Today kicks off the first day of Wincor World, a technology showcase hosted by Wincor Nixdorf, in Paderborn, Germany, where QSR will be reporting live from the floor. During the three-day trade show, the company will showcase a variety of technologies for the retail and financial markets. “Wincor Wold showcases our innovation, which includes examples from international customer projects as well as new and on-going project developments,” says the comany’s CEO Eckard Heidloff. Wincor partners and customers will explore more than 600 IT solutions and services, with specific emphasis on branch automation, self service, and cash management solutions.

Among the technology being debuted is Wincor’s SLI-4442 Mobile POS System. The system symplifies payment at stadiums and arenas by allowing customers to load cash onto smart cards. Unlike most payment card systems, this technology allows customers to purchase food, team merchadise, and parking all with the same card. Ironically, the mobile aspect of the system is introduced when customers aren’t moving at all but while they’re in the stands. Ordering peanuts and cotton candy is made simple with this system since vendors within the stands can carry a mobile smart card reader that allows the card to be charged on the spot without a network connection. “When you’re in an environment where cash is not useful because you have to control it and you want to earn more money with cashless, this is preferred,” Vera Löffler of Wincor Nixdorf tells QSR.

Löffler says that while this type of payment is not well suited for environments where customers are older and not used to paying without cash, it is faster than cash and does not intimidate younger customers. “Only inserting a card takes about 10 to 15 seconds. With cash it’s, ‘OK … I go to my bag then I’m looking for my wallet.’ For sure, it’s faster,” she says. According to Löffler, on average, operators can complete four to five transactions with the system during the same time it takes to finish one cash transaction.

Although the technology is not yet available to consumers, Wincor hopes the system will be received with enthusiasm throughout the three-day event. From there, Löffler estimates that implementing the technology would take about one year.

Wincor Nixdorf is the leader in programmable electronic POS systems in Europe and No. 3 in the world. It has a presence in more than 90 countries with its own subsidiary companies in 36 of these.

By Blair Chancey