CHENNAI: Not instantly spotable, but palm-sized sensors are silently streaming data on ATM vitals from room temperature to natural light sources to the movement of the security guard, leveraging Internet of Things (IoT) to help service providers run cash-vending machines on lighter operational expenditure models.
Companies such as Chennaibased Financial Software & Systems and Gurgaon's CMS Solutions have applied IoT and software-automated processes to help banks cut costs across the board by saving power, curbing pilferage, managing incidents such as stuck debit cards, and even remotely controlling the ATM to shut it whenever the security alarm goes off. IoT, which makes devices communicable and operable through wireless transmissions, is witnessing increasing application in a host of sectors such as retail, manufacturing, healthcare and banking.
In ATM management, it is fast emerging as the first-level monitor. "Remote ATM-monitoring through sensors has avoided the task of sending technicians to fix glitches at ATMs. ]
This has cut costs enormously,"said Nagaraj Mylandla, founder and managing director of FSS, which manages over 30,000 ATMs across the country for many private and public sector banks with State Bank of India, the country's biggest lender, being the anchor customer.
FSS has deployed software to detect and inform about common incidents that may happen at an ATM: card reader malfunctions, stuck receipts, low cash reserves and high degree of power wastage. The automation is executed by a package developed in-house called Active Device Monitoring, which is a sensor network bunched with software that alerts a central location about glitches.
"This takes care of firstlevel monitoring in an ATM. This process required an engineer to visit and inspect,"he added. An ATM guzzles Rs 35,000 a month on an average on operational and maintenance expenditure, with the average cost per transaction, excluding the security guard's income, at Rs 10-25. The company offers 8-10% reduction on operational costs with its IoT and software initiatives deployed over the last year. FSS is installing cash recyclers at the ATMs of its clients to funnel deposited cash into the ATM machines for withdrawal, cutting the need for cash refills.