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GLI: Gaming Labs International
GLI’s name has become synonymous with the approvals process in many jurisdictions across the world. Sharon Harris peeks under the covers to see what makes the company tick…
When James R. Maida and Paul J. Magno joined forces in 1989 to form Gaming Laboratories International (GLI), neither could have predicted the explosive expansion of gaming in the United States and internationally in close to two decades. Nor could they predict the giant role they would play in the daily operations of thousands of casinos and governmental lotteries.
Maida, president of GLI and a former test engineer in New Jersey’s Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE), was consulting in South Dakota and Montana for the prior two years, and attending law school at the same time. He has since earned law licenses in five jurisdictions – New Jersey, Colorado, Florida, Pennsylvania and Washington D.C.
Vice President of Operations, Magno was a laboratory administrator and computer database controller at the DGE. He currently uses that expertise to focus on the company’s North American operations and oversee the Lakewood, New Jersey world headquarters.
They both recognized a need for independent testing for those jurisdictions without their own labs, and determined that the niche market was ripe for them to launch their enterprise. From that time, GLI has steadily expanded its scope.
GLI began operations in a small 800 square-foot storefront office in Toms River, New Jersey. Over the years, the somewhat constricted facility was expanded to 20,000 square feet.
It became obvious that the company’s growth would require a larger complex. Relocating approximately 60 miles south of New York City, in 2002, they opened a newly constructed 50,000 square-foot facility in Lakewood.
THE CURRENT GLI OFFICE FAMILY
GLI now provides more than 125,000 certifications annually to more than 400 gaming regulatory bodies around the world. In September 2006, the firm opened its second 50,000 square foot building giving them 100,000 square feet of testing space in Lakewood alone. It connects to the first via an enclosed walkway. Maida and Magno realized its necessity long before their original projections for building a second facility. The complex is self-contained, housing its own power generators and a fully equipped gym for employees.
“We expected it to be five years before we needed a second facility, but we had already outgrown the first by 2004. Construction began in May 2004, and we had our grand opening last September,” says Maida.
In the past decade, GLI has grown around the world. There are now nine offices on five continents that offer services 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Representing the American and international offices, flags fly out front in Lakewood. Clocks on the lobby wall tell the time of the various branches. Maida says, “We realized that a worldwide network of testing facilities were necessary to keep pace with the demand on our services.”
In addition to the corporate headquarters, GLI also operates American offices in Las Vegas and Golden, Colorado. The company maintains one office each in the Netherlands, South Africa, Italy, Macau and two in Australia. Maida estimates that the total space among the several testing laboratories offices is more than 300,000 square feet, worldwide.
A March 2007 move doubled the workforce in Sydney. Also in March, GLI doubled its Netherlands office space, from 20,000 to 40,000 square feet, by moving to another location in Hillegom, the same town near Schiphol International Airport, close to Amsterdam where they launched their European presence nearly 10 years ago.
The Las Vegas office, currently at 45,000 square feet, will expand to 86,000 square feet in the summer 2008, with the completion of a new wing to the existing interoperability center. In addition to Lakewood, the Las Vegas service facility is the newest Interoperability Center. The room’s layout allows GLI to analyze one system from every vendor in the world. It also allows GLI to attach gaming devices to those systems and change the connectivity within minutes from one system to another.
Additionally, GLI can test remote devices to these same systems, using dedicated data lines to its other locations. It also handles much of the new technologies introduced into the US markets, including TITO, WiFi, mobile, handheld, bonusing and kiosks.
The systems line the Center’s perimeter; the machines are located within the room. Any machine can be plugged into any system for testing. Maida claims that they have the exclusive on that process. Previously, engineers limited their testing skills to specific vendors.
The Interoperability Center allows them to cross-train employees among multiple vendors and disciplines, progressing through levels of difficulty. This process takes an average of approximately two years. GLI is also able to test electronic bingo and Class II Indian gaming equipment. “We are the world’s largest bingo and Class II test facility,” Maida proudly states.
