Coal Pilferage in India Being Monitored with GPS Tracking
15 Mar 2016The largest coal mining company in the world, Coal India Limited, has recently been having a difficult time meeting their production goals. The reason the company thinks that production demands have not been met? – Coal pilferage. In order to correct this problem, the company has announced that they will be outfitting all of their trucks with GPS tracking devices.
The goal of utilizing these GPS tracking devices is to keep tabs on all of the trucks that are used to transport coal, thereby eliminating any theft that may be occurring.
According to a Coal Ministry official, Coal India Limited has been granted a loan that will allow the company to afford the cost that is associated with installing GPS tracking devices on their fleet.
In addition to deterring theft, it is believed that the GPS tracking devices will improve the company’s productivity.
An internal study was conducted by Coal India Limited a few years ago, and the results of the study were quite astonishing. The study showed that when just one of the company’s trucks is left idling for a period of 30 minutes, it can waste as much as Rs 50,000 in fuel. And, the larger the truck, the more money on fuel costs it wastes.
In addition to outfitting the trucks with GPS tracking devices, Coal India Limited will also be installing electric fencing around its mines. The reason for this is because the company has been mandated to double its output to 1 billion tonne by 2020. Additionally, CCTVs are going to be outfitted at any and all points that are believed to be vulnerable for theft in order to monitor and assess the trucks and ensure that theft is not occurring.
Coal India Limited is eager to increase its efficiency and its output, and GPS tracking devices, as well as CCTVs, will enable the company to do that. Satellite technology will also be used to improve production and efficiency and to limit theft.
ICT complaint machinery and enterprise resource planning (ERP) will also be used to improve the production and the efficiency of the company’s output. These types of technology will be used to collect, store, manage and interpret data.
Coal is used for about 52 percent of the primary commercial energy needs in India. It also provides 29 percent of the world’s coal needs. This fact, coupled with the fact that the government has increased the production target, means that Coal India Limited needs to be proactive in order to meet demand.
Comments are closed.