring at the checkout counter.
StarSat LLC, which focuses on reducing cash and product shrink using this technology, can install a system in a restaurant from scratch. Typically 16 cameras will cover the entire building --- food preparation area, POS, drive-thru, back door, etc. A specially configured PC is then hooked up to all of the cameras so that any activity that happens in the restaurant finds its way to the computer's hard drive.
StarSat can then set up certain conditions with its clients based on how the client wants to monitor what happens at the cash register. For instance, if an owner-operator wants to track all manager discounts that exceed five dollars, the computer can do that.
StarSat also offers a monitoring service, in which StarSat employees watch all the video from a store. The trained video-watchers are responsible for tracking 50 stores each.
FireKing Security Group --- which primarily provides safe systems --- also offers security services. Its security camera system is similar to StarSat's, featuring POS integration and the capacity for multiple cameras in order to watch all areas of the restaurant. The company says most of its clients turn on the motion detection system so that the camera only records when there is movement. The FireKing system can also be set to record suspicious POS transactions, like payment made with a $100 bill, no sales, refunds, and discounts.
Although FireKing is not a monitoring service like StarSat, it does provide training in use of the system, installation, and 24/7 technical support.
The final verdict: In terms of return on investment, FireKing says it typically sees that happen in three to six months. But to take one extreme case, a gas station that employed FireKing made its money back in one day after multiple scams were uncovered.
On the web: Find StarSat at www.starsat.us and FireKing at www.fireking.com.
