Sunday, February 23, 2003

Fujitsu Introduces First Electronic Check Conversion Solution With Digital Check Imaging for IBM 4690 Users

DALLAS , Texas -- Fujitsu Transaction Solutions Inc. today announced an electronic check conversion (ECC) system with the grocery industry's first integrated check imaging capability that provides new efficiencies, significant cost savings and rapid return on investment when accepting and processing paper checks.


The system is being shown at the Food Marketing Institute's (FMI) annual Marketechnics Show, Feb. 23-25, 2003 at the Dallas Convention Center.


Fujitsu, which will integrate and maintain the new systems, said the "turnkey solution" is designed for current users of IBM 4690 supermarket applications. The ECC solution will preserve users' hardware and software investments while providing value-added functionality. Fujitsu will partner with Matra Systems Inc. and Epson on the solution.


"We've assembled a 'best-of-breed' team that leverages our respective capabilities to develop and integrate this system," said Tom Juliano, Fujitsu senior vice president, marketing and product operations. "We have an excellent, long-term relationship with each of them, and the combined solution reflects Fujitsu's continued focus to relentlessly drive costs out of retailers' operations and help improve their performance."


The new ECC system incorporates the ability to capture an electronic image of the customer's check via the Epson TM-6000II printer's TransScan digital imaging technology. Matra-developed software provides the interface between the imaging system and the back-office application, allowing storage and retrieval of the image from an in-store server or a central collection center.


According to the 2001 FMI Activity-based Cost Study of Retail Payments, checks account for the second most frequent type of supermarket transactions. ECC reduces check processing and handling costs by up to $0.12 per check - or more than 30 percent of the total transaction cost - while reducing check processing time at the register by as much as 50 percent.


Fujitsu plans to offer ECC with its new self check-out system, which also was announced at Marketechnics and was developed in partnership with Optimal Robotics Corp. Fujitsu will offer its new self-checkout system in both express and full-order configurations. It will combine Optimal's U-Scan products with software enhancements and SmartPoS peripherals from Fujitsu that increase system availability and the retailer's return on investment.


About Fujitsu Transaction Solutions Inc.

Fujitsu Transaction Solutions Inc., headquartered in Dallas, is the IT "lifecycle solutions" provider for retailing technologies. The wholly owned subsidiary of Fujitsu Limited (TSE: 6702) helps customers relentlessly drive costs out of retail operations and improve business performance by optimizing how technology assets are managed throughout the life cycle, from evaluation and acquisition to integration, implementation, service, support and replacement. Fujitsu's portfolio includes infrastructure management services, point-of-sale hardware and software, handheld devices and Web-enabled automated-teller machines. The company has operated in North America for more than 30 years and has more than 1,000 employees and 25 offices in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean. It serves customers such as Ahold, Albertson's, Best Buy, Frito-Lay, Nordstrom, REI, Sears, Staples and The TJX Companies, among others.