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Torry Shealy
Across South America, Central America, and the Caribbean, new rail and ocean carrier links are being made within the region and internationally. Even domestically, trade routes are being developed and improved to increase cargo traffic to and from previously harder to access areas. The new trade routes are seen as boosters to the Latin American and Caribbean economies.
One such domestic project is a new rail line to connect Valparaiso and Santiago in Chile. This project would greatly decrease travel times between the two cities. Peru is also upgrading its rail lines to carry copper, gold and phosphate from mines in the interior to the Bavovar port. According to President Alan Garcia, the rail link will add nearly 2% to Peru’s annual GDP, create 500,000 jobs and carry a million tons of supplies to the mines.
A new cargo shipping line between the Port of West Palm Beach and Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chile has been established by BBC Chartering USA. This line will help increase cargo shipments to these countries, particularly for the construction and mining industries. Maersk Line is opening new shipping lines between South America, Central America and the Carribean. Direct ports of call will be established linking the ports of
Buenos Aires (Argentina), Zarate (Argentina), Montevideo (Uruguay), Rio Grande (Brazil), Itajai (Brazil), Paranagua (Brazil), Santos (Brazil), Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago), Cartagena (Colombia), Manzanillo (Panama), Kingston (Jamaica), Puerto Cabello (Venezuela), Point Lisas (Trinidad and Tobago), Vitoria (Brazil), and Santos (Brazil).
Unfortunately, when new trade routes are established they can quickly become targets for cargo theft. Increased container traffic in a port increases the time containers end up in a holding pattern leaving them vulnerable to theft. In addition, cargoes transported by rail are also vulnerable to theft, especially when trains are stationary.
Also, cargo theft is characterized by FreightWatch International as elevated to extreme across the entire region. Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Paraguay are considered to have a high amount of cargo theft. Cargo theft is considered to be severe in Colombia, Guatemala, and Haiti while it is extreme in Brazil and Mexico.
While there are several companies now offering cargo security in the form cargo tracking systems most lack a physical security component. There is one exception to this dilemma in a solution provided by the TrakLok Corporation. Its GeoLok locking and tracking solution provides physical security preventing access to the container while tracking the shipment in real-time anywhere on the planet.
By employing TrakLok’s patented technology in a multi-layered security approach, cargoes can be better protected against theft than ever before. GeoLokTM is unlike any other cargo security technology in providing both physical security and real-time monitoring. Quite simply it is the best security solution on the market for containerized cargo.
In addition to providing better physical security than any other tracking solution on the market, data generated by the GeoLoKTM will be accessible through TrakLogTM. This information can be used in Transportation Management Systems to increase efficiency in shipping and supply chains. The GeoLokTM provides information on idle containers that can put into use, if a shipment is ahead or behind schedule, if a driver has deviated from course or if a shipment needs to be triaged and unloaded quickly. It also can give information on the condition of the shipment itself by communicating with sensors that detect temperature, humidity, light, even spoilage.
TrakLok Corporation, which owns the intellectual property for the GeoLokTM container locking solution, has integrated several wireless technologies to track containers globally, and has developed its own web accessible information-technology based global tracking system. The information provided by the GeoLokTM is accessible through TrakLogTM where users can obtain the location and condition information of a given container from any computer or web enabled device. TrakLogTM alleviates in a holistic fashion problems for companies managing containers in the supply chain including:
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Asset visibility. Where is my leased or owned container now?
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Condition monitoring. How is my container now?
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Security/stop loss. Has my container been tampered with?
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Asset utilization. When can I return my container to duty?
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Predictive maintenance of assets. When is my next required maintenance?
The unique innovation of the TrakLok system will initiate a paradigm shift in how intermodal shipping containers are tracked, monitored, utilized and secured. For more information contact:
Eric Dobson, Ph.D. CEO and Director
2450 E.J. Chapman Drive
Knoxville, TN 37996
(865) 332-1813
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