AstroSystems Ltd makes a welcome return to both ICE Totally Gaming (22-24 January 2013), and EAG 2013 (5-7 February) both held at the Excel Centre in London. Despite a challenging time for the industry, the Oxfordshire based company looks forward to New Year, the development of new products and to increased success.

Specialising in quality cash handling products at cost effective prices, Astrosystems’ knowledgeable staff are looking forward to renewing old acquaintances and meeting new customers at EAG stand 550 and ICE stand S10-145.

The sun shone and Electrocoin opened their Park Avenue doors to the trade for beer, barbecue and a chance to catch up with friends and contacts in the industry, and maybe secure a couple of orders along the way. Some of the companies in attendance shared their thoughts on the day with Euroslot.

13-16 March, Rimini, Italy

Crane Payment Solutions

Crane Payment Solutions will use this spring’s Enada to showcase its complete product range and commitment to the Italian market. The stand will feature CashCode, Money Controls and NRI products and, for the first time in Italy, will also feature a product branded Crane Payment Solutions – the V2 Colibri coin validator.

Spielo International is showing no less than 22 compelling new VLT game titles to suit every player’s taste. Based on careful research of Italian player preferences, games like Neptune’s Bonus Adventure, Freekick Deluxe, Swingin’ Bells and Crank’s Bash demonstrate the breadth and depth of the firm’s entertaining VLT game content.

Merkur Gaming is showing in Rimini a brand-new product that aims high.

Merkur Galaxy is the ultimate multi-game line including a series of games packages: in Rimini the firm will launch Galaxy 1 and Galaxy 2, consisting of three games each.

Offering new graphics, new themes and the opportunity to change game while playing, without payout, Merkur Galaxy is am innovative game pack, offering a wide game library that won’t disappoint players’ expectations.

Date: 13-16 March.

Location: Rimini Fiera.

Airports: Rimini, Bologna, Florence.

Edition: 24th.

Admittance: Trade members only, payment at entrance.

The team from the highly specialised technical service company E-Service, which provides UK gaming, amusement and vending operators with efficient and cost-effective spare parts, electronic repairs and support, will take to their stand at EAG to highlight their new completely user-friendly Website and other new areas of their successful business. The company once again increased in size throughout 2011 and now employs more than 40 staff.

Interactive family attractions specialist Innovative Leisure, based in Leicester, will be displaying a fully operational DigiWall attraction at EAG while also promoting its complete range of interactive family attractions.

Included among these are climbing walls and towers; DigiWall, a computer-controlled climbing wall attraction;The Rock, a motorised climbing simulator; the Water Wars water balloon game, available with the optional Depth Charge feature; a recently introduced range of major High Ropes courses; and a brand new Mobile Zip Wire.

Electrodiver was founded in November of 1984 by Fernando Santos and his wife Maria do Céu Santos. The firm is a leader in the manufacture of kiddie rides in the Portuguese and international market.

Besides the manufacturing of kiddie rides, it also makes large statues in fibreglass.

In 2009 it was given an award in Spain as the best foreign company in the sector.

3DMe UK has made 3D printing easy, practical, and affordable simply using a standard printer, inkjet or dye-sublimation. There is no need for special glasses, viewers or display units to view the captured 3D image.

All that is required is the latest pioneering dual-lens 3D camera offering in the market today. Once the photo is taken, it is processed, printed, and framed in a couple of minutes on the spot using 3DMe’s proprietary software which allows for changes in 3D geometry of given stereoscopic data.

Innovative Technology, exhibiting at both EAG and the concurrent ICE event, will unveil an exciting new programme – Smart Data.

Real Puncher is back! EAG 2012 sees the official launch of Real Puncher 2. The famous interactive punching game returns with many added features as well as stage play, starting with Bank Robber, and continuing through Trailer, Dinosaur, Kraken and ultimately Meteor.

The game has a single-play option, as well as two-, three- or four-player Battle Mode. Operators have a ticket payout option and can adjust difficulty settings.

JNC will be showing Kiddie Sub, an enclosed ride with fully interactive video screen, and full motion up/down and forward/backward. Control the sub with the control panel; use the attack button on the panel to shoot targets above and below the sea, increasing your score each time you hit a target.

Suzo-Happ will have on show a range of amusement and gaming products with many new items, including two brand-new products that will not be unveiled until EAG.

On the stand you will find high-quality change machines, ticketing, and cash handling and recycling products from SHG, Gewete and Futurelogic, as well as coin and note handling product from Innovative Technology and Crane Payment Solutions.

Sound Leisure and Soundnet are anticipating a fantastic EAG show this month, with a range of products and services designed to suit every budget and location.

