Construction Equipment Magazine
By Mary Seaman, Associate Editor
January 2004

Equipment dealers looking to protect their assets can track the location of their equipment, check run time and obtain maintenance reports through asset management products from ATS Asset Tracking Services.

Founded in 1999, this Calgary, Canada-based company created vShepherd, a powerful fleet management system that allows dealers to monitor, protect and secure vehicles and equipment. The company was created to meet the demand of companies and individuals for help in recovering lost or stolen property quickly and with minimal damage or injury. ATS spent two years developing, testing and manufacturing vShepherd and launched the device in early 2002.

Kim Kapp, president and CEO, joined ATS in mid-2001. His mandate was to hire a professional management team, build a robust product, and manage and market the services. Kapp’s first appointment was Bill Quinney as vice president of equipment sales. With 12 years experience with a major equipment manufacturer and 25 years as a successful dealer, Quinney was a valuable team member.

“With expertise in technology, telecommunications and the equipment industry,” says Quinney, “we evolved from a strictly theft recovery product to providing asset management information tools. We still offer the added value of theft protection, but our product applications are far more extensive."

“By using regional sales agencies, who also work in the equipment industry, we can offer more focused dealer support.”

About vShepherd
vShepherd is a kind of “black box” for vehicles and equipment. The box, which fits in the palm of your hand, resembles a generic piece of electronic equipment that is meant to be hidden. If thieves spot the device, vShepherd is equipped with anti-tamper features.

The device utilizes Internet, cellular and GPS technologies and a 24-hour seven-day-a-week alarm center that makes the device ideal for asset protection, theft recovery and fleet management. Through the device, ATS can locate equipment throughout North America. A “virtual fence” feature of the vShepherd, called vFence, creates an invisible perimeter around the equipment. The vFence has a range between 300 yards and 60 miles.

How it works
When a vShepherd protected vehicle is removed from the vFence protected perimeter, the 24/7 alarm center is instantly alerted. The alarm center response team immediately contacts law enforcement authorities, directing them to the thieves and recovering the  property in as little as a half-hour. Customers use the Internet to access information from the device. vShepherd locates equipment by drawing a street map and marking the location.

Already the vShepherd has contributed to a number of successful equipment recoveries. Waco Police uncovered a heavy equipment theft ring when they recovered equipment stolen from Brazos Valley Equipment in Texas using vShepherd. However, vShepherd has many other uses besides equipment theft recovery.

The TimeTracker feature connects to the device to turn it into a fleet management tool. With this feature, users can access up-to-the-minute information on fleet usage, run time and location via the Internet, even when the equipment is in use. vShepherd alerts users when their attention is required, allowing dealers to stay focused on other business. TimeTracker allows users to receive the actual engine run time, which is important for preventive maintenance scheduling, as well as for monitoring customers who rent equipment by the operating hour.

FleetReach for preventive maintenance
The latest addition to the vShepherd family of asset management and asset protection products is FleetReach, vShepherd’s suite of value-added reports to help users better manage their equipment fleets. The first reporting module for preventive maintenance will be launched at AED’s CONDEX in Orlando January 8-9, 2004.

With the module, service managers can manage fleet service intervals, and equipment dealers can offer proactive service contracts. “Dealers can increase profits, improve customer service, and save time and money by providing customers with a planned, professional approach to preventive maintenance,” says Quinney. “Customers benefit because a scheduled maintenance service prevents costly breakdowns and downtime. We expect FleetReach to add substantial sales volumes to dealers across North America.”

Using the vShepherd device, a service manager can obtain maintenance reports at pre-programmed intervals via the Internet. The report shows the operating status of all equipment being monitored. The service manager can then focus on only the equipment that requires attention and schedule the required service. The ability to see actual equipment locations can also reduce travel time for service personnel.

The service department can increase profits with a planned, professional approach to preventive maintenance. With timely, regularly scheduled maintenance, they can serve their customers by extending the life and value of equipment and helping prevent costly breakdowns and downtime.

Using its programming capabilities, the vShepherd will automatically report each week at a pre-set interval, providing all the information necessary to plan immediate service. Simultaneously, service people can monitor the status and location of all customer equipment. FleetReach will introduce other key reporting modules in early 2004, beginning with utilization reports.

A Close Call
After a number of thefts from his equipment yard, Brent Neuhaus, co-owner of Brazos Valley Equipment in Waco, Texas, had had enough. He called ATS Asset Tracking and ordered three vShepherd tracking devices to be shipped for Saturday delivery. He installed them on three pieces of equipment and set the alarms.

Around midnight that same night, thieves broke into the yard and loaded the three units into a stolen rental truck. Upon receiving a cellular signal from the vShepherd devices, the 24-hour alarm center was able to track the unit using GPS technology and direct Waco Police to the exact location of the stolen equipment and the thieves.

The vShepherd, properly alarmed and supported by the alarm center, was key in quickly alerting that a theft was in progress. The stolen property was recovered in just a few hours. “I was very impressed with the constant communication from both the alarm center and the police,” says Neuhaus. “I was able to recover my equipment by Sunday afternoon, set the alarms of the vShepherds again, and feel very comfortable my equipment was secure. I would recommend all dealers get this protection for this ever increasing crime problem.”

- Article from AED's "Construction Equipment Distribution" -  January 2004

Return to Top