Liberty Lake-based PC Open Inc., a maker of digital video recorders and surveillance equipment doing business as OpenEye, says California-based CKE Restaurants Holdings Inc. is rolling out its products in 900 Carl's Jr. and Hardee's eateries nationwide.

"CKE is about 80 percent along with the rollout," says Brent Gable, OpenEye director of business development. "They're still rolling out the equipment in a few locations. When you have a rollout of that size, it does take some time."

Gable declines to disclose the value of the CKE Restaurants contract, which involves the purchase of OpenEye equipment with software that allows for antitheft surveillance at each restaurant.

However, he says the recent contract is a significant milestone for OpenEye in securing a national retail client with a product that's geared toward preventing losses in that industry, from inventory theft to misuse by employees in handling cash transactions.

OpenEye's equipment and software also allows CKE Restaurants to record quality video that is integrated with that company's existing satellite uplink to enable management personnel at its headquarters to investigate theft reports more quickly, the company says.

Additionally, some outlets of CKE Restaurants currently are testing new OpenEye analytics software called SaleGuard for detecting loss trends at cashier stations, such as patterns of employee misuse or frequent errors at the point of sale, Gable says.

OpenEye hopes to secure a separate contract with CKE Restaurants for widespread use of SaleGuard at its eateries later this year, Gable adds.

"The SaleGuard piece is a new initiative we're testing with CKE," he says. "It's a business analytics software that interfaces with both point of sale as well as video surveillance. It also objectively measures cashier performance. It's a proactive loss-prevention tool."

CKE Restaurants is a privately-held company that has 3,300 franchised or company-operated restaurants in 42 states and 28 countries and U.S. territories, including nearly 1,400 Carl's Jr. restaurants and 1,900 Hardee's eateries.

Founded in Spokane in 1999, OpenEye moved in 2007 to a roughly 27,000-square-foot building it owns at 23221 E. Knox, in Liberty Lake.

OpenEye has slightly more than 100 employees, which includes the addition of 20 to 25 workers in the past year, Gable says. A majority of the employees are software developers, database administrators, and quality-control workers, he adds.

The company has other large projects it's developed for clients, including one pending in the Spokane area, but Gable declines to disclose other client names.

"We've tailored our product to address the retail segment needs," he says, which include grocery stores, convenience stores, restaurants, and hospitality businesses.