Gas Station Chain meets EMV compliance deadline using NVT Phybridge PoLRE Switch

The largest gas station chain in the United States of America needed to upgrade its fuel pump’s POS terminals to meet EMV compliance standards. This is no ordinary gas station chain, as they have the largest convenience store (over 66,000 square feet) and the longest car wash (255 feet long) in the world.

EMV Compliance

EMV Compliance is a step towards combating fraudulent activity at fuel pumps by increasing payment security using a more secure chip-and-pin payment system. 

As fuel stations become one of the most targeted establishments for payment fraud, merchants using older OPT (Outside Payment Terminal) systems that read the credit card’s magnetic stripe will bear the financial burden of any fraudulent activity. To become PCI/EMV compliant and avoid this risk, fuel stations must upgrade outdoor POS terminals to chip-and-pin readers.

Upgrading payment terminals 

With the EMV Compliance deadline quickly approaching, the organisation had no idea how to upgrade, considering more than 4,500 outside payment terminals needed modernising. Additionally, the company was already replacing its fuel pumps and wanted to upgrade the POS terminals as part of the digital transformation project.

However, project partners discovered several challenges while planning the upgrade. The organisation wanted a wired solution for cybersecurity reasons but did not want to rip-and-replace the existing cabling that ran beneath the station’s fuel pump area.

Any cable replacement would result in tremendous business disruption, cost, and revenue loss as each fuel station would need to be closed for multiple months for construction work. Project partners required an innovative and reliable solution to overcome the project’s barriers.

NVT Ethernet over Coax switches 

Ron Little, the integrator from Coastal Integrated Services, had used NVT Phybridge Ethernet over Coax switches to deploy IP cameras for the same gas station chain. 

Given the customer’s digital transformation challenges, Ron Little suggested using PoLRE technology to modernise the fuel pump’s POS terminals. Ron Little organised a free, no-obligation proof-of-concept to test the technology on-site.

PoLRE technology – Single pair Ethernet

PoLRE switches deliver fast Ethernet and PoE over single-pair UTP cable with up to 1,200ft reach

NVT Phybridge PoLRE managed switches deliver fast Ethernet and PoE over single-pair UTP cable with up to 1,200ft (365m) reach, four times the reach of standard Ethernet switches.

After a few simple setup steps, the PoLRE switch transformed the existing single-pair UTP infrastructure into a robust Power over Ethernet backbone with more than enough bandwidth to support the POS terminals. 

“There was a lot of pressure built up with all the previous failures,” said Ron Little. “Then suddenly, the NVT Phybridge PoLRE switch solved our issues, and a massive weight was lifted off our shoulders. It was a great relief.”

Beta testing of alternative solutions

The customer continued to perform extensive beta testing on several other products but found PoLRE to be the best solution. “The alternative solutions would constantly have link-down events, poor performance, and several connectivity challenges,” said Jeannie Newman, NVT Phybridge. 

“Once we locked down the configuration details with the PoLRE switch, the customer experienced zero connectivity issues or link-down events.”

Eliminating cable issues 

The solution was easily replicated due to the PoLRE switch’s repeatable, predictable, and scalable methodology

The NVT Phybridge PoLRE switch helped the customer eliminate cabling issues in an already complex project, avoiding the headache of ripping and replacing the existing network cabling. 

Ron Little and his team were able to upgrade an entire location in just two days (each site has about 100 fuel pumps). The solution was easily replicated across every location due to the PoLRE switch’s repeatable, predictable, and scalable deployment methodology. 

Robust and reliable backbone 

Additionally, PoLRE’s extended reach capabilities provided flexibility and peace of mind, given each fuel station’s immense size. The integrator leveraged NVT Phybridge PoE innovations to help the customer achieve incredible results.

• Significantly reduced the cost, disruption, and time required to complete the digital transformation project.
• Upgraded 15 locations in just one month, with all 39 sites completed within 90 days.
• Reduced infrastructure costs by an estimated USD 1.6 million.
• Prevented over 15-tons of cabling e-waste.

Coastal Integrated Services took a proactive approach to find a better way to achieve the customer’s digital transformation objectives in a financially and socially responsible manner. The customer now has a physically separate, robust, and reliable network backbone for its EMV-compliant POS terminals, due to the NVT Phybridge PoLRE switch.