Name: Chris Hyde
Job Title: Mechanical Design Engineer
Department: Development
Worked at ITL since: 2014

After having achieved a 1st class degree in Product Design at the University of Huddersfield, I began working at ITL as a Mechanical Design Engineer, focusing on both mechanical functionality and product aesthetics. I make use of a variety of tools in the product design process, ranging from lathes and bandsaws for creating physical prototypes to CAD (Computer-Aided Design) software. I have also had the opportunity to spend time working for ITL’s subsidiary company, InnoPrint, which allowed me to work on our range of ticketing products in addition to our core offering.

What benefits me:

Since its introduction at EAG 2016, Innovative Technology’s (ITL) NV12+ revolutionary validator and printer has been impressing customers in various sectors throughout Europe.

The NV12+ is ideal for sports betting terminals and video lottery terminals (VLT) due to its compact size and lightweight design, allowing it to be implemented in machines of any shape or size. Furthermore, it combines cash acceptance, ticket printing and ticket validation to provide a truly exceptional product for sports betting customers.

ITL’s Group Sales Director, Mustapha Hadj-Ahmed, said “The perceived additional space requirement is one of the major obstacles preventing operators from installing ticketing systems in their sports betting terminals and VLTs. The arrival of the NV12+ means that this is no longer a concern, since it’s compact size saves valuable space. The NV12’s printer has an unrestricted ticket length, which is an ideal feature for bookmakers and betting shops that need to review total transactions at the end of each day. The unit also includes a high quality Seiko print mechanism to deliver consistent performance regardless of paper quality.”

The NV12+’s modular design allows operators who currently use the NV9 USB+ to add ticketing functionality simply by purchasing the add-on NVR 280 printer unit. The unique compact ticketing system allows cash in, ticket in and ticket out capability.

Mustapha continued “Our NV9 USB+ note validator is an extremely popular, field proven product that has been adopted by customers across the globe. With the rise in TITO implementation across the industry, the NV12+ is the ideal option for anyone looking to introduce ticketing capabilities. The NV12+ is the perfect fit for the sports betting market and its cost-effective price ensures that it is an attractive option for both large organisations and smaller enterprises. The NV12+ has been adopted by many companies so far in its short life-cycle and has garnered a tremendous amount of buzz at recent tradeshows.”

Over the next two years we will see the introduction of polymer banknotes and a new twelve sided £1 coin in the UK with new material, designs and security features.

Circulation

Due to enter circulation September 2016, the new £5 note will feature Winston Churchill and will be the first plastic banknote to be issued by the Bank of England. The following year, March 2017 will see the Royal Mint issue a new £1 coin, something which has been widely spoken about because of its unusual 12 sided design, which might remind those of a certain age of the old threepenny bit which was withdrawn from circulation back in 1971. Although the polymer banknotes will be released first, it seems to be the introduction of the new £1 coin, which will not be released until 2017, which has everyone in the industry talking.

The new twelve sided £1 coin

Our current £1 coin has been in circulation for over thirty years, much longer than the normal life cycle of a modern British coin. The new coin is an unusual twelve sided shape and made from two different coloured metals. The £1 will incorporate new anti-counterfeiting technology to become the most secure coin in circulation, allowing the UK to rapidly reduce the amount of fraudulent coins. The new coin will be thinner than the current at 2.8mm and will be made of nickel and brass. All businesses that handle cash will need to prepare for the introduction of a new coin as all coin handling equipment will have to be updated before March 2017. The Royal Mint have indicated a six month co-existence period before the old £1 coins are withdrawn.

UK polymer banknotes

More information is known about the new UK polymer banknotes. The first note, the new £5, will enter circulation this September and will feature Winston Churchill. (The Bank of England has announced that full design and security features will be unveiled in June.) The £10 note will be replaced the year after, again issued in polymer and will feature Jane Austin. The £20 will also be replaced in the future and it has been confirmed that this again will be a polymer note. The new polymer note range will be slightly smaller in size than our current notes, (eg. the new £5 will be 125mm x 65mm) with increased durability and enhanced security features, thereby offering more fraud protection. Polymer banknotes are manufactured from transparent plastic film, specially coated with an ink layer that enables it to carry the printed design features of banknotes. The materials allow the inclusion of ‘windows’ or clear portions in the design, which enhance protection against counterfeiting. Despite the visible material change the UK polymer banknotes will retain their overall look with a portrait of Her Majesty the Queen on the front. The Bank of England describes the polymer notes as cleaner, more secure, and more durable than paper notes, providing enhanced counterfeit resilience, and increasing the quality of notes in circulation. Polymer notes are also more environmentally friendly and last longer. In addition all three Scottish Banks (Clydesdale, Bank of Scotland and Royal Bank of Scotland) will also issue new polymer £5 notes later this year.

