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Innovative
approaches for northern logistics
If
there was an innovative and easy way to improve productivity, save time,
save money improve safety, and do a better overall job for a customer
who wouldn’t want it? And what if, at the same time as making your
customers’ business better, you could prove that your technology
was far superior to any other out there?
That’s the thinking behind BBE’s testing of GEOTrac’s
GPS based global tracking system. “We’re always looking for
ways to improve the services we provide to customers. If GEOTrac’s
system can offer real-time tracking of shipments in the remote northern
regions BBE serves, we will be able to make better decisions to save our
clients money and improve operational efficiencies,” says Stuart
Russell, BBE’s Vice President of Business Development.
GEOTrac, through its network of low-earth-orbit satellites, tracks the
movement of its receivers throughout the globe. While satellite tracking
itself is not new, the traditionally used geostationary satellites have
limited reach in the North.
“We are currently tracking three BBE units in real-time on a dynamic
map of the North that can be accessed over the web,” says Kevin
MacDonald, GEOTrac’s Vice President of Marketing and Communications.
“They are working well and prove that we can reliably use our network
that far North.”
BBE is testing the units in Inuvik, Baker Lake, and en route from Yellowknife
to Edmonton. So far, the tests have yielded positive results.
“We can see where the trucks are every 15 minutes, as they travel
back and forth on the ice road to the Devon SDC drilling rig that is frozen
into the Beaufort Sea ” says Aurora Expediting’s Sean Gray
of the tests done in Inuvik. “We know that they are moving and aren’t
having any problems, and can schedule our staff in Inuvik to meet the
trucks.”
Heather Stewart at BBE Edmonton has found the tests helpful to efficiently
plan when trucks are en route from Edmonton to Yellowknife. “We
know when trucks are going to be late making the connection to the Hercules
to the mines, so we can adjust our staff and aircraft schedules to match,
just in time.”
Peter Tapatai of Peter’s Expediting in Baker Lake points out other
benefits of the tests – safety and peace of mind. “My wife,
Lena tracks my progress on the screen every 15 minutes in the system so
she can see that we aren’t having any problems out on the tundra,
where there are no people and no roads.”
“GEOTrac’s technology will give us the ability, at any particular
moment, to know exactly where a shipment is. This is nice to know, but
in the north, it’s more than just a nicety. We’re dealing
with ice roads and barge routes that have short seasons. If we know exactly
where a shipment is, we know whether we’re going to be able to make
that window, and put plans in place to address any changing conditions
as they arise,” notes Russell. “For example, we’re currently
working on a rig move to East Siberia. The ice-free time, when the shipment
can be unloaded onto the beach is short, and if we miss the window, the
client may lose a year. Knowing where goods are at any given time and
being able to track their progress could mitigate this problem.”
“Our clients look to BBE to get it there – no matter what.
We’re always on the lookout for organizations with innovative tools
and approaches – like GEOTrac – so we can interface their
technology with our own Logistics Management System to help us do that
reliably for our clients.”
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