Company
News
Navy Awards NCR $49 Million
Contract to Expand
ATMs-at-Sea Program to Smaller Ships
DAYTON, Ohio - NCR Corporation announced it has been awarded a $49 million
contract by the U.S. Navy to expand the ATMs-at-Sea III program to smaller Navy ships,
down to the frigate level. The program, which currently includes automated teller machines
(ATMs)
deployed on more than 140 U.S. warships, calls for installation of additional ATMs, as
well as other services.
The award includes a $21 million fixed-price contract - called ATMs-at-Sea III - that
will provide for the upgrade of current ATM's, as well as another $28 million in options
for additional teller machines and services. NCR's Government Systems Group expects to
complete the primary Navy contract by August 1999, performing the work at about 50 ports
in the U.S. and around the world. The new program has already installed ATMs on 24
warships.
"By working closely with the U.S. Navy, NCR's ATMs-at-Sea program provides
sailors' access to their money no matter where they are - far out at sea or even in
hostile waters," said Steven Cooker, president of NCR's Government Systems Group.
"NCR is committed to working with the Navy to expand the services available to meet
the needs of service men and women now and in the future."
NCR's ATMs-at-Sea III contract builds on the prototype network established for the ATMs
II contract on two Navy ships - the USS Constellation, and the USS Theodore Roosevelt.
That network, implemented in 1997, put the on-board ATMs in touch with banks back in the
sailors' hometown via satellite, using the Navy's Challenge Athena satellite
communications system to link the ATMs to the Armed Forces Financial Network.
Commercial Banking Afloat
The Navy and NCR launched the ATMs-at-Sea program a decade ago, using ATMs as a
replacement for the Navy's on-board payroll system that paid sailors in cash. The
ATMs-at-Sea program takes the Navy payroll office out of the cash dispensing business - by
depositing money directly into the sailors' accounts. By doing so, the Navy has cut costs
on its payroll systems dramatically.
In 1997, the second phase of the program, ATMs-at-Sea II, upgraded the machines so
sailors could not only get paid electronically, he/she could also access their bank
accounts back home by using their regular ATM card in a program called "Commercial
Banking Afloat." "Commercial Banking Afloat is the ultimate in personal
banking," said Cooker "It quite literally permits customers to access their
monies anywhere in the world, whenever they want, and lets the bank market services that
suit the specific needs of the military customer."
The ATMs-at-Sea program has been so well received by crew members that cash machines on
aircraft carriers, the Navy's largest ships, are often the highest volume ATMs in the
world, according to the Navy. The ATMs, made by NCR, each churn out as much as $20,000 a
day in cash.
Carriers are effectively floating cities; and sailors need cash to buy everything from
toothbrushes to videotapes. And of course, they need cash to take with them on shore
leave.
The $29 million option in the ATMs III contract may be used to pay for a lighter ATM
better suited for installation on smaller-sized Navy frigates.
NCR equipped each ship in the ATMs-at-Sea program with from one to as many as eight NCR
674 or 5070 Interior ATMs, an NCR 3350 Server or Tower 32/400, from one-to-five 4430 Debit
Terminals, a laser printer, and an uninterruptible power source.
The Navy's ATMs-at-Sea program office is based in the Naval Supply Systems Command
(NAVSUP) in Mechanicsburg, PA. The command, which employs 820 military personnel and about
11,000 civilians worldwide, is charged with overseeing logistics for supply operations,
contracting, and fuel; and it runs the Navy's food service, mail and exchange store
operations, among other things.
About NCR Corporation
NCR Corporation (NYSE: NCR) is in the business of transforming transactions into
relationships. NCR is a recognized world leader in data warehousing solutions, ATMs,
point-of-sale, high performance scanners, and support services for retail, financial and
national accounts markets. NCR's business solutions are built on the foundation of the
company's long-established industry knowledge and consulting expertise, value-adding
software, global customer support services, a complete line of consumable and media
products, and world-leading hardware technology. More information about NCR and its
products may be found on the Internet at www.ncr.com
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