May 28, 2007

GPS Tracking

Skidsteer, trailers and generators hot items with thieves

Deddeda Stemler

Dave Katz of Nero Global Tracking holds one of their GPS systems that is used by construction firms to track equipment

Jean Sorensen

correspondent

Want to know what’s the Honda Civic of the construction world?

It’s the Bobcat skidsteer loader or excavator, those mini pieces of equipment that contractors find so handy for back-filling, squeezing by tight property lines, and transporting from site to site.

While the Honda Civic hits the top spot as the favourite with car thieves, Bobcat skidders have been high on the shopping list for those wanting to put a new spin on the term rolling stock at construction sites, say security experts and companies that specialize in Global Positioning Systems (GPS) that use satellites to track anything from a bicycle to a generator. Other brand names of mini-equipment are popular as well as these smaller pieces of equipment that are valued at $50,000 to $70,000. But, last year, it was the Bobcat that was the hunted species.

Parts and rental manager Phil Holmberg of Bobcat Country Inc. in Abbotsford (which rents and sells Bobcat skidsteer equipment) says last year estimates are that 30 to 40 Bobcat customers lost machines.

Fall of 2006 was particularly bad, as thieves seemed to arrive from “upcountry” and disappeared with equipment. “It’s kind of calmed down now,” he says, adding that much has been because of a GPS a palm-sized transmitter discretely installed in equipment.

They not only retrieve equipment but have made it a riskier proposition for thieves to swipe equipment. “GPS is becoming known,” he says, adding he uses it on his fleet of 300 rental machines and about a dozen rental machines that strayed have been located and brought back home.

GPS is employed through a security company and serves as a link between the machine and end-user albeit a renter or owner, who tracks the piece of equipment through the Internet utilizing a computer to see exactly where any given piece of equipment is located.

While lease companies and owners are able to retrieve their equipment, police are also finding another benefit, says Holmberg. “When they do find the machine, it can be related to a grow op or other stolen equipment. It’s a good way for police to get a warrant and go in and check the property,” he says. Or, thieves can be apprehended while transporting the equipment and charged with theft.

Theft of high-dollar value equipment is usually related to organized crime. In Prince George, police recently tracked a GPS machine that lead to the bust of a theft ring stealing a range of equipment and other goods.

On March 6, Washington State Police uncovered a second chop shop related to an earlier bust. The second shop yielded $300,000 in stolen construction equipment, trucks, cars, and motorcycles. Police followed a stolen GPS LoJack-equipped dump truck to the second shop and within four hours had an arrest.

Holmberg uses Calgary-headquartered Longview Advantage Limited (www.longviewadvantage.com), which provides theft prevention as well as assets tracking and fleet management.

Longview President Phil Quinney says while the Bobcat is popular, generators are also a hot item when thieves go shopping at construction sites. “They can use them instead of electricity at grow operations,” says Quinney, adding they may go to another construction site, but in most cases it is to circumvent use of the domestic power grid and police detection. Sadly, he says, thieves have used them inside homes or enclosed structures not realizing that generators produce carbon monoxide. “They don’t realize the risk,” he says.

Quinney says owners of equipment wanting to limit exposure to thieves can also opt for a virtual fence.

The GPS system can be programmed with a set perimeter and if the equipment moves outside that area it trips a silent alarm. The GPS system will send its signal to an alarm company, which in turn can alert police.

The construction site supervisor or the equipment owner can activate the fence either by cell-phone or through the Internet. “It’s done by the customer,” says Quinney, as it is employed much like a home security alarm system.

Victoria-based Nero Global Tracking’s President Dave Katz agrees that generators, modular trailers, and mini-equipment like the Bobcat are on the most-wanted list when thieves hit construction sites, but the GPS systems also offer a range of other functions relating to asset management rather than theft recovery.

“We get inquiries from clients in the construction industry who want to manage their resources better,” he says. For example, GPS systems installed in staff vehicles can track and log how much time is spent on the road, the route traveled and at job sites.

The Nero GPS is used by a lot of trades companies such as plumbers and electricians, he says. It’s not only a theft prevention tool for vans equipped with tools or parts, but it can be a means of determining whether the driver’s time is being used efficiently.

“Its greatest benefit is to the employee and employer by a means of providing quality communications between them. The employer can determine whether he has unreasonable expectations of the employee and it allows the employee to substantiate whether he is being over-worked or over-driven and is forced to speed to get to the next site,” he says.

A trend that Katz has noticed is that more individuals are focusing on the proactive side of GPS use by opting for virtual fences and silent alarms.

While GPS locators can find stolen equipment, the alarms set police into action when the theft is occurring. “Most of the clients would like to charge someone with the theft and the system provides the opportunity to catch the thief and get a conviction,” he says. More information is available at www.neroglobal.com

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