As the ONS’ study revealed recently, thefts involving transport companies increased by 7% last year, causing serious damage to the sector, especially to small companies that are more likely to be hit badly by the loss of a vehicle.
AS 24, which specialises in services for HGVs, such as the provision of toll boxes and fuel cards, has launched the creation of a new “low cost” service to combat trailer theft.
The principle is simple: an autonomous box to be fitted (within 5 minutes) on the trailer, with an autonomy of 5 years, which locates the trailer and sends the owner/driver an alert when it is not where it should be. The product, already on the market since 2019, also makes it possible to signal unauthorized unhooking between the tractor and the trailer. This service makes it possible not only to monitor the trailers in the park, but also to locate them in near-real time when they are lost or stolen.
Thierry Bouvier, Managing Director of Ambroise Bouvier Transport on using the application and service explained: “We chose this connected device for two main reasons: we have had some semi-trailers stolen. The second reason is that we have some drivers who don’t necessarily park on site for the weekend. Having connected devices allows us to know when trailers are uncoupled from the tractor.”
“In my department, and for our mechanics, this solution will be revolutionary. The first job when looking for vehicles is to call the operators. Now, with FindIT, we go straight to the computer, we type in the semi-trailer fleet number, and we can see automatically where it is. We can see which operator is using it and we call them directly,” Loic Gaubert, Technical Manager of Groupe Lahaye declared: “This saves an amazing amount of time and phone calls.”
This geolocation service stands out from the others because it is user-friendly and inexpensive both in terms of energy and money.
Roland Saunion, Managing Director of AS 24 UK & IRL commented: “FindIT does not try to compete with other more expensive and more complex connected devices. For a few euros a month, it only aims to provide an efficient answer to the question that operators or drivers can ask themselves Where is my trailer?and to provide them with the tools to find it.”