Cargo Thefts in the U.S.

Cargo thefts occur all over the United States, from the Pacific Northwest to the East Coast. However, while every state does experience some type of cargo theft, just four states are showing a considerably higher rate of thefts.

Experts believe the criminals are becoming smarter, knowing not only what states tend to have the cargo they are looking for, but those with environmental conditions and other elements that make it easier to steal from these trucks. They know the larger, more populated states tend to have the more and higher quality products, including food, clothing, pharmaceutical drugs, and electronics.

FreightWatch, a leader in leader in logistics security services, believes that recent trends of cargo thefts in four states in particular are a sign of what is to come. They compiled a list of the items that are stolen most often from trucks, as well as what states they are stolen from. Through their detailed statistics, four states in the U.S. pose a higher risk for cargo theft.

States with the Most Cargo Thefts

FreightWatch compiled statistics that looked at the number of cargo thefts in the U.S., and how many of those thefts occurred in what states. They found that there were a total of 946 cargo thefts during 2012, which on its own was already much higher than the previous year. Among the thefts, the vast majority of them were in California, Florida, Texas, and New Jersey. Read the rest of this entry »

The GPS tracking of fleets is fairly commonplace among businesses today that have tight budgets yet rely heavily upon the ability of drivers to transport passengers or goods efficiently from one location to the next. In the case of cab companies, there was initial fear that the costs of installing GPS devices on all taxis would be prohibitive.

As technology has improved and the costs have gone down, though, many taxi cab businesses are discovering that GPS tracking for taxi cabs fleets is a very cost effective solution that helps them accomplish many business goals, like those listed below.

Provides Customers with more Accurate ETAs

When people call for taxi service, they’re usually ready to go or very nearly ready to go when the call is made. This means they are waiting the remainder of the time. Traffic, speed limits, and location of nearest available taxi all play critical roles in the estimated time of arrival you provide callers with. GPS taxi tracking helps you make much more accurate judgments about the ETA that takes these mitigating factors into account.

Assists Drivers in Navigating Around Traffic Problems

Traffic happens. In some cases, there’s just no getting around it, but most of the time, if you know the right side streets and alternate routes to take, you can make good time while avoiding stalled traffic due to accidents and other events. Read the rest of this entry »

Thanks to GPS tracking technology, experts now understand more about how a single dog is able to herd a flock of sheep.

A recent study published in the Journal of The Royal Society Interface reveals information about the tricks and techniques sheepdogs used to herd sheep. In fact, herding sheep is often done by a single dog, which is proven to be both a mystery and unbelievable feat to many people. That’s because herding sheep is no difficult task, yet one skilled sheepdog is able to convince dozens of them to move efficiently in the same direction.

Finally, through this study, the big question is answered. Researchers at the Uppsala University in Sweden fitted a herd of 46 female merino sheep and a well-trained Australian Kelpie sheepdog so that they could analyze the data and determine exactly how it works. The tracking devices were each encased in small backpacks that were placed on each of the animals.

The GPS tracking data was collected as the dog successfully herded the sheep. Researchers then poured over the data and created a computer model of the entire scene in front of them. What they found is that the dog uses very specific techniques to get the sheep to move in one direction. Read the rest of this entry »

Winter is coming – to Winterfell and to your neck of the woods. This means that more people are going to be taking their outdoor pursuits of spring, summer, and fall, and hunkering down for a nice long winter in front of their television sets.

This means that people who dropped cable in the summer, will often pick it up again. There also may be an uptick in repair services as people begin noticing problems with their lines from storms and other events over the past several months.

GPS tracking can help you streamline the callout process to ensure your cable business is getting the best possible bang for its buck when responding to customer calls. These are just a few ways cable companies can benefit from GPS tracking. Read the rest of this entry »

Mysterious sailing stones are followed with GPS tracking devices, providing more information to researchers about their movement.

Death Valley National Park is known for many things, ranging from the rocket-high temperatures, to the barren lands. Another thing it is known for is having sailing stones.

What are Sailing Stones

Sailing stones are rocks that move across level surfaces without being aided by humans, animals, or gravity. Up until now, the way this occurs has been a mystery. These are not all lightweight rocks either; some have been 700 pounds, still able to move along the soil.

Theories of the Sailing Stones

There have been many theories over the years about how the sailing stones are able to move, from magnetic fields to strong winds. Others believe it was actually humans pulling a prank and moving it on their own, while some even blamed it on extraterrestrials. The stones, up until now, are simply referred to as a geological phenomenon. They move every few years, leaving striated tracks where they moved. Read the rest of this entry »