Pamida were introduced to Cashmaster counting machines through Cash Solutions, one of Cashmaster’s approved distributors in the US. At the time, Pamida employees were expected to count takings the traditional way - by hand, with the company yet to consider the benefits that counting by weight technology offered. In 2003, Pamida decided to trial three Cashmaster machines, together with a machine from a competitor supplier, in an attempt to fully evaluate the affect the machine had on the time taken to count cash plus other associated benefits, such as total reconciliation.

The Cashmaster trial was an overwhelming success, as described by Cash Solutions Sales Director, Jayson Dunston. “We listened very closely to exactly what Pamida required from a cash counting machine, allowing us to offer a model with the ideal feature set. The trial went very smoothly, with the Pamida staff finding our machine easier, faster and more intuitive than then the competitor it was trialed against”. In addition to a float and optional connectivity, Pamida required a machine that had a calculator-like numpad onboard which allowed operators to count checks by typing the amounts in directly.

In 2004, Pamida went on to purchase 220 Omega 210s in a cross state rollout, duly forecasting a Return of Investment (ROI) within just four months. Although Pamida’s staff found the machine very easy to use, Cash Solutions provided flexible training over the phone, facilitating adoption across all stores. Paul Grinsteinner, Pamida’s Operations Manager, comments: “a short training scheme was key, as it reaffirmed the capabilities of the machine to some of our more skeptical staff. Like us, once they’d seen what the machine could do, they were very impressed and unwilling to go back to counting by hand”.

Pamida use the machines in the cash office, counting multiple cash register drawers, inclusive of coins, bills, checks and tokens. Each machine is used at least three times a day - to set the floats at the start of the day, to count total takings and to prepare bank deposits in the back office. “We estimate that we save around two hours a day by using the machine, releasing our staff to complete more customer focused activities, particularly extra floor time. The business case we used to set the ROI target for the machines was achieved 25 per cent quicker than Cash Solutions originally forecast – suggesting how powerful we consider them to be,” continued Paul Grinsteinner.

Pamida use the inkless CP1 Cashmaster printer alongside the Omega 210, allowing them to print a full breakdown of the count and log a copy within their daily bookwork, culminating in further time savings. To date, Pamida have more than 220 Cashmaster machines in the field. Jayson Dunston of Cash Solutions is delighted that Pamida are benefiting from the new machines - “when we asked Pamida about their experience of working with us, they were very satisfied with both the machine and our approach, which is exactly the response we hope all of our customers will express. Our service is heavily focused on our customers’ end needs, to not only match but exceed their criteria.” Both Cash Solutions and Cashmaster are proud to work with Pamida and look forward to providing with them with all of their future cash handling requirements.