Multi-property Owner Turns to TTI for Scanners

Multi-Property, Multi-Brand Hotel Owner Using TTI's Scan2PMS to Protect Assets
Local law enforcement commends hotels for digitally copying guest IDs -- especially cash-paying customers -- and downloading the information directly into the hotel property-management system; Solution is saving owner time and money, speeding check in for guests, and helping the environment

New York—May 4, 2010—Although there are no laws in the United States (as in other parts of the world) requiring hotel owners to copy guests' personal identification at check in, it hasn't kept Ritesh Shah, owner of the Days Inn Morrow, Country Inn and Suites Fairburn, and Holiday Inn Express and Suites, Lavonia in Georgia from doing just that. In April, the multi-property, multi-brand hotel owner partnered with TTI Technologies to purchase and integrate the company's Scan2PMS solution into his operations. Since then, Shah says he has eliminated photocopying headaches, reduced paper waste, increased staff productivity, improved the speed and efficiency of check in for guests, and helped the environment.

New York-based TTI (www.ttitel.com) provides self-service solutions to hotels, resorts, and hostels that are easy to operate, require minimal staff interaction, and include design, installation and on-going 24/7/365 management and support. Scan2PMS is a customized application that allows data to be captured from the ID using optical-character recognition (OCR) technology. It can easily be integrated with third-party applications using XML protocol, and already is interfaced with numerous property-management systems.

"Hotel owners like myself desperately need this technology," Shah said. "I had been looking for a solution like Scan2PMS for more than three years, but nothing was on the market. I often asked the PMS vendors why they didn't offer such a solution, and they said because 'it isn't required.' Today, thankfully, things are changing. One of my PMS vendors, MICROS, said they recently completed an interface from their OPERA PMS to the TTI Scan2PMS system, and thought it would be the ideal solution for my hotels, saying it was simple to adapt and easy to afford. They were right!"

Shah said the benefits of using an ID Scanner are many, but asset protection is No. 1. "The days of preferring that customers pay in cash are gone," Shah said. "Guests who pay cash usually do so because they don't want their identity known.

"Thankfully we haven't experienced any criminal activity at our hotels, but other owners haven't been as fortunate," he said. "I've heard that the first thing the police ask for is a photo ID of the guest under investigation. Not having one could be a real problem. That's why we've always enforced a policy to manually photocopy guest IDs or passports -- especially for cash customers. But this procedure was hard on staff and on guests -- it took time to make the copies, caused delays and lines at check in, and in the case of cash-paying guests you never really knew if the information you were entering manually was accurate. Also, it required us to purchase and stock paper supplies that were costly and not environmentally friendly.
"That's no longer an issue however, thanks to TTI and Scan2PMS," he added.

Versatile Solution, Various Benefits
Scan2PMS comes with a number of hardware options including: driver’s license, two-sided driver’s license with barcode reading, large document, and combination driver’s license/passport scanners. The scanners are compact, portable, and easily incorporated into any front desk setting.

“Within seconds, Scan2PMS captures legitimate guest information at check-in and immediately downloads it into the hotel’s PMS," said Bridget Werba, TTI VP of Business Development and Marketing. "This enables the hotel to instantly capture the guest’s photo, name, address, date of birth and nationality, while providing proof that the guest actually stayed at the hotel. And, it removes the risk of human error in the data entry process for future marketing How often have typos cost a hotel the inability to market to customers for future stays or, more importantly, given a guest a good excuse to file a charge-back claim with their credit-card company in order to avoid charges. The automatic data capture provides an unprecedented level of protection for owners and operators.”

Captain Olson, a Patrol Division Commander at the Morrow Police Dept., said he commends Shah for being so proactive in his security efforts.

"Any hotel that takes the initiative to equip itself with a digital scanning device to accurately and instantly capture patron identification is a true asset to the community," he said. "It shows travelers and local law enforcement that the hotel's owner is running a safe and reputable business. We thank Mr. Shah for his commitment."

For details on TTI's Scan2PMS system, call (888) 692-4262 x201 or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .