ML Riechers Systems Engineering


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  • MLRSE Announces Plans to sell its People Counter Division

    PRESS RELEASE
    Date Released: Monday, 5 January, 2009

    M L Riechers Systems Engineering today announced that its owner has approved a formal plan to sell the Company's People Counter Division, based in Hamilton, Ohio. Interested parties should contact Michael L. Riechers. Contact information appears below.

    Included in the sale are all plans, files, documentation and intellectual property necessary to fabricate and sell the People Counter, along with product development for the next generation of People Counter. Also included is tooling and inventory, partially to mostly sufficient to make 200 People Counters.

    History and Description

    Commencing in early 2006, MLRSE designed and manufactured a line of specialized, micro-processor controlled People Counter boxes. The People Counter hooks up to off-the-shelf or custom Photo-eye sensors which are usually placed at a shop's door entrances and exits. The resulting system is intended for permanent installation in business establishments, parks, museums, and the like to count pedestrian traffic. It's usually employed to track customer patterns in commercial shops, but it has found niche applications in public service organizations.

    The People Counter has the capability of counting traffic through four doors, simultaneously, and summing these counts for Computer or Cash Register retrieval. Retrieval is usually by a serial link, but the box can be fitted with an RS-485 Industrial link or Ethernet port for local LAN support, while add-ons exist for USB support. Remote data pick-up is also possible, while touch-sensitive buttons and a count display for local operator control are standard &mdash a computer hook-up is not required. The People Counter is also Green energy-wise &mdash the automatic display dimming cuts its already very low energy consumption by half or more.

    Doors guarded by single beam Photo-eye sensors are the norm. However, support exists for Overhead Door sensors containing up to 64 sensors, so that simultaneous traffic through very wide doors can be counted.

    Dwindling Sales

    Michael L. Riechers, owner and president of MLRSE, commented, "Designing and making the People Counter has been a real blast, and has produced side benefits to our Printing Press Registration and Control products. Working with Rilco Technologies has been very pleasant. Furthermore, the People Counter has also been the most reliable and effective product we've ever produced. As of today, out of the last 400 we've produced, we've not yet had one returned as defective."

    "We entered into an agreement for exclusive sales to Rilco Technologies, which seemed a good arrangement for all parties. However, sales figures have never approached our expectation of moving at least 165 units per month, and are now moribund."

    Asked if MLRSE would sell People Counters to the public at large, Riechers responded: "Well, I've learned to never say never, but it'd have to be a heck of a deal. We're basically a wholesaler. For example, we make our unit of sale 33 &mdash because 33 People Counters fit in a shipping case. We're not set up to support installation and trouble-shooting, and our pricing structure is too low to support that kind of thing. Better you should go to Rilco for that."

    Asked if, after the sale of the division, MLRSE would be willing to do product and program improvements on a contract basis, Riechers responded: "Oh, sure, time and space permitting. That's what we're here for."

    "But the plain fact of the matter is that, while it's a great product, the People Counter no longer fits into our business plan. Supporting sales of the People Counter as a stand-alone product is a distraction. It requires resources we don't have, and detracts from our main focus on Printing Press Registration and Control systems. I'd rather that the People Counter find a great home, so that we can continue to develop and enhance great Electronic Controls for Printing Presses.

    M L Riechers Systems Engineering has served the Embedded Computer Market since 1987, providing custom software and hardware for Industrial Control.

    Contact Information

    Please send inquiries about MLRSE to
    M. L. Riechers Systems Engineering     Voice:  +1-513-844-2220
    530 Main Street                        Fax:    +1-513-844-2279
    Hamilton, Ohio 45013-3222, USA         mlr(at)rse(dot)com
    


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