ToyVend is the UK’s longest-established supplier of quality sweet and novelty vending machines. It is the UK distributor for Beaver vending machines, known throughout the world for their build quality.

As the official UK distributor for Bandai and Cool Things, ToyVend can offer licensed vending novelties which include items such as Ben 10, Carebears, Clone Wars, Hello Kitty, Hot Wheels Power Rangers, Smurfs, The Flintstones and many more.

Quanmax’s Funworld division will use EAG to highlight Photo Play Q1, a compilation of 16 challenging games including eight multiplayer choices and an innovative menu design.

Photo Play Q1 offers an attractive mix of three fun games, four card games and nine skill games which motivate players to top performance: Boogie Find, Find It (with 350 new images), Elements Square, Kniffler MP, Mau-Mau, Newton 2, Paper Trash, Penguin Attack, Persian Diamonds, Pile-Up, Rommé for 2, Rush Hour, Slotcar Race, Strategy, Stronghold and Terra Cotta.

PW Sales was formed in January 2011 by former QPS/Mazooma Games man Paul Wilson. The plan was originally for the company to concentrate on the supply of rebuilds, conversion kits, club machines and used equipment to single-site operators, something it has done successfully during 2011 and will continue in 2012.

The ultimate in crane technology, TheWon, has a proven track record as a fully automatic, self-adjusting crane processor. TheWon fits easily to any existing crane and is as easy to set up as it is in operation. Guaranteed to make your cranes more profitable, TheWon drastically reduces the man hours required to maintain cranes.

Since debuting its first Dr. Face unit in 1997, Digital Centre has gone on to create such international photo booth hits as Dr. Fashion, Crazy Doctor, Pix-Mix Factory, Photo-ID, Ping-Pong Kombat, Baby Boom, Instant Photo Souvenir, New Generation Blue and Black.

This year, making the most of its 15th anniversary, the company is introducing five new and versatile products.

The Strip features four impressive screens simulating a giant strip. It employs touch technology and a high-definition camera for video and voice recordings, as well as having Internet capabilities to send the images to email accounts or social networks. “The size and design are great for any location,” said Tarres. “It can fit into any fashionable store, even a small jewellery shop or similar specialty store.”

For the first time ever at ICE, all core Crane Payment Solutions products will be showcased on one stand. At last year’s ICE, following Crane’s acquisition of Money Controls in December 2010, Money Controls products were still featured on a separate stand.

Among the products on display will be the Money Controls Ardac Elite and CashCode one-bill validators.

The only German-owned producer of electronic selector equipment for the international market, WH Münzprüfer Berlin will showcase its innovative products at IMA in Düsseldorf and ICE in London.

The well-known EMP 900 series with six-way sorting will be shown in a new version with 32-bit microprocessor technology for the highest quality of coin acceptance and optimum counterfeit rejection.

E-Screen is a European distributor for touchscreen components and displays, including the latest in multitouch and large-format touchscreens from 3M, NEC and Mitsubishi.

ICE will see the launch and demonstration of products such as customised winning-number displays, the E-Poster, large-format displays and touchscreens, touchscreen kiosks, and software to allow real-time and customised communication with gaming customers.

Sales director Colin Veitch is eagerly anticipating ICE. “We have a great range of really noteworthy products this year, which we believe will undoubtedly make a major impact in European VLT and gaming in 2012. There is already huge interest in our European launch of the Epicentral couponing software system, and we can add to this the new 3M multitouch solution, our market-leading range of Epic printers, the new iVizion bill acceptor from JCM, and the advanced wide angle HD TFTs from Kortek.”

Premiering at ICE is IGT Cloud, a casino management service solution that empowers operators to optimise their operations and engage players. The cloud computing service will supply IGT Analytics for robust reporting, and IGT Floor Manager to manage game content and allow access to the largest game library in the industry.

Among the products on show from Suzo-Happ will be the Celebration Topper, which interfaces into the SAS Jackpot line of the slot machine.

When the selected level of a jackpot is achieved the topper triggers a Celebration Event. This includes customisable video messages on the 15.6-inch LCD display, light pipe LEDs rising out of the top of the topper, flashing LEDs on the sides of the LCD, confetti, and loud audio.

AstroSystems will be at both London shows. Explained sales manager Steve Priest: “By adopting and maintaining a strategy to exhibit at these concurrent shows, we have demonstrated our support and commitment for both amusement and gaming markets. The upshot has been a significant increase in sales into the UK amusement market, especially with the Microcoin SP and QL coin acceptors, and an equally rewarding result with our gaming customers.