The international personnel numbers continue to rise, and have reached more than 400 employees. Maida states that the Human Resources Department recruits in global markets, hiring qualified staff from a wide variety of fields, including telecommunications, amusement and gaming. GLI is growing at a rate of adding approximately seven professionals each month.
Maida says, “We constantly recruit from all levels of engineering and math people. Quality control is key to our business. Some areas that have proven successful recruiting centers are colleges, like the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), Colorado School of the Mines and Rutgers, NJIT and other local New Jersey and Pennsylvania colleges and universities. We also attract employees from casinos and communications organizations. There is no college course called slot machine testing, so all that training is done here. To allow us to react to the markets, each office is autonomous with regard to recruiting, but then to keep consistent quality, the proposed hiring is given one final review by management.”
WHAT DO THEY DO?
The GLI operation is a complex, comprehensive program of constant testing, communication and updating information. With more than 77,000 approved programs currently in the company’s database, they are more capable of quickly testing, certifying and communicating about any product.
GLI offers a huge range of services in numerous areas. These include:
• Casino and Video Lottery gaming devices for both hardware and software
• Progressive games testing
• Display signage
• Bill and Coin Acceptor testing
• Video Lottery testing
• Video Lottery gaming protocol testing
• Bingo and Keno devices
• Amusement and Amusement with Prizes (AWP) machines
• Wagering and gaming
• In-laboratory testing of systems and systems modifications
• On-site startup certification of on-line systems
• After casino start-up audits
• Video Lottery systems testing
• Automated Drawing Machines (ADMS)
• Technical consulting
• GLI sets standards
• Expert testimony
• Annual rule and regulatory reviews
• New technology consultation
• Rules drafting consultation
• Field inspections and forensics
GLI is the only ISO-17025 accredited lab in North America, meeting the proper lab requirements. The firm also received ISO 17020 accreditation for meeting the proper field inspection requirements. These recognitions were awarded in 2006 by the A2LA, the largest multi-discipline accreditation body in the United States.
Maida says attention to detail is critical since they test products for more than 400 regulators around the world. The client list includes nations in Western and Eastern Europe, Panama, Peru, the Caribbean, South Africa and 46 of the 50 United States.
While GLI’s testing procedures are done on suppliers’ products and services, the firm is retained only by sovereign governmental agencies, such as federal, state, tribal and international bodies. In addition, law firms may hire them as consultants for expert testimony or opinions. However, GLI officers and employees do not work under contract for any manufacturers, distributors, designers or other consultants.
A separate department of experienced technical writers acts as a liaison between suppliers and regulators. They continuously update the testing scripts, noting the slightest daily changes in products and rules. To maintain consistency and keep track of the correspondence, certification letters for all US jurisdictions are generated from the New Jersey office.
The European, Australian and African offices all handle their own certifications, reflecting the gaming culture of the individual region. For example, Maida claims that the Amusement With Prizes (AWP) category is the fastest growing segment of GLI’s European business.
“It is important that each of our offices worldwide are managed by a local management team. Our European offices are European, our South African office is managed by a long time South African team and our Australian offices are managed by local talent,” Maida says.
GLI maintains a multilingual staff. Information is available in English and Spanish in the United States; Europe is more diverse, where Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Greek, French and English are the represented languages.
All files are digitally scanned and accessible by all offices. Updated approval and file data is pushed out to the company’s Internet and intranet site many times a day. “Everything is updated four times daily, so anyone can log in to see the latest information on approvals and the status of pending approvals,” says Maida.
He reveals they produce almost three million pages and 375,000 reports each year. The paperwork is stored in a giant warehouse space for a designated retention period; the digital then becomes the original.
Maida claims, “We work with more than 125 suppliers each year around the world. Their hardware and software changes may be major or just an alteration of their artwork. It all must be approved. Within our offices, we maintain ISO Staff and Compliance professionals that interface with each regulator, so when rules change, our engineers are also regularly updated. They are never faced with not knowing what the most current rules are in a jurisdiction. They are always aware of the exact criteria needed to pass, eliminating any subjectivity from the process.”
