My friend and GPS colleague Rob Donat and I have been exchanging comments about businesses losing everything, or at the least losing “big time” by thinking they are saving a buck by foregoing the benefits of using GPS tracking.  I wrote recently about a small trucking company forced out of business by a GPS tracking-preventable incident and another company who may go out of business due to drivers not following instructions and managers who had no way of knowing.  In both these incidents die-hard anti-GPS tracking minds could make a valid argument that both companies were small, ill-capitalized and could just as well be driven out of business by other forces in the market place.  That’s certainly true, but don’t kid yourself that the size of you operation or the price of your stock is an adequate buffer from very painful experiences that are totally preventable by using low monthly cost or even no monthly cost GPS tracking.

Many of my regulars know that I currently live in the Philippines.  I’m very happy here and I don’t do any work off the ‘net … when I can help it, that is.  However I was asked by a friend to do a little tech resource work for a local GPS tracking company (yes, GPS tracking produces excellent an ROI for business here in the Philippines too) and I got the inside poop on a very nasty incident that cost a company way more than the dollar value involved … and would have been totally preventable with a tiny GPS tracking investment.

I’m not at liberty to give the name of the company, but I can assure you, it’s a very large US-based computer and technology manufacturer with plants all over the world, including this country.  Like many high-tech companies they were attracted by a very pleasant “Special Economic Zone” inducement package and the terrific supply of dedicated, highly skilled workers,  The company got a contract to build a very high profit component for the autopilot system of one of the world’s most popular jet airliner.  A very nice deal, all ’round.  However, like all modern business, the contract depended upon JIT (Just In Time) manufacturing and delivery. 

One Friday evening, about 11 PM local time, a relatively larger shipment … nearly a million US dollars-worth was tested. packed and put on a company truck for trans-shipment to an international cargo flight.  The drive would normally take about 4 to 5 hours but safety-minded, the company scheduled the driver for a flat rate 8 hour shift.  They didn’t ant the driver to have to speed or take chances on his drive to the airport to meet a 7 am loading time.  We’re only talking about a few small cartons here, the company truck was just a small Toyota van … expensive things come in small packages these days.

The driver, since he had the time, did something very understandable, and not even “wrong” in accordance with his instructions.  Instead of resting in the secure air cargo area at the airport, were his manager “thought” he was going, he drove direct to his home, just a few minutes from the airport, and took a nice nap, waking at 5 am to drive the final few miles and deliver the cargo.  Can you guess what comes next?

Yep, there sat the van, on the street in front of the driver’s house, a window smashed and the cartons of product gone.  Nearly a million bucks, literally “out the window”.  Yes, there was insurance, but let me tell you why insurance is not much of an answer in a case like this:

• The company lost a tremendous amount of respect with their client.  They failed to deliver and costs down the line because of production delays mounted much higher than the cost of product lost.
• The company’s perfectly understandable decision to use off-shore manufacturing facilities came under severe fire from the clients and other company divisions as well.  You know, when you make a client doubt you …..
• Because these were commercial aircraft components, Interpol, the US State Department, the FAA, the IATO, the air commerce government agencies in more than 70 countries where this aircraft was used, and the maintenance departments of more than 80 airlines had to be individually notified and informed, in effect, that this multi-billion dollar US industry giant couldn’t figure out how to safeguard the critical components they were entrusted to manufacture.  Time consuming, costly and embarrassing.

Cost to have this vehicle under 24-7 GPS location tracking?  About $600 USD one-time tax deductible investment and about $15 USD per month service charge for tracking and monitoring unscheduled stops. 

Do you think that would have been worth it?  Hint for those who can’t do the math … _all_ this company’s Philippine delivery vehicles are now being GPS tracked.  Where is your next important shipment?  In bound or outbound?  If you aren’t tracking, you don’t know, and if you don’t know, you aren’t managing.  How easily do you learn?