Vanguard ID Systems Receives Prestigious Judges’ Choice Award from ICMA Elan Awards

Vanguard ID Systems recently took home a prestigious ICMA Élan Award in the Judges’ Choice category for its design of an RFID key tag for The Woods Coffee. The Judges’ Choice is unique in that allows the Élan judges to recognize their favorite entry from among all the submissions received in every category.

The award-winning Woods Coffee’s SpeedBean.com KeyTag-Card is a Teslin® card with an RFID inlay. After the RFID component of the tag has been activated at the register, the key tag is popped out of the matrix and attached to a patron’s key ring for quick and easy usage. Woods Coffee wanted a transaction device that would quickly identify customers, function as a customer loyalty card, and serve as a gift and prepaid card. The RFID embedded key tag designed by Vanguard meets all of those objectives, and features a unique graphic design so that it stands out on the retail display and on the patron’s keychain.

System Integrator, Accelitec, installed the RFID-enabled point-of-sale (POS) infrastructure that powers the Speedbean.com system.  Accelitec enlisted Vanguard to create the essential RFID key tag that would integrate with Woods Coffee’s POS system and perform the required functions, such as providing a means to transact contactless prepaid transactions and administer their customer loyalty program.

“We are delighted to share with Vanguard the recognition by Élan in the judge’s design category. We are continually impressed by Vanguard’s strong commitment to customer satisfaction, and think this commitment is reflected by the time and attention that went in to the award-winning design. Perhaps most importantly, our customer shares this view,” said Peter Gruman, Executive Vice President of Corporate Development for Accelitec.

Vanguard has been a frequent winner at the annual award ceremony, previously having multiple entries recognized in the Technical Achievement category. The 2008 ICMA Élan Awards ceremony was held at the recent International Card Manufacturers Association’s Card Manufacturing Expo in Orlando, Florida.

“We are extremely pleased to be recognized for excellence by the premier awarding body in our industry,” said Rick Warther, President and CEO of Vanguard, “And it is a particular honor to receive the Judges’ Choice Award. To be singled out from among the 120 entries is a tremendous honor, and a validation of our hard work and commitment to quality.”

About Vanguard ID Systems:
Since its founding in 1987, Vanguard ID Systems has pioneered the Auto ID card manufacturing industry, and after twenty years remains its leading innovator. Headquartered in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Vanguard ID Systems serves an extensive national and international customer base in a variety of vertical markets. To date, Vanguard has produced and shipped more than 1 billion of the industry’s best-performing bar coded key tags to more than 38 countries.

Vanguard partners with customers to identify additional marketing opportunities and create customized solutions, providing award-winning, best-in-class bar coded, magnetic stripe and RFID cards and key tags. The Vanguard product line is backed with superior customer service, value-driven pricing and unparalleled data integrity. It is the only company in the industry that offers a five-year guarantee on its bar coded key tags. The company’s commitment to quality starts with Vanguard’s innovative product engineering process and continues on through manufacturing, customer service, end-user product experience, and the employee work environment. For more information, visit Vanguard’s Website at: www.vanguardid.com.

About Élan Awards:

In the global arena of world-class cards, the ICMA Élan Awards for Card Manufacturing Excellence are the pinnacle of design innovation and technical achievement. Past recipients have included leading manufacturers from around the globe. Winners of this prestigious competition tap the power of industry recognition and promotional opportunity.