CAMPBELL, CALIF. - December
18, 2006 - Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies today announced that 85 McDonald's
restaurants are cutting payroll costs by up to 22 percent annually after incorporating
the company's Ingersoll Rand Recognition Systems' biometric HandPunch biometric
terminals to record time and attendance. The HandPunch terminal eliminates expenses
associated with employee badges and fraud caused by buddy punching. Over 3,400
employees at 85 McDonald's restaurants in Venezuela have been enrolled with
the HandPunch over the past four years. On average, the system generates over
7,500 transactions each day resulting in over 2.5 million "punches"
annually.
"McDonald's moved to biometrics because they wanted to verify that the
employee clocking in was really that person," says Jose Ramon Casal of
Caracas-based Electronica Quantum, which installed the systems. "Students
make up about 90 percent of the McDonald's workforce in Venezuela. They were
frequently punching one another in to cover for exams or other school-related
events.
"A card only verifies a card," adds Casal. "We have used finger
scanning for other applications, but we believe that hand geometry is more effective
and produces fewer errors when there are larger employee populations. With hand
geometry, a larger area is scanned than with finger scans and the template is
updated after every scan so it remains current."
Instead of filling out or punching timecards, employees simply place their hands
on the HandPunch. It automatically takes a three-dimensional reading of the
size and shape of the employee's hand and verifies the user's identity in less
than one second.
"McDonald's worldwide success has been built on being fast, convenient
and affordable. These are the same key factors that have made our hand geometry
readers the most widely used biometric in the industry. That's why they choose
hand geometry over other biometrics," reports Bashar Masad, marketing manager
for Ingersoll Rand Recognition Systems. "With major fast food retailers
such as McDonald's realizing such tremendous cost savings by using our HandPunches,
others are soon to follow."
Supervisors at each franchise using the HandPunch terminals authorize and verify
employee time and overtime on a computer located at the store. The hours are
then sent to a central payroll processing center via a telephone line. The supervisors
themselves also use the HandPunch to clock in and out.
"Most supervisors at McDonald's are promoted from within and many find
it difficult to impose rules and restrictions on their fellow workers,"
Casal explains. "The HandPunch ensures that everyone is treated the same
and fairly. McDonald's employees are satisfied with the HandPunches because
their payroll information is processed quickly and without mistakes. They receive
regular reports with information about their time and attendance."
Language is not an issue because the software is in Spanish and the HandPunch
readers accommodate several languages.