Customer: Latin American Financial
Location: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Customer Buisness Issue: Standby power
Solution: One Cat 20 kW D20-6S diesel generator set
Cat 200 amps automatic transfer switch
Cat Dealer: RIMCO
Powerful, reliable standby power safeguards data at bank
Power Need
Located in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Latin American Financial provides banking solutions for those living on the northern part of the island. San Juan is one of the most populated municipalities in all of Puerto Rico, and the bank is responsible for handling data for more than 300,000 customers.
Latin American Financial relies on the local power authority to supply electricity for their facility, but providing a steady flow of power can be difficult at times since there is no neighboring supply of energy to tap into during an emergency.
San Juan’s tropical climate also factors into an intermittent power flow. This region often experiences heavy winds, torrential rains and hurricanes that can disrupt the power grid and leave thousands of homes and business without electricity. The resulting outages from severe weather and other consequential power grid issues can last anywhere from ten hours to several days at a time.
Time is money at a bank that provides financial services to hundreds of thousands of people and, according to President Miguel Hernandez, Latin American Financial cannot afford to be left for days at a time without electricity to power the company’s computers and ATMs.
“We lose hundreds, if not thousands of dollars each moment our bank is without power. When this happens, we are forced to suspend bank transactions and customer data cannot be saved, which doubles our work and frustrates our customers,” Hernandez said.
“We are a small bank with only ten computers and seven staff members, but we handle an overwhelming influx of sensitive financial information daily. We strive for the best possible service we can provide to our customers. Just because we’re small does not mean we don’t want what is best for those who matter most. So when we experience an outage of any length of time, it has a major impact on our business.”
Solution
Since it is imperative for the business’s bottom line to have a constant flow of electricity, Miguel Hernandez knew he needed a powerful source of standby power to rely on in times of uncertainty.
Without a second thought, Hernandez turned to Cat® dealer RIMCO. “Caterpillar has the best name throughout Puerto Rico,” explained Hernandez. “I didn’t want to take a chance going with another brand. A competitor’s pricing may be lower, but their reputation and service quality can’t even come close to what RIMCO offers with Cat products.”
Since 1981, RIMCO has been providing power generation solutions and heavy machinery to Puerto Rico, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. RIMCO offers unwavering sales, parts, maintenance and customer service support that is trusted throughout Puerto Rico above all others.
Anthony Escalet, sales consultant for RIMCO, worked with Miguel Hernandez to develop a system that would fit the bank’s needs of securing vital financial data for Latin American Financial’s large customer base.
An automatic transfer switch (ATS), rated at 200 amps, was installed to continually monitor the available current from the main power source. Once the current drops, the ATS switches power to the standby set until primary power is available again. A Cat 20 kW D20-6S diesel generator set was chosen to supply standby power once the main power source has failed. This reliable system gives Hernandez peace of mind knowing that he no longer has to worry about power outages.
“I work hard to afford my customers the best option in terms of keeping their banking details safe and protected; they have to trust me and the assistance that Latin American Financial offers,” said Hernandez. “Part of our solutions is the power security Caterpillar and RIMCO have provided us. As my customers trust me, I trust the systems that Caterpillar and RIMCO have put in place to secure my customer’s information, despite what may be happening on the rest of the island.”
Result
Since the installation of the generator set and ATS, Latin American Financial has experienced little to no downtime at all. The units immediately power on if service from the local power authority is interrupted. Overall, the new system has helped the company process nearly $1 million in daily transactions – a savings that not only helps the bank, but their customers and RIMCO as well.
“Seeing our customers improve their bottom lines because of a newly installed generator set brings us great satisfaction knowing that we have helped them through that process. We always have and always will be there to support Miguel and his team no matter what issue may arise,” said Escalet.
RIMCO and Latin American Financial have been working together to service the system put in place ever since its installation. While the unit is still under warranty, full customer support from both the sales and service team is always available at any time of the day.
“The level of satisfaction and reassurance RIMCO provides is hard to come by when we work with other companies. It’s a great feeling knowing that I will always be taken care of at RIMCO. Our customers now know that we will always be open, with the lights on, ready for business,” concluded Hernandez.