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Keeping an eye on valuable cargo

Extremely valuable cargo is generally tracked using tracking tags which are placed on or in the cargo as well as a transmitter that is fitted to the vehicle carrying the cargo. This provides fleet owners and controllers with the ability to determine the location of the vehicle and cargo. However, in the event of theft or hijacking, the response is reactive rather than proactive.

While some tracking companies claim recovery success rates of up to 95%, prevention is always better than cure. One of the major obstacles encountered by fleet owners when goods are in transit, is the accelerated use of signal jamming devices. By jamming communication signals, criminals prevent the vehicle’s occupants from contacting fleet controllers and security companies, thereby placing the vehicle, its cargo and its occupants at risk, since they are basically incommunicado. Signal jamming devices render the total communication and vehicle tracking network of a company useless during activation.

Proactive interception

Andre Du Venage, MD of Secure Logistics.

Andre Du Venage, MD of Secure Logistics, says that the company deploys a number of covert escort vehicles which move in unison with a customer’s vehicle carrying valuable cargo. Both the cargo vehicle and the escort vehicle are fitted with signal jamming detection and prevention equipment to ensure that any attempts to jam communication signals are detected and intercepted proactively and timeously.

Once signal jamming equipment has been detected, the Secure Logistics team enters a high alert phase and contingency measures are activated. Since both vehicles utilise the same equipment, the escort vehicle does not need to have the cargo vehicle in its sights. This provides the company with the element of surprise, since neither the cargo drivers nor the criminals are aware of the presence of the escort vehicle and attacks on the escort vehicle are generally eliminated.

Insider job

A staggering 95% of hijackings and cargo theft are facilitated through insider information. The challenge says Du Venage is that there are often many parties involved in the clearing and forwarding process and to finally move the cargo to its destination and therefore the information related to the cargo is available to a number of people. How the team reacts in the event of a potential or actual hijacking is therefore critical.

A covert escort service addresses the concerns that companies have in terms of signal jamming by nullifying its effect to a large extent. Early detection provides fleet owners and controllers with the upper hand and forms part of a chain of actions that result in minimal risk to the cargo as well as the transport vehicle’s occupants.

For more information contact Andre Du Venage, Secure Logistics, +27 (0)11 391 6268, andre.duvenage@securelogistics.co.za

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