CAMPBELL, CALIF. - April 29, 2004 - IR Recognition Systems, the biometric component of Ingersoll-Rand's (IR) Security & Safety Group's Electronic Access Control Division (EACD), today announced that select employees of the David Lawrence Center and Foundation (DLC), a non-profit mental health and substance abuse services center in Collier County, Fla., are using its HandPunch terminals to clock in and out. The goal is to eliminate buddy punching and better control payroll costs.
The HandPunch terminals eliminate expenses associated with employee badges and fraud caused by buddy punching. 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. Hand geometry technology is the most commonly used technology for time and attendance and access control, according to Frost and Sullivan's "World Biometrics Report."
Entry-level technicians and nurses at DLC are required to punch in and out at the HandPunch terminals. According to Ivette Arroyo of DLC, the HandPunch timeclocks have completely eliminated buddy punching. "We wanted to be sure that employees in that area weren't punching in and out for each other and the HandPunch timeclocks have given us the security that we needed," said Arroyo. "Best of all, they're no harder to use than a standard timeclock."
DLC formerly tracked time for its 350 full- and part-time workers, who are spread across four locations, on paper. "Everyone had to fill out a time sheet each pay period, and we had to manually key the information into payroll," reports Rita Carlin, Payroll Clerk for DLC. "It was a pretty time-consuming and error-prone process."
Looking for an automated time and attendance system to increase accuracy, reduce payroll and labor costs, and also integrate seamlessly with their Abra Suite, the DLC chose the desktop version of UNITIME Automated Timekeeping System, along with the HandPunch model 4000 biometric timeclocks. UNITIME replaced a manual timekeeping system, resulting in a fully integrated solution that minimizes errors and time spent on payroll.
"The integration between UNITIME and Abra has saved us a great deal of time and effort. The payroll process used to take around eight hours, and now it only takes about two and a half hours," Carlin adds.
One of the biggest problems with the previous system of timesheets was the lack of accuracy. "If someone showed up five minutes late, they would just write down the time they were supposed to arrive," notes Arroyo. "We had no way of knowing if the time sheets were accurate, but with UNITIME and the HandPunch reader, we don't have to worry about it."
In addition to increased accuracy, the UNITIME system helps DLC ensure that all payroll rules are applied consistently and fairly. Policies relating to overtime and holidays are simply established one time in the rules setup and assigned to employees and UNITIME automatically calculates the hours as needed. "The system is very easy to use, and it's eliminated a lot of headaches for us," adds Carlin.
About David Lawrence
Center
David Lawrence Center (DLC) is a not-for-profit organization focused on restoring
and rebuilding lives by providing compassionate, highly skilled, and affordable
mental health and substance abuse services. Since 1969, DLC has served the needs
of children, adults, and families throughout Collier County, Florida. DLC continually
enhances the quality and delivery of its services to help restore and rebuild
the lives of children in need, adults in crisis, and individuals with persistent
mental illness.
About Unitime Systems
Unitime Systems, a leading provider of labor management and time automation
solutions, has helped over 1,600 small to enterprise sized organizations in
over 6,000 locations enhance the performance of employees, managers, and overall
operations. For over ten years, Unitime has provided simple and logical systems
that maximize workforce activities, improve automation, and streamline processes
to help businesses achieve their goals.
About IR Recognition
Systems
With over 75,000 hand geometry units throughout the world reading millions of
hands each day, IR Recognition Systems, founded in 1986, is the pioneer of hand
recognition technology used in access control, time and attendance and identification
applications. The company is the world sales leader of biometric verification
devices and serves an international clientele from its headquarters in Campbell,
Calif. The hand geometry website is www.handreader.com. Phone is 408-341-4100.
Recognition Systems is the biometric component of Ingersoll-Rand Corporation's
Security & Safety Group's Electronic Access Control Division. The Ingersoll-Rand
website is www.irco.com.
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