iB Management Solutions, the premier provider of electronic key management systems for automotive dealerships, has seen adoption of its eTag system accelerate over the last twelve months, growing by over 20,000 cars per month with 2 million cars managed and protected by eTag since its inception.
At the end of 2010, iB Management Solutions had achieved a record 15,000 registered users. The eTag system is used by progressive dealerships including Porsche Retail Group, Mercedes Benz Retail, BMW Park Lane, Sytner Group and Essex Auto Group. Dealerships are also expanding their use of the eTag system with each site now having an average of 546 key slots under management by eTag.
Car key security is paramount for dealerships using the eTag system. Access to keys is only given to authorised individuals using proximity access tokens or fingerprint biometric readers. When a car arrives at a dealership, details are entered onto the eTag system and the keys are allocated an intelligent fob (iFob) which identifies the car. Vehicle movements are monitored when the key is taken or returned to and from the cabinet. Specific slots can be allocated in the cabinet to indicate specific areas within the dealership, such as the showroom or workshop to track the physical vehicle location.
As well as reducing car and key theft, using eTag also saves valuable time and money which is wasted searching for keys and location of vehicles: a check on the eTag system shows dealer employees exactly who has the keys and the current location of the vehicle. Inter-dealer car transfers are also simplified through networking eTag systems together, eliminating duplication of data entry and paperwork on arrival at a dealer site.
With these benefits, dealerships are using the eTag system more intensely, with a 10% increase over the last year in the number of key transactions or individual car movements to nearly 10,000 per month per site, with the busiest eTag site clocking up over 40,000 transactions per month. A growing number of dealerships are taking advantage of eTag’s ability to integrate into their existing dealer management system (DMS) to track the progress of a car through a dealership.
Paul Smith, managing director, iB Management Solutions, commented:
“Electronic key management systems are now definitely mainstream and are seen as an essential tool for any modern car dealership; they are an integral part of day-to-day operations. Our eTag system is exceptionally robust and has clocked up nearly 37 million individual key movements, with some 6.2 million during 2010. Apart from the obvious security benefits, our customers know the efficiency and certainty that eTag brings to their dealerships, and their usage of eTag grows and grows.
“We look forward to continued strong growth in the year ahead, as more and more dealers become aware of how essential key management systems are to their businesses.”
About iB Management Solutions
iB Management Solutions is an expert provider of end-to-end key management solutions and other systems for automotive dealerships. iB Management Solutions’ eTag Key Management System offers networked key management solutions to 40 per cent of the Mercedes-Benz network and 30 per cent of the BMW network in the UK. Customers include Porsche Retail Group, Mercedes-Benz Retail, BMW Park Lane, Essex Auto Group and Sytner Group. iB is also an expert provider of CIAS (Cencon Automation IVR Solution) to security companies such as Sunwin Cash Processing. CIAS provides an automated telephone interactive voice response (IVR) service to security companies who need to distribute ATM lock codes to their crews in order to replenish and service ATMs. For more information, visit www.ibmanagementsolutions.co.uk
Contact
Paul Smith, Managing Director, iB Management Solutions Limited
0845 2255183
psmith@contactib.com
www.contactib.com
