Abate Counterfeiting & Loss of High-Value Goods
The Internet of Things (aka IoT) is defined by Wikipedia as, “…the network of physical objects—“things”—that are embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies for the purpose of connecting and exchanging data with other devices and systems over the internet.”
OpticalLock is an innovation company who set out to solve the global issue of counterfeiting and loss in the cargo industry from manufacturers to shippers and freight-forwarders who experience great losses. Financial losses have skyrocketed ever since but there’s a much bigger, long-term loss as it pertains to brand impact with such pervasive falsifying a product. The trend is only worsening causing businesses and consumers to look to technology to protect them and their assets.
A recent Case Study by Telit highlighted OpticalLock’s IoT products as a serious response to counterfeiting, theft and loss of high-value goods in transit and at rest. By 2022, the International Chamber of Commerce Counterfeiting (ICCC) predicts it will drain $4.2 trillion from the global economy. In addition to that startling projection and all the implications of a critical supply chain that has only become more precious during a time of a pandemic, the ICCC goes on to say that, “Counterfeit and pirated products put the health and safety of consumers worldwide at risk while robbing governments, businesses and communities of tax revenues, profits and legitimate jobs. The negative impacts of counterfeiting and piracy are projected to put 5.4 million legitimate jobs at risk by 2022.”
IoT Provides Instant Access to the Location and Status of High-Value Assets
OpticalLock, based in San Diego, California, recognized that problem and developed a suite of cloud-connected solutions for monitoring, securing, tracking and recovering assets in shipping containers, trucks, planes, rail cars, security boxes, storage facilities, security cages and more. The suite includes the OpticalLock OPTi-100 product series, which has a shackle that fits inside the eye rings designed for traditional locking mechanisms and provides modern day, IoT status alerts.
The OPTi-100 has patented sensors that detect motion, security status, humidity, location and other conditions. When there’s a change, the OPTi-100 uses wireless communication to send an alert to the shipping company, asset owner or another authorized party. Customers can choose among three versions of the OPTi-100 depending on which wireless technologies they want to use: cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Near Field Communications (NFC) or a combination.