Kiddie ride and amusement machine manufacturer Falgas Industries will exhibit at EAG for the first time in January.

Falgas Industries Group was started some 50 years ago by Joaquin Falgas and has expanded to become a truly global business, winning several innovation awards and exporting to more than 110 countries worldwide.

Visitors to ICE Totally Gaming will be part of the biggest ever online and offline gaming exhibition, according to show organisers Clarion Events.  A total of 22,466 square metres of stand space has been contracted to gaming exhibitors, a record high for an edition of ICE.

Soundnet is the exclusive music content provider to leading jukebox manufacturer Sound Leisure and music programmer for 15,000 public venues.

Its expertise in music also extends to video and encompasses site profiling, the sourcing of content, distribution in encrypted form and the handling of legal and compliance issues.

Diversified technology company 3M promises to demonstrate one of the industry’s most innovative, widest-ranging multitouch product portfolios at ICE.

New product prototypes based on 3M projected capacitive technology (3M PCT) will be showcased for the first time in Europe by 3M’s Touch Systems division. These include sophisticated multitouch desktop display models specifically designed for high-fidelity touch LCD displays in sizes ranging up to 32 inches.

E-Service is a company focused on supporting operators and equipment owners in ensuring that they continue to secure a return on their investment. Founded by managing director Mike Clokie eight years ago, it supports UK and European operators with replacement parts, repairs and consumables, and has Approved Service Contractor status with some of the industry’s most trusted brands, including Azkoyen, 3M, Wells Gardner, Kortek, Tovis and JCM.

ICE Totally Gaming claims to be the only exhibition in the world which brings together the online and offline gaming worlds.

For the low-stake street gaming business, ICE provides an unusual global perspective that can’t always be found at the more territory-specific events.

2012 will see the return of the popular Racing Post Cafe at ICE, showcasing a wide range of products for both businesses and punters.

Racing Post Business-to-Business Services provides content for the betting industry, incorporating expert data into individual displays and publications for Websites, newspapers and localised race cards.

Historically the German AWP market has had limited choice, says Apex Germany, but it plans to change this with a major presence at the forthcoming IMA. Across a 500-square-metre stand, it will present a range of new choices for operators in Germany.The Pinnacle upright AWP with two 22-inch monitors has been approved by the German testing board PTB.

The Gaming Standards Association (GSA) says “it is important for us to exhibit in London because it is important that the European marketplace understand that they are just as affected by and have as much potential profit from standards as every other gaming marketplace.

The British social gaming company and ICE exhibitor Enteraction is partnering with Praesepe to launch Beacon Bingo Social on Facebook in early 2012. This game represents Praesepe’s first foray into the booming social gaming market, typified by games like CityVille and Slotomania, and bolsters the work the company is already doing in social media.

With the release of its XGS System this year, BetStone is now able to deliver cloud-based gaming management systems and a library of over 140 games without requiring expensive local installations of servers. In addition, BetStone’s portfolio of land-based games can be expanded to online and mobile through its channel partners.

A wide range of Advantech industrial PC products will be on display at ICE

Advantech-Innocore is a full member of the Advantech corporation, now the world’s largest company in industrial automation devices and computing. For customers of Advantech-Innocore, this means they now have access to the widest range of industrial and semi-industrial PC components:

Since its formation in 2001 ITM Leisure has grown at a consistently healthy rate. The company is a high-end supplier of licensed plush, redemption products and crane graphics to the coin-op and amusement industries.

Much of ITM Leisure’s product development and testing is carried out in a live arcade environment.

For for the first time in nearly ten years Thomas will be on its own stand at EAG 2012.

Said sales manager Ian Fuller: “We will be launching an entirely new range for 2012 – the Thomas 8000 series – plus will show the 5001 and 5002 high-capacity change machines and will unveil a brand-new version of the extremely popular 3004.”

Inspired Gaming Group will focus on three key themes for ICE: server-based gaming, marketing and rewards, and platform convergence.

It will unveil Core VIP, a new bonus and reward system, at ICE for the first time. It is the latest platform innovation to come from the company, and the first and only system to allow in-game rewards for all games, even third-party titles.

Apex Gaming will be releasing a new Multi Magic games package of 20 games. This adds to the existing games packages Multi Magic I, Multi Magic II, Multi Magic III, Magic Fruits, Hot Magic Fruits, Hot Magic Fruits XXL and Multi Magic Classic, and brings Apex’s game library to 110 titles.

Apex will also use ICE to release its new 3D platform, Evolution. The first games package contains five titles: The Adventures of Captain Nemo, Legend of the Sphinx II, Wonderland, Ocean Tale 2, and Royal Fruits.