CONVENTION PREVIEW
FEBRUARY 2013 | HIRE
AND
RENTAL
NEWS
| 57
In vehicle management systems (IVMS) and
asset tracking systems offer more than just
protection against theft, Digicore Australia’s
National Sales and Marketing Manager, Dan
Bayley said in a recent interview with Hire and
Rental News.
“
Managing equipment and vehicles with
IVMS and asset tracking systems is also
about monitoring equipment movement
and location while allowing you to keep an
eye on your assets without actually being
there,” Dan said.
“
Digicore can offer low cost asset
tracking alternatives to full IVMS allowing
companies to keep track of their assets both
within the boundaries of their warehouse
or out in the field and all without the need
to connect them to a power source since all
our solutions have potential battery lives
of up to three years.”
Now turning its attention to the hire
industry, Digicore is developing a range
of consumer asset tracking products for
the tracking needs of sole, small and large
business owners. These include low-cost
NextG and satellite devices that can be
attached to virtually any product or asset,
from where they can be tracked through
regular position reporting, Dan said.
“
They are cost effective, easy to use
asset tracking devices with a vast array
of applications including on site asset
management, theft prevention, fleet
management and GPS logbook applications.
“
We have brought our innovative
‘
anchoring’ concept to the market, whereby
asset owners can ‘anchor’ an asset through
our online interface and be notified should
the asset be moved before a due date. This
is a major theft prevention / recovery tool
because it gives owners a level of assurance
they can see where their assets are, and be
notified should they be stolen.
“
Our system also allows for a ‘remember
to move me’ reminder. For example, an
owner can rent a product and update the
system to send an email or SMS reminder
when the equipment is due to be moved.
Asset tracking more than just theft protection
“
We are also developing GPS tags
that can be used in warehouse type
environments to keep track of stock and
map its location.
“
We are in the early stages of rolling
out an asset tracking and management
program for 1300 Ensuite. We have
developed an online system called Trackit
for them that is able to track all their assets
and lock their products down on site once
they have set them up.
“
We call this technology DigiAnCoring,
and what it does is sets up a geo fence
around an asset, so if the asset moves from
where they left it, they are notified via an
SMS and an email.
“1300
Ensuite can then track the unit
online and see exactly what is happening
and if needed, notify the authorities to
what is going on. The system also has a
reminder function that will notify them
when an asset needs to be dropped off
and picked up and where from. This was a
requested feature of the interface because
1300
Ensuite wanted something to keep
track of their rental dates and pick-ups.
“
TrackIt will allow 1300 Ensuite to see
all their assets on a map including, all
upcoming rentals, locations of assets being
rented and when they need to be picked
up. This will be displayed via a traffic light
colour scheme with bookings marked in
orange; rentals in progress in green; and
overdue for pick up equipment in red.
“
It will also allow them to look up certain
dates and periods to see what assets are
available for hire at that time. Using the
booking dates, the interface will also be
able to generate invoices, set maintenance
schedules based on time in field and overall
allow them to manage their business much
more efficiently.
“
The Trackit system is becoming more
and more sophisticated and we hope it
will become a complete asset management
platform that will allow the user to do
everything from the one online interface,
from taking the initial booking, to
generating quotes and invoices and
managing asset availability.
“
Our products are (mostly) developed
in South Africa, a country with a very high
crime rate. Experience has shown the
Australian market is different in that assets
(
including vehicles) are tracked for purposes
of cost saving and usage optimisation,
rather than security,” Dan said.
“
The size of Australia and the low
population density is however a factor and
many companies, including mines, have
assets scattered over vast distances and
there is a need to know where they are;
very expensive equipment (like light plants)
simply get ‘lost’ and organisations tend to
fit tracking devices to see where they are.
“
Drivers are also exposed to very long
travelling distances and we have found
driver safety is a major incentive for many
organisations to purchase tracking devices,
especially in mining situations.”
For more contact: 03 9945 2233 or visit:
www.digicore-australia.com.au
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