An ATM maintenance provider is only as reliable as its ability to quickly find and install replacement parts.

But for many third-party maintenance providers, getting a part when it is needed can be a challenge. The complex parts-numbering system created by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) can make it difficult for a third-party provider that is not approved by an OEM to track down a part.

Availability is not the only factor in locating a part; one part may have been sent into the market with several different numbers, depending on the supplier that provided the part to the OEM and the number of changes that have been made to it.

"Daily experience has taught us that maintenance companies around the world were having difficulty positively identifying parts needed to make field repairs of ATMs," said Jerry Brown, a marketing executive with Springboro, Ohio-based ATM Components & Technology. "We have accumulated service data for almost 15 years that reflected the OEM number changes made among parts as they showed up in various machines, and were able to use this information to assist field technicians in diagnostic analysis as well as repair."

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The addition of the parts database to ACT's Web site eventually led to what officials believe is a first-of-its-kind online catalog to sell ATM parts to third-party providers. The catalog has been available at www.atmcomponents.com for about a year.

"The next logical step (was) to create a catalog that used our database to expedite the determination of parts and their ordering," Brown said.

Users searching the catalog "have two avenues by which to access information," he said. "One was a search form which, though very detailed, would operate in much the same fashion as more familiar search forms. The other way would be based on an assembly tree, and allows visitors to drill down through the various categories of ATM components."

The end result, Brown said, is that maintenance providers can quickly find the parts they need. That ability to locate parts enables third-party providers to better compete with OEM-provided service and therefore makes them a more viable servicing option for FIs and other ATM deployers.

Mike Connell, owner of Tampa, Fla.-based maintenance provider Source & Solution said the online catalog has enabled his company to better serve its customers.

He points out that the catalog improves the time it takes to replace a part and decreases the amount of ATM downtime for the FI.

"For us, it was a time situation," he said. "We do a lot of international business and time is of the essence. By ordering the parts online, we have an almost immediate response, and that is really important to us."

Connell said having quick access to part numbers has helped enhance his company's reputation.

"We believe in providing quality service and we believe in doing the best we can for our customers," Connell said. "Reliability is very critical to us in this business and we are interested in anything that will make us even more reliable."