Capital Equipment News September 2017

PROFILE

KEY TALKING POINTS

Stolen vehicle recovery services constitute 96% of Cartrack’s business

93% stolen vehicle recovery success

2006, Cartrack widened the scope of its business to include full telematics services. While SVR still forms part of our business, we have also added Fleet Management and Insurance Telematics in the scope of our services. Whereas 10 years ago we were 100% an SVR-focused business, the ratio has now shifted to 61% of all units having Fleet Management capabilities as well. AI: Traditionally, within commercial fleets, telematics was all about the location of the vehicle and the driver. But, to further improve productivity and reduce costs, the range of application has since evolved very quickly over the years. The global market is moving more towards keeping cost control in mind as cost cutting has become, and will always be an important factor when it comes to Fleet Management. Companies now use Fleet Management tools to maximise the value of their operations, boosting driver performance and to engage in a powerful way with the end customers. Meanwhile, Insurance Telematics for driver risk assessment by insurance companies is another growing application of our telematics services. MS: What prompted the big shift from purely SVR to full telematics services? MS: Just how big is your commercial vehicle business at this stage? AI: In total we have about 500 000 vehicles on our books, including both Fleet Management and SVR services. If you drill down to commercial vehicles, I would say it’s about 20% of that figure. We believe there

Andre Ittmann, CEO of Cartrack South Africa, is of the view that the technology underpinning Fleet Management solutions has evolved to become a key point of competitive advantage.

TRACKING THE CHANGING FACE OF TELEMATICS Telematics has traditionally been about the location of a vehicle. But, Andre Ittmann, CEO of Cartrack South Africa, reasons that the range of application is evolving quickly and the role of telematics is expanding fast. A case in point is Cartrack’s expanding business portfolio; having started out in 2004 with a sole focus on stolen vehicle recovery, by 2006 the company had widened the scope of its business to include full fleet management and insurance telematics services, writes Munesu Shoko

Andre Ittmann (AI): When we started the business in 2004, Cartrack originally focused on stolen vehicle recovery (SVR), especially on the back of South Africa’s highest vehicle theft/hijacking rates in the world. But, since

Munesu Shoko (MS): Cartrack is traditionally known as a stolen vehicle recovery (SVR) company, but the business has surely evolved over the years. Tell me more about the developments.

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