Inside Asian Gaming

July 2016 inside asian gaming 37 Tech Talk we check every part of every machine. We count how many cards we make and how many we destroy.” Angel has long been the leading supplier of playing cards to Macau’s casinos. But playing such an important role in the world’s leading gaming market brings plenty of pressure. After all, there is a lot at stake. Shigeta won’t reveal exactly how many decks Angel produces, but says the figure is “muchmore” than 100million each year. Perhaps more significant though is how many of those they destroy – around 10%. “We have our floor people checking and we also have checking machines,” Shigeta reveals. “I believe if we don’t use the checking machines, our loss is only around 6,000 per 100,000 cards we produce. We destroy 10,000 but this makes sure for the casinos that mistakes shall be just about nil.” The primary reason for destroying cards is an error in printing and in this regard there is little margin for error. Be it a slight blurring of the print on certain cards, the pattern being a few millimetres off centre or a similar inaccuracy in cutting, there is a sordid history of switched on – or tipped off – players using these mistakes to make millions of dollars over the years. “That’s why we must control everything,” explains Shigeta, who insists every deck the company produces is not only checked by the human eye but also runs through one of the company’s own checking machines. “We check every cut – it is very, very difficult,” he continues. “A few years ago we implemented our new inspection system and this has made a big difference.” Angel is just as pedantic when it comes to transporting its cards to their various destinations around the world. Despite the huge volume produced, each and every deck is sealed with a security seal and a photo taken to ensure any attempt to tamper with them along the way is instantly detected upon arrival at the other end. And if all else fails, there is one final protection barrier waiting for players where it matters most – the table itself. The Angel Eye baccarat dealing shoe scans invisible ink on the face of each card as it is dealt, so not only can players rest assured they are playing with full and uncompromised decks, any attempts by players to switch more favorable cards into the system will immediately be detected and security notified. There is much more to today’s playing cards than meets the eye. “We have our floor people checking and we also have checking machines. I believe if we don’t use the checking machines, our loss is only around 6,000 per 100,000 cards we produce. We destroy 10,000 but this makes sure for the casinos there are no mistakes.”