I work for a residential home builder and we lose thousands of dollars
every year due to theft, especially appliances.  I would like a way to
tag / track the appliances for better "inventory" control.

My guidelines when evaluating a solution would be:
1) Cost.  If I can buy a new cooktop / refridgerator / dishwasher for
less than the cost of the tracking device and monitoring service it's
not worth it to me.

2) Size / permanance of the tracker.  If the device is a bulky box
that inhibts installation of the appliance, or is easily identified as
a tracking device and removed by the thieves, it doesn't help. 
Somewhat conflicting though is my desire to re-use the devices, if
possible, to reduce per-asset costs.

3) Range.  I'll need something with a range of around 100 miles, maybe
a few hundred, because if an appliance does "walk" I often won't know
for a day or more.  Although, I believe most are transported only a
few miles to a safe area so if the first two criteria are met and the
range is less, that is ok.

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 19 Jun 2005 19:33 PDT

John,

You might want to consider something like the unit described here:


http://www.vehicle-tracking.com/products/3100_ext.html


It's a stand-alone GPS system that is battery operated and magnet
mounted.  It costs about $300 a pop, but since it's reuseable pretty
much indefinitely, it shouldn't add much to overall costs.

There are no monthly fees or other charges associated with the unit.  

Have a look, and let me know what you think.


pafalafa-ga

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 19 Jun 2005 19:34 PDT

Ooops...on closer inspection, this won't do, since it doesn't appear
to transmit its data.  Sorry!

paf

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Clarification of Question by john_schulz-ga on 20 Jun 2005 05:36 PDT

I've got an email in to these guys (http://www.aarttrack.com/).  No
idea what their pricing structure is like.

Thanks,
John

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Request for Question Clarification by czh-ga on 01 Jul 2005 00:56 PDT

Hello john_schulz-ga,

Have you already checked this out?

http://gps.engadget.com/entry/1234000830031304/
QinetiQ announces smallest GPS tracking unit

Good luck.

~ czh ~

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Clarification of Question by john_schulz-ga on 05 Jul 2005 05:39 PDT

czh,

  No, I hadn't seen that before.

  I went to QinetiQ's site, but couldn't find any pricing info; only
the press release.

Thanks,
John

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Request for Question Clarification by czh-ga on 05 Jul 2005 08:41 PDT

Hello john_schulz-ga,

Here is some more information about the QinetiQ product. I'm not sure
whether it is already on the market or not. I suggest that you contact
them and get the additional information you need.

http://www.qinetiq.com/home/commercial/information_communication_and_electronics/asset_man_solutions/gps/high_sensitivity_gps.html
High Sensitivity GPS

http://www.qinetiq.com/home/contact.html
How to contact us
However you wish to contact us, we welcome your enquiry. Even if you
have not found the answer to your question within the site, please
take the time to ask us and we will try to help.

You can contact us by the following methods (see website)

Good luck.

~ czh ~

Hello John

I believe I have found the enswer to your question

The DeWalt sitelock system will provide a way to track your asset at a
jobsite.  The system can even automatically call the authorities and
send you a text/email message directly to your cellphone or for
example a rim email handheld. Link
http://www.dewalt.com/usX/security/.

For gps tracking there is a company called 911togo that has a device
called G-LOCATOR, that is small enough for you to conceal it in any
applience. Link http://www.911togo.com/gps_locator.html.

As for the RFID, dunno how efficient that will be because, passive
RFID tags, witch are the most common ones, need a real close proximity
to work, usually are glued to the device u want to track.  RFID is
also ideal in a RFID ready site, a place that will have RFID readers
thrughout the site to there track the devices.  I'd recommend sticking
w/ the dewalt security system.  I'm looking for more solutions for
you, and emailing some more companys.

Also you could contact your local alarm company and see if they have
an inexpensive alarm system that would work for, the only thing bad
about that is that most of the time those are for home use and are not
industrial grade like the DeWalt system is.

I will post more links or if u want me to email you directly we can exchange email.

This could be the go if you live in the US.

http://www.phillyspyshop.com/gpstracking.htm
Not cheap but very small operates by battery and uses GPS so easy to track.

tassydevil-ga,

  At $399 it violates parameter #1.  I'd be paying $400 to track
something that costs that much or less.

  Also, it looks HUGE (guideline #2)

Thanks anyway,
John

leetek-ga,

  Thanks, I'll check these out.  The DeWalt container tracker might work.

  The GPS-Locator looks interesting (if not overqualified), but I have
no idea what it costs.

Thanks again,
John

Consider using "Google Earth" Pro with one of the other suggested solutions.

Here is a quote from the linked page below:
"Google Earth integrates with GPS and RFID systems to show the
location of assets in motion directly on an actual image of the earth,
eliminating guesswork."

Here is a link:  http://earth.google.com/more.html

What cost are you looking for?  I might be able to help, but I think
the cost is to much for ya

If your still interested please let me know!