rom its origins in supplying and servicing coin-operated music and game equipment to the full-service ATM company it is today, WRG Services, Inc. knows electronic machines. Responding to the trend toward access to quick cash, WRG moved from amusement equipment to machines that dispense money.

The company's ATM services include writing software applications, processing transactions, placing and repairing equipment, and devising innovative ways to boost revenue streams. Its goals remain to provide a total solution packaged with high-quality machines and customer service at competitive prices.

Its commitment to providing everything related to operating ATMs from beginning to end has resulted in excellent growth and many accolades for the company. In 2002, for example, WRG earned a spot on The INC 500 list, the "Fast Track 50" list for the second time and, for the third consecutive year, was named to the Weatherhead 100, the Case Western Reserve University's list of the fastest-growing privately held companies in eastern Ohio; it placed at number 13 this time.

"We saw fantastic growth (in 2002)," said CEO Mike Stevenson. "There is no other company in the U.S. that offers what we do - software, processing, machines, leasing. We provide everything to operate ATMs. For us, the answer is always 'the buck stops here.'

"We strive to be the best ATM company in the world!"

WRG Services, Inc. is the new name for the company that used to be Western Reserve Group. (The state of Ohio is part of what used to be called the Western Reserve when the territory belonged to Connecticut in the 18th and 19th centuries.) Twenty years in the vending machine industry gives WRG an edge on the competition, with knowledge and experience in electronic equipment as well as in managing and maintaining the equipment. These days, WRG builds, sells, places, services and repairs nearly 2,500 machines across the nation.

WRG is located in Willoughby, Ohio, and has more than 40 employees on-site, including administrative personnel, engineers, service techs and an in-house sales staff. But WRG also works with a network of ISOs across the nation who deal primarily with retail locations. The majority of the company's sales go through its independent agents.

Stevenson said the idea to move into ATMs germinated in 1996, just as the federal government OK'd deregulation of the ATM industry.

"Jim Penza, who incorporated Western Reserve Group in 1989 as a vending company, had never used an ATM 'til he saw one at vending show," Stevenson said. "We were just on the cusp then, with deregulation allowing the collection of surcharge fees and off-premise placement. We started writing software and building machines, and then we started putting them at our locations. Since then, we've sold off all the vending business."

As a full-service ATM provider, WRG offers a complete ATM management solution to business owners across the U.S. and Canada. All of the pieces for the puzzle, including equipment, repair, processing and financing, are together under one roof, which simplifies ATM management for the merchant from start to finish. WRG team members first will analyze a merchant's needs and recommend the best machine - whether it's one of their own Fast CA$H or Vision 100s or a machine under a different brand name - to purchase or lease at low rates.

Stevenson said WRG's business philosophy to be a total solution is reflected in the company's product line. It stands behind that promise with quality equipment, competitive pricing and a high level of customer service.

The company's commitment to the customer is evident in both the hardware and software it offers, including its own ATMs and those manufactured by other companies. From software design to the machines and their maintenance, WRG engineers, techs and sales force are knowledgeable and experienced at working with every aspect of ATMs.

"Across the board, we have sold all manufacturers and can service or place any ATMs," Stevenson said. "Our management tools are very complete. For instance, we monitor our machines remotely so that when there is an error or low balance code, either the sales rep or our service tech will be paged."

WRG-manufactured ATMs, built in Ohio, offer a range of options for the businesses that lease or purchase them.

The Fast CA$H works with VeriFone's Omni 490 terminals and is designed to be a dependable, reliable, low-cost cash-dispensing machine. It does not feature a graphic screen component.

The Vision 100 has "all the bells and whistles," according to Stevenson, and utilizes Hypercom's ICE 6000 platform. "We wrote a program to turn it into a terminal," he said. "This allows us to build solutions in a component frame, enables ease of service and makes it very simple to swap components."

Software engineers listen to what customers want and take their feedback into consideration. Programs can be individually written based on the outcome of those discussions. WRG's CASS 2000 software has been designed to power most VeriFone-based equipment as both an ATM and as a processor; that eliminates glitches that resulted in large blocks of downtime in older programs. The TerMon program lets an ATM owner perform operations from an off-site PC that until now had to be done at the location.

The inspiration to write software came from necessity. Before WRG established its distributor network, all of the ATMs the company sold had to be individually serviced from Ohio. A merchant who had a question or problem with a PC-based ATM had to be guided through the maintenance process over the phone.

WRG also will help develop ways to make the ATMs money-making profit centers once they're in place. "With ATMs you have a two-by-three-foot space. Once you own that real estate, it's all about adding value," Stevenson said.

WRG works with its ATM customers on ways to increase revenue from the machines. Its ATMs feature screens that can display up to 20 different ads. Another add-on, available on all WRG machines, is rechargeable prepaid cell phone time; WRG provides back-end links to cell service providers.

And, when those machines need a tuneup, WRG's certified repair technicians specialize in quick turnaround time. Again, service contracts are written specifically so that each ATM owner can individualize a program that suits the needs of the business. "We will give them as much or as little service and support as they want," Stevenson says. Because the company relies heavily on ISO partners who are supported by the on-site support staff in Willoughby, Stevenson said WRG always is interested in signing outside reps. It is cautious, though, when it comes to working with people who will be representing WRG to retailers and other business owners.

"We are always looking for independent sales agents. But we absolutely check backgrounds," he said. "For instance, we belong to the Better Business Bureau, and we look for unfavorable postings there. We have severed relationships and turned people away."

WRG provides ISOs with access to information as well as a venue for sharing information. Stevenson even makes his e-mail address available to every agent, and he really does read each one before forwarding it to the right department for an answer.