Maida says that GLI spends $2 million each year on maintaining, upgrading and improving the company’s technical infrastructure. Storing documents, software and hardware requires high levels of security and protection. Surveillance cameras scan the entire operation, both inside and outside the building. All employees wear identification badges that contain specific microchips that limit staff access to specific areas.
Thick steel vaults maintain a cool temperature for the storage of CDs, EPROMs, game media and flash cards. All machines are tagged with RFID security when they enter the facility. Antennas in the building help facilitate internal inventory audits.
TODAY’S MANAGEMENT OPERATION
Times and schedules have changed for Maida and Magno, but not their commitment to excellence. GLI’s goal is to increase efficiency and reduce turnaround time by doing more work in fewer hours. Maida reports that while the technology is faster and much more is possible than just three years ago, it is also more complex.
Instead of traveling the world, flying 300,000 miles each year, Maida has reduced his time on the road to a “mere” 125,000 miles annually. He claims he spends a few days a week visiting suppliers and regulatory groups. His role has become more strategic over the years for the US market, setting company policy and getting out of the office to understand what is happening, both at the regulatory agencies and within the supplier’s R&D department. GLI is growing through acquisitions and agreements, creating a more international organization.
Magno continues to oversee the North American daily operations, office by office. He also heads the human resources functions.
For smooth transitioning and continuity, GLI has developed a highly effective global Director Team of more than 16, all well known throughout the gaming industry. Each has the authority and autonomy to have real daily responsibility in their locations or within their job functions.
The group communicates constantly, but Maida believes it is “not about him as much as it is about the terrific management team” in place. “Our entire management team members wake up each morning and attempt to do their best to provide accurate, high quality test reports. At the same time, they provide great customer service to each and every regulator and supplier as if GLI were their private laboratory” Maida states.
He claims they know of 400 regulatory groups that GLI deals with directly. However, Maida also acknowledges that while not a good idea, they constantly hear where small developing jurisdictions just require GLI reports, even in places that are initially unknown to them. He says, “It is like having a Good Housekeeping seal of approval that vouches for products and allows these budding new jurisdictions to get started as quickly as possible.”
LOOKING AHEAD IN 2007
While GLI has grown into a global testing powerhouse, no one is willing to rest on past accolades. Maida, Magno and the entire team are committed to expanding and improving their facilities and services. GLI is the only GSA-certified SAS test lab. Maida estimates that their North American operation, which includes testing for most Canadian provinces and Mexico, is 10 to 15 times larger than all others combined. GLI also provides certification in South America.
One key alliance is the relationship between GLI and Native American Gaming Commissions and tribal councils. “We have a wonderful relationship with Indian tribes, their gaming commissions and state regulators appointed by Compacts, where this is the case. We began our business at the same time the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed. Presently, 85% to 90% exclusively accept GLI certification on their machines.
We even work within states where there is Class III Gaming, Class II gaming, a state lottery and a state gaming commission. We perform services across all lines in the gaming industry, and view it all as commercial business, including the bingo and pari-mutuel system testing business. Our scope includes gaming boards, lotteries, charitable gaming commissions and horse racing commissions, as well as tribal commissions,” Maida says.
GLI is the largest lab operation in Europe, and works with all the jurisdictions that require testing. Some, such as Norway, exclusively use GLI results. By traveling the world to review technology as it emerges, GLI can remain in the forefront of both the gaming and the information technology (IT) sectors. GLI has technical engineering personnel now based in Asia so that it can monitor new technology advancements from that part of the globe.
In a world where technology and gaming meet and are constantly evolving, GLI has committed itself to pioneering the most sophisticated, accurate and competent testing systems. The GLI team will continue to strive for the highest possible quality to ensure the integrity of the industry to the public.
