Testing and certification ensures a high level of integrity and fairness in the gaming industry

FOR Weike Gaming Technology, testing and certification are important parts of the business as they allow the company to compete in the highly-regulated casino industry.

Founded in 1998, Weike designs, develops and manufactures gaming products such as slot machines, electronic table gaming machines and network systems for Asian markets such as Singapore, Macau, the Philippines and Malaysia.

According to chief executive David Kinsman (picture), the company’s client list includes top gaming operators such as Las Vegas Sands and the Genting Group, and sales are forecast to reach US$20 million ($27.1 million) this year.

Testing and certification are of utmost importance for the gaming manufacturer as all its products need to comply with various international and country regulations, Mr Kinsman said. In Singapore, Weike’s gaming equipment is certified to the Casino Regulatory Authority’s technical standards.

Gaming machines are first assessed on whether they match regulatory technical standards. Then, they are subjected to “platform integrity testing”, which includes electrical safety. Finally, there is a round of mathematical testing to ensure that the machines operate as they are designed to do.

Testing and certification can also help elevate the standards of manufacturing.

In the case of Weike, industry best practices were introduced to its manufacturing process to improve the quality and performance of the company’s products.

This helped Weike bag the 2009 Best Asian Manufacturer Award by Inside Asian Gaming magazine, Mr Kinsman added. Testing, certification made easy

However, the testing and certification process has not been easy for Weike. Each piece of gaming equipment that Weike produced had to be sent to the United States or Australia for the procedure.

“As gaming machines are typically bulky and heavy, it is costly to ship them around. It is also very time consuming,” said Mr Kinsman.

So it was good news to Weike in April this year, when the Singapore Accreditation Council (SAC) granted accreditation to the first gaming testing laboratory in Singapore, BMM Compliance.

BMM has been assessed under SAC’s Accreditation Scheme for Gaming Laboratories, which is based on international standard ISO/IEC 17025. It covers both the management system and the technical capability of the laboratories.

Here, the BMM laboratory provides an easily-accessible facility for Weike to test its products for various regulated markets around the world.

“Having a laboratory at our doorstep makes the entire process simpler and faster. We can also work closely with them to improve on our products quickly,” Mr Kinsman said.

Betting on future growth

With some 60 casinos and 340 clubs in Asia, the gaming industry is poised for further growth. Estimated gaming machine sales for the region average between US$50 million and US$75 million annually.