Ricor Forges Strong Bond with Tensor for Time & Attendance

Ricor Limited is a well established manufacturer of metal pressings & welded assemblies with over 40 years experience within the industry. The company supplies components to a wide range of sectors including automotive, power generation, retail and developing green industry technologies.

Ricor has its own UK manufacturing facility, set in a 17 acre site with a 14,000 sq.m production base and roughly 380 members of staff on the premises, and is closely situated to the manufacturing heartland of the UK, in Warwickshire.

A few years ago, Ricor Limited started looking for a system designed to supply the company's management with a more advanced range of personnel supervision and admin tools, while also enabling faster and more reliable data collection.

After analysing the pros and cons of several competing systems during the tender process, Ricor opted for a comprehensive Tensor solution, the main reason behind the decision being the system's "ease of use", as Mr. Mike McAuliffe, Finance Controller for Ricor Limited, recalls.

The Tensor system comprises four T8440 clocking units installed across the premises and inter-connected using dedicated Ethernet units. The clocking units make very good use of Smart Card technology, capable of reading through non-metallic items, enabling the card to be used while inside a wallet or purse without harming credit cards.

As there is no physical contact between the card and reader, neither will become worn-out by continuous use or are affected by dust or residue from the working environment — unlike swipe readers. The cards' passive electronics mean that they do not require batteries and have a theoretical infinite life. The cards have a durable, wipe clean plastic shell.

Additional features include a Klaxon Mono siren installed on the factory floor, as well as a hooter controller, connected to the clocking unit installed in the factory area.

Ricor Limited also makes very good use of the WinTA Enterprise software for supervising the employees' activities, since the suite supports a variety of features managers will really appreciate, such as absenteeism & lateness reporting and Access Control with graphic maps and email alerts for all types of door, barriers, turnstiles & gates.

The whole installation process was quite smooth, Mr. McAuliffe revealing that "no problems whatsoever were encountered during either the installation phase or while upgrading the system at later dates".

Following the Tensor system's installation at Ricor Limited, several of the company's staff members received extensive training on how to use it. The training process was carried out within Tensor's dedicated facility at Hail Weston and it was described as "very good" by the attendants.

When asked by the Tensor reporter whether the system is being employed at its full potential, the Ricor Finance Controller answered that they're actually using it "as much as needed". He also added that the system's best feature is quite likely its "ease of use", which also applies to the smart cards and key fobs used for logging attendance and accessing the site.

Since Ricor Limited has been using a Tensor Time and Attendance system for so long, some functionality issues did appear over the years. As the customer's representative revealed, Ricor got in touch with the Tensor help desk analysts a few times, and the service was "always very good".

While some of the issues were simple enough to be solved remotely or over the phone, others required site visits by the Tensor Operations Department engineers. The quality of their service was considered "very good" on each occasion.

Finally, when asked by the reporter whether he would recommend Tensor to other companies, the Ricor Limited representative replied with a definite "Yes", the main reason supporting his decision being the system's "ease of use".

Customer Information

Ricor Limited,

Arrow Works,

Birmingham Road, Studley,

Warwickshire,

B80 7AS

Phone: +44(0)1527 857757

Web: https://www.ricor.co.uk/