Note validation

In terms of note validation, polymer banknotes pose no additional issues, all ITL note validators will accept and stack as normal after a simple, free currency dataset update. Although new to us in the UK, polymer notes are already widely used in over 30 different countries worldwide including Australia and Canada. With the new notes due to be issued in September, we will ensure customers have access to currency dataset files from Friday 29th April, allowing sufficient time for all validators in the field to be updated ahead of the note entering circulation. To further simplify the process, we will create a SMART Update Tool allowing all equipment to be updated with one of our DA3 handheld programmers in minutes.  

Old dipswitch NV9/NV10s

It is vital that any customers still using old dipswitch units (which became obsolete at the end of 2014) update to newer USB validators before the introduction of the new £5 polymer note. No update will be available for the original dipswitch NV9 and NV10 units.

To stay up to date with all of the latest information on the new UK notes and coins keep an eye on our website news and technical bulletins.

Innovative Technology Ltd. (ITL) is pleased to announce the arrival of Saša Kragulj as Business Development Manager. Saša will be  based in Prague and will oversee ITL’s growth in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary.

Saša has a wealth of experience within the cash handling industry, having held Sales and Project Management roles for a number of organisations. Saša made the move to ITL at the beginning of 2016.

Saša commented on his new position “I am very excited to be working for ITL, I have worked in the industry for a number of years now, so I understand just what an important name the company is in cash handling. I’m looking forward to the exciting challenge of covering four different countries with distinct working cultures. I will be working to attract new customers to purchase ITL products whilst also maintaining our strong relationships with current customers.”

Marcus Tiedt, Sales Director said “Saša comes to ITL with a strong reputation and knowledge of the industry. He has quickly gotten up to speed with our product range and has been able to explain the details of our validators, hoppers and printers to prospective customers. Saša has already appeared at one of our busiest tradeshows of the year, ICE 2016, during which he met a number of customers from his region. Saša’s appointment demonstrates ITL’s commitment to developing our presence in Eastern Europe and we look forward towards a successful working relationship going into the future.”  

NV200 Spectral

European Patent No. 2,602,772

US Patent No. 8,910,771

Chinese Patent No. 101414394

European Patent No. 1,849,138

Chinese Patent No. 101147175

British Patent No. 2,521,402

US Patent No. 9,053,597

US Patent No. 9,171,414

Chinese Patent Application No. 201410696318.8

NV9 Spectral

British Patent Application No. 18 018 27.5

European Patent Application No. 19 153 673.9

US Patent Application No. 16/253,535

Chinese Patent Application No. 201910102626.6

Age Recognition

US Patent Application No. 10/354,123

Chinese Patent Application No. 201710497790.2

ICU

British Patent Application No: 19 115 58.3

Multi Note Float

British Patent Application No. 16 203 13.5

European Patent Application No. 17 197 317.5

US Patent Application No. 15/794,154

Chinese Patent Application No. 201711189764.X

Safe Interface

European Patent Application No. 18 158 022.6

US Patent Application No. 15/910,045

Chinese Patent Application No. 201810171402.6

Bunch Note Feeder

British Patent Application No. 18 106 16.1

European Patent Application No. 3,587,314

US Patent Application No. 16/448,158

Chinese Patent Application No. 201910548371.6

BV30

British Patent Application No. 2,584,138

Please direct any enquiries to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

IN THIS BULLETIN: BV50 firmware version 4.14 released, NV10 USB firmware version 3.40 released, NV10 USB+ coming soon, Validator Manager version 4.4.0 coming soon, ECB Approval, £5 polymer note update, New £1 coin announcement

Production of the new £1 coin began yesterday as the Chancellor, George Osborne announced it will enter circulation in March 2017. 

The current £1 coin is being replaced for the first time in over 30 years because of its vulnerability to sophisticated counterfeiters. The new £1 to be issued from March 2017 will be a 12-sided, bi-metallic, bi-colour coin with milled edges. It will weigh 8.75g and will have a diameter of 23.43mm from point to point (23.03mm edge to edge). The edge thickness will be 2.8mm and the metallic composition is: nickel-brass outer; nickel-plated solid alloy inner. When the new £1 coin enter circulation during March 2017 it will become the most secure coin ever. HM Treasury and The Royal Mint also announced that following the introduction in March 2017 there will be a six-month period of co-circulation, where the current £1 and the new £1 coins will both be in circulation. More information is available at: https://lnkd.in/eskSwxN

All ITL coin hoppers will accept the new coin after a simple, free currency update. More information will follow on our website and within our Technical Bulletins.