Novomatic and Southco: Helping to Drive a New Era of Security in the Gaming Market
Within the global gaming equipment sector, reducing instances of theftand fraud while maintaining compliance with changing industry requirementsare key concerns. Given the high traffic environments that gaming machines are often exposed to, integrating the appropriate security controlsis crucial to loss prevention. As a result, gaming equipment manufacturers are increasing their design focus on physical security solutions.
Companies like Austrian Gaming Industriesfor instance, a wholly owned Novomatic AG subsidiary and Europe’s largest and most prolific gaming machine manufacturer, are implementing Southco’s engineered access hardware solutions to enhance the security and durability of their machines.
Founded in 1980 and headquartered in Austria, the Novomatic group comprises affiliated companies in 45 countries and exports high-tech gaming equipment to more than 80 countries. Recognized in the industry for its on-going commitment to research and technology, Novomatic has become a pioneer in the gaming hardwarefield.
Southco has partnered with Novomatic to design a complete solution for physical security around the R4 Rotary Latchfor the company’s ‘Dominator’ slot machine. The R4’s intuitive, two-stage locking operation secures the two major access points on the machine.
“We found a single stage lock was not secure enough to add real value so we selected Southco’s two-stage locking R4,which has been very successful,” said product engineer Alexander Geischläger.
When combined with Southco’s AC Actuators and Cables, the R4 series provides a complete solution for remote latching.Southco’s Rotary Latch System uses these three components to create remote, manual actuationand improved security. To operate the system, a service technician simply has to triggerthe actuator and the attached cable activates the rotary latch, allowing the door or panel to open so routine maintenance can be performed. The door closes just as easily, with simple push-to-close operation.
Originally designed to satisfy high strength and tolerance needs of automotive entry doorapplications, the R4 series secures heavy duty gaming equipmentpanels and lids with ease. The concealed nature of the latch allows it to be mounted inside the enclosure, hiding latch points. This improves security while at the same time, enhancing industrial design. Southco’s durable, push-to-close rotary latch solutions are being selected by major gaming and self-service equipment manufacturers as an integral part of their security value propositions due to the enhanced security and industrial design benefits they provide. “At Novomatic we pride ourselves on our eagerness to innovate,”said Geischläger. “Access control is of paramount importance to the industry, so investment is vital. One of the steps we have taken is to partner with Southco, a world leader in self-service access control solutions.”
Meeting Compliance Requirements with Electronic Latching
Maintaining compliance with changing gaming regulations continues to be a challenge for gaming equipment manufacturers across the globe. Many regulatory bodies and gaming commissions are insisting onstronger security controls that not only protect gaming machines against theft, but during routine service and maintenance as well.
A proposed change to the Italian Comma 6a gaming regulation for example, necessitates not just the modernization of Italian gaming machine designbut also more stringent certification requirements for machine maintenance and spot checks. Manufacturers can ensure compliance with such regulations by adding intelligent electronic locks to their gaming machine designs.
Southco’s R4-EM Electronic Rotary Lock for example, expands on the engineering behind its mechanical rotary latches, offering the same secure latching withfully integrated electronic accesstechnology. When integrated with an existing networked security system, the R4-EM offers the ability to electronically control credentials and monitor physical access to gaming machines remotely.
When accessto a gaming machine is required, an encryptedsignal is sent to the electronic lock from a central security system to unlock. This enables the security administrator to send a secure command to the lock only whenauthorized personnel are ready to physically access the machine. An optional microswitch or sensors can provide feedback on locked or unlockstatus, and a time delayed re-lock version can be kept unlocked indefinitely to controlmanual opening and closing cycles.
Intelligent electronic locks are critical to the successful operation of a complete physical security solution, granting access only to validated users and providing output for remote monitoring and audit reporting. Each time the lock is accessed, an electronic “signature” is recorded, providing indisputable audit trail information that can be used to demonstrate compliance with regulations that require physical access records.
