TCB Contracts: SMS texts help prevent theft

Trakm8 stolen recovery software assists Coventry firm to find stolen assets

MIDLANDS-based groundwork company, TCB Contracts, has found a new way to keep hold of its company assets: the mobile phone text message.

It might seem a little low-tech, but a humble SMS text message has been the key to maintaining a better watch on preventing site assets being stolen.

Dave Silcock from TCB Contracts explained: “We had a compressor stolen on Sunday lunchtime, but the first we knew about it was when we came back into work on Monday. I was very frustrated as I was powerless to stop the theft. As a result, we wanted to track our vehicles and respond rapidly to anything that went wrong, anytime of the day.

“We asked Trakm8, which tracks over 30 vehicles of ours including earth moving vehicles and road sweepers, what we should do. They suggested a text message,” continued Mr Silcock. “We now receive a text if an alert is activated and we can act quickly on it,” Mr Silcock added.

John Watkins, CEO, at Trakm8, explained further: “Once the SMS alert is received you can take immediate action to try to prevent a theft without giving the thieves a head start. In many cases there is only a small timeframe in which to locate equipment before either the tracking equipment is removed or it is transported into a steel container giving no GPRS coverage.”

Mr Watkins said that text messages were simple, speedy and did not require an internet connection to receive the alerts.