Workers were a bit leery when Phil arrived at Ruby's Cleaners in Mt. Lebanon last summer. But most of the 32 employees quickly warmed to the handheld scanning device known as "Phil," used to help ensure that freshly starched shirts and crisply pressed pants were where they were supposed to be and ready for pick-up on time.

	Tony Tye, Post-Gazette George Childs owns Ruby's Cleaners, which uses scanners and bar codes to keep track of garments as they go through the dry-cleaning process. Click photo for larger image.

"I was a bit overwhelmed at first," said Sharon Verb, who has worked at the shop since the "old days," when paper and safety pins were used to keep track of the loads of clothing that pile up at the cleaners each day. But like everything, time surges ahead and so must even the most traditional businesses, she noted.

Phil wasn't the only new addition to owner George Childs' small company last year. The owner figures he spent well into the tens of thousands of dollars launching an upgrade to the 40-year-old enterprise, complete with computerized conveyer belt, touch-screen computers and tiny bar codes containing customer information and permanently heat-sealed onto the clothing.

Ruby's Cleaners is among a growing number of mom-and-pop shops and nonprofits breaking out of their traditional methods and going high-tech to increase productivity, customer service and their bank accounts. Tech spending among small businesses is forecast to rise 7.5 percent this year, nearly double last year's 4 percent increase, according to the Cambridge, Mass.-based tech research firm Forrester Research.

"It's far easier to deploy technology in a small organization when you're not bogged down with the overwhelming training and costs to deploy," said Chris Sweeney, chief executive officer of 3 Rivers Connect, a local nonprofit that helps companies and organizations incorporate new technology in their operations.

Tony Tye, Post-Gazette Employees at Ruby's Cleaners quickly warmed to using bar codes and scanners. Click photo for larger image.

Part of the push simply reflects the costs. Technology is now so inexpensive that more business owners are realizing it pays to upgrade, said Anita Campbell, the Cleveland-based editor of Small Business Trends Web site www.smbtrends.com.

It helps that some of the latest tech software and gadgets are capable of doing tasks more quickly and more efficiently than workers can do, she said. "What we're actually seeing now is that it's much more cost effective for small business to invest in technology than to hire people," she said.

While Childs maintains that the addition of Phil and other new technology hasn't prompted him to shed any of his staff, Mr. Magic Car Wash scion and owner Billy Schaming said his recent high-tech upgrade had downsized his employees' stress load.

The Mt. Lebanon-based operation spent $500,000 last year to halt the long lines, honking horns and frustrated customers that sometimes resulted from Schaming's emphasis on customer service.

Now, loyal customers can purchase and replenish Mr. Magic's "Fast Pass" car wash cards on the Internet and quickly drive through the wash with the help of an automated teller in a lane dedicated solely to them.

	Martha Rial, Post-Gazette Kimberly and Billy Schaming show off their new "fast pass" technology at Mr. Magic Car Wash in Mt. Lebanon. Click photo for larger image.

Schaming likens the new service to the Pennsylvania Turnpike's popular E-ZPass technology. His wife and business partner, Kimberly, draws an even more recognizable parallel. "It's like a Starbucks card; you can keep refilling it."

The birth of Schaming's "Fast Pass" has allowed his employees to spend more time helping new customers get acquainted with the enterprise's two-tier carwash service and less time waiting. "On a busy day, our cashier was in a rush to keep cars moving, but now, if a customer needs extra attention, there's no bottleneck," he said.

Schaming also appreciates the customer loyalty and market research the tiny bar code imprinted on the Fast Pass card allows. With the card, Schaming can track how frequently his customers get their cars washed and plan sales and marketing promotions accordingly.

0 Schaming declined to say if the company had realized any monetary benefit since the advent of Fast Pass, but said he expected a boost in client loyalty with the cards. But, like most new technologies, Fast Pass wasn't without its kinks.

The brightly-lit Fast Pass lane was supposed to be up and running in early October, but didn't get its start until the day after Thanksgiving because at least one of the tech advancements didn't work. "It took us eight weeks to work out the bugs," said Schaming.

Sensors installed to direct carwash traffic and match each car with the requested carwash weren't working, so Schaming spent more money to install electronic eyes to manage the traffic.

For Childs, known as a "techy" by his staff, the challenge has been incorporating the new system with the old. But nearly three months into the new system, Childs said both his customers and his staff seemed to be happier -- and to be moving more quickly.