With British retailers losing billions to crime, ASDA became the first UK supermarket chain to invest in a Source Protection security solution in a bid to combat annual losses from theft. ADT teamed up with ASDA to introduce Source Protection, where adhesive security labels are applied before goods leave the manufacturing base. The small, durable, security labels are designed to work in conjunction with Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) systems, such as security exit pedestals, so when a tagged item is taken through without having been deactivated, an alarm will sound. Because the labels are affixed to packaging at the point of manufacture, the customers and the retailer's employees do not know where, or whether, a security label is attached to a product. As part of the new security provision, ASDA has rolled out a new deactivation system to all of its 258 stores, nationwide. This significant investment ensures that the deactivation equipment discreetly fulfils the stores' checkout needs, so when goods are swiped for purchase, in one seamless approach, the alarming label is also automatically deactivated. Source Protection technology is a breakthrough for the grocery retail industry, as it will fully protect high value goods, such as perfumes, electrical items, health and beauty items and alcohol, while enabling them to be openly merchandised for customers to handle. The impact that Source Protection can have on reducing stock shrinkage is dramatic. Installing EAS in a previously unsecured environment can reduce shrink by up to 50%. When coupling EAS with Source Protection, the potential exists to reduce shrinkage by a further 20 - 30 percent. Kate Defraja, loss prevention manager at ASDA, concludes: "Source Protection's advantages go beyond shrinkage reduction -- they include improved customer service, better product availability, lower retail process and increased sales." We chose ADT as a supplier of our Source Protection solution because of its worldwide experience and success to date in the US. The company was also able to integrate this additional security solution with our current security provision. Statistics show that source tagging will reduce our losses. Our aim is to ensure that our customers benefit from everyday lower prices as a result of our savings".
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