ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- The Petroleum Convenience Alliance for Technology Standards (PCATS) said that Gilbarco Veeder-Root has achieved the group's point-of-sale (POS) provider Conformance Validation Certificate for the Passport system.
A PC-based open-architecture POS system that delivers merchandising opportunities with a multi-lingual, user-friendly design, optimized for convenience store, grocery and high-volume retail applications. It can be used in fuel or nonfuel applications.
The PCATS certification validates Passport for [image-nocss] the petroleum and convenience retail industry as fully conforming to specific-use instances for the PCATS-NAXML standards. These standards were designed to facilitate integration and two-way communications between POS and back-office systems. Gilbarco achieved certification through the PCATS Conformance Testing Program, the organization's rigorous compliance process.
Gilbarco has played a leadership role in the development of these standards for the retail fuel industry since the inception of standards activity within the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), said John Hervey, executive director of PCATS. Their dedication to open architecture technology and interface standards for the good of the industry is admirable and has been supported by a significant commitment of time, resources and expertise to the standards initiatives through the years.
Retailers are recognizing the clear benefits of adopting platforms that adhere to the standards. Fast Track, a convenience retailer based in Florida, has experienced the PCATS-NAXML interface between Passport and its backoffice company Professional Datasolutions Inc. (PDI). Richard Rentz, Fast Track's IT manager, said, Gilbarco's execution of the PCATS-NAXML standard has delivered outstanding data integrity and ease of interface for us, every step of the way. We appreciate the flexibility that these standards provide.
Kirsten Paust, manager POS systems for Gilbarco, said, Gilbarco Veeder-Root is proud to be a founding member of PCATS. Our continued leadership in this area influences not only our development efforts on Passport, but also our approach to partnership arrangements for the convenience of our customers.
Gilbarco is leading the industry with their large installed base of systems utilizing the interface, according to Paust.
PCATS was founded in September 2003 to continue the development and maintenance for standards work initiated under the NACS Technology Standards project. With 160 retailer and supplier members, the group's membership represents more than 22,000 convenience stores.
Gilbarco Veeder-Root and its Gasboy division are leading suppliers of dispensing, POS, integrated fuel control, site management and support services for petroleum marketers and commercial fueling enterprises worldwide.
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