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Thieves 0 – Caterpillar 1
When thieves stole a Cat® backhoe loader, they didn’t factor in VisionLink® catching them.
Since the pandemic, there has been a significant rise in the theft of machines in South Africa. Still, for Pentacon Plant PTY LTD, prompt action, a determined investigator, and new technology meant they would recover the machine in a matter of days.
When thieves crept onto a construction site in Tafelkop Limpopo, South Africa, disarmed the tracking unit from a Cat® and loaded it onto a rollback they probably thought they’d done enough to make a successful getaway. Unfortunately for them, the machine was connected to the latest version of VisionLink®, through the support of their local Cat dealer.
As soon as the theft was discovered Jaco du Plessis, Product Manager at Barloworld Equipment, received a call from Tyron Gardiner of Tradelog Investigation Services. Tyron, who specializes in tracking down plant and machinery, knew that if he was lucky, additional data might be available from the machine at the dealership. And if so, there was a chance that the insurers could avoid having to pay out on the $80,000 claim.
Jaco du Plessis
Product Manager
Barloworld Equipment
A call to Jaco confirmed it was fitted with VisionLink. “We were then able to go into our dealer service portal and change the subscription on the machine to update every 10 minutes instead of the once-a-day subscription the customer had in place.”
This now allowed them to track the machine. As they plotted its movements, they noticed that it would stop at night, and then every morning, around 2 am, the machine would begin moving again. However, after three days and over 500km, the Cat backhoe loader arrived in Newcastle, where it stayed put. This gave the South African Police Flying Squad the opportunity they needed, with VisionLink giving them the exact coordinates of a warehouse. Inside of which was the backhoe loader.
Jaco couldn’t be more pleased, “With theft of machines increasingly on the rise, it is good to know that we have a secret weapon that’s helping us to beat the thieves.” The machine is none the worse for its adventure and is safely back with its rightful owner.
Since then, Jaco and Tyron have worked together on recovering two more stolen Cat Backhoe Loaders.
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