Forecourt retailer benefits from service to ensure complete connectivity across all UK retail sites
Forecourt retailer benefits from service to ensure complete connectivity across all UK retail sites
Murco Petroleum has completed the roll out of a mobile access management (MAM) service across its entire retail estate, to improve the connectivity of its 300-plus sites and streamline operations.
The successful roll out was revealed during a presentation at the Retail Business Technology Expo held last week at Earl’s Court, where the MAM service provider Timico described the new investment as a safeguard against missed sales opportunities caused by the temporary loss of wired internet connection.
Enhancing existing IP services
Murco has used the MAM service to add 3G capability to its existing Timico wide area network (WAN) in order to ensure payments for its expanding fuel and non-fuel retail offerings can always be taken via credit and debit card. The new 3G service enables its service station to automatically switch to it as a failsafe wireless back-up if connectivity is lost during business hours.
“We chose Timico because they understood our technology requirements and could provide the kind of innovative, robust and secure IP [internet protocol] infrastructure we needed to run our applications and keep our sites connected,” stated Umar Bajwa, Murco Petroleum UK networks manager.
“They are able to do all this at the best cost for us and they are a good fit with our business. We can interface at the right levels for whichever services we need, something which can be more difficult with larger organisations.”
Supporting web-based reporting
An earlier enhancement to Murco’s systems enables petrol stations management staff to eliminate the manual completion of a hardcopy daily performance report sheet and posting it to head office for input into a central database. A bespoke online application was developed to capture the same details in a fraction of the time, which is supported by the IP network from Timico.
Timico has provided Murco with a private wide area network (PWAN) to connect all of its retail sites to head office for seven years. The provider said its network gives Murco fully redundant breakout and managed access to the internet, keeping all of its sites fully connected 24 hours a day. Timico integrates new retail sites as Murco expands and also manages the company’s business telephone lines and mobiles through a bespoke billing system.
“The Timico network has made us much more efficient and has allowed Murco to manage a large and increasingly growing network of retail sites without significantly increasing our staff or costs. The new Timico 3G payment failover service has already paid for itself many times over,” concluded Bajwa.
