In 2018, the Indian bitumen market was valued at $2.8 billion, and it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 2.8% from 2019 to 2026, reaching an estimated value of $3.6 billion by 2026. This growth is largely driven by the surge in road construction and infrastructure activities. However, safe bitumen transportation on Indian roads faces ongoing challenges like theft, pilferage, and unauthorized access — issues that can be effectively mitigated with FleetRobo’s GPS e-lock solution.
Amid these rising challenges, the GPS e-lock emerges as a comprehensive, tech-driven security solution for modern bitumen transport. FleetRobo’s GPS E-lock adds an advanced layer of physical security, ensuring safe transit of your valuable bitumen cargo and helping you stay ahead in the competitive landscape.
Challenges Hindering Safe Bitumen Transport in India
The elephant in the room – Theft, pilferage, and unauthorized access
Majority of the bitumen containers in India uses the traditional vehicle tracking method and traditional locks. This is a cakewalk situation for cargo thieves.
Cargo thieves can easily break the lock and steal the shipments. You might lose critical contact in remote areas or in the event of breakdowns etc. Your outdated methods cannot detect any unauthorized access to your materials which can be done by your rivals or by any outsider.
In such scenarios, you will lose your valuable bitumen shipments, face delays in the delivery of shipments, lose critical trade information, and above all it will definitely tarnish your business reputation.
The worrying theft trend in the construction sector
The BSI and TT Club Cargo Theft Report 2022 reveals concerning statistics about cargo theft, particularly in the construction materials sector. Construction materials constitute 7% of the overall thefts worldwide, making it one of the top five targeted commodities. Among various modes of transportation, road transportation stands out as the most vulnerable, accounting for a staggering 65% of total theft incidents.
India accounts for 52% of cargo theft in Asia. The common modus operandi, identified by the report, was either by paying or coercing transport truck drivers by criminal groups to reroute their normal route to alternative locations. In such scenarios, goods such as bitumen are most vulnerable.
Bituminous movement through vulnerable areas
North India accounted for the major Indian bitumen market share in 2018. Unfortunately, it is also a hotspot for cargo thefts, as highlighted in the Cargo Theft report. The state of Uttar Pradesh accounts for almost a quarter of the overall reported thefts.
The government is currently expanding the road network in North-Eastern and Naxal-affected areas. So, any bituminous transportation, especially bitumen drums to or through these areas will have a high probability of theft.
For example, in February this year, two members murdered the truck driver and stole a consignment of bitumen being transported from Guwahati Refinery to Tura in Meghalaya.
Other issues with bitumen shipping
- Bitumen drums are an easy solution for projects that require less bitumen, such as road repairs or maintenance work. But this also makes them an easy target for cargo thieves and hamper intermittent deliveries of bitumen required for the project. Complicating matters, once stolen, these drums are challenging to trace and easily concealed by thieves.
- Bitumen containers offer a more flexible option for transportation and can be used to deliver to multiple locations. But bitumen containers can also be stolen and there are examples as well.
Securing Bitumen Transport: GPS E-Lock Advantage
Track your bitumen transportation in real-time with GPS E-locks
FleetRobo, an IoT and Telematics product from Binary Semantics, equips your Supply Chain Manager or Transport Coordinator with the e-Locks which has the ability to track bitumen containers with precision. This ensures real-time visibility of container details, including current location, speed, last milestone reached, estimated time of arrival, and more.
You can also get notifications in case of any unforeseen events such as accidents, mechanical failures, etc. This allows you to respond swiftly reducing downtime and ensuring the timely delivery of your valuable cargo.
Geo-fence your bitumen shipping
Predefined areas can be geo-fenced with a GPS container lock. Your bitumen container drivers cannot divert from their normal route to alternative locations. If they do, then your Security & Maintenance Manager will get immediate notification. Thereby, preventing the common modus operandi of criminal groups.
Reap the benefits of Dual Sim Mechanism in vulnerable areas
The e-lock has been embedded with Dual Sim operation for tracking. The benefit of that is you never miss an update at any given point. This will be handy for you especially in the cross-border movement of bitumen or any bitumen transportation in vulnerable areas such as Naxal-affected areas.
Transporting Bitumen to remote locations
For any bitumen container transportation to remote areas especially North-Eastern and Hilly areas, the e-lock can be operated through Bluetooth and password based. So, with FleetRobo’s GPS E-lock, you are covered for each and every safety hazard.
Customize your alerts based on your bitumen transportation
GPS E-Locks provide a range of alarm options including lock string cut-off, unlock, lock, tamper, wrong password, and back cover open alarms. Thereby allowing you to configure the system to meet your specific needs such as bitumen drums and containers.
Unparalleled efficiency and 24*7 support to your safe bitumen transportation
FleetRobo’s GPS E-lock is waterproof has an IP67 rating and is also waterproof, dustproof, and shockproof. So it is optimal for your bitumen transfer throughout any climatic condition.
The e-lock has unparalleled resistance to breakage and uncompromising strength and comprises a tamper-proof design. The e-lock has a 20% increase in Operational Efficiency when compared to its counterparts. So far, it has prevented more than 15000 Pilferage / Theft.
Above all our support team will provide you with unmatched support/ virtual assistance for your safe bitumen transportation 24*7 in multiple languages.
Also read, How gps E-lock work?
Mastering Bitumen Transport: How to Stay Ahead
Binary Semantics’ FleetRobo goes beyond just the GPS E-lock, offering a wide range of cutting-edge technological solutions to tackle the challenges of the 21st century. With our comprehensive fuel monitoring system you can enhance your fleet efficiency. Our Logistics Process Automation devoid your manual intervention in logistics. Consignment tracking offers Multimodal Tracking & Monitoring of your consignment, etc.
These innovations have significantly improved supply chain efficiency, reduced cargo theft and pilferage, and ensured quicker response times in fleet management across industries. The bitumen sector, in particular, has seen tremendous benefits from adopting these technologies. Now, it’s your turn to embrace FleetRobo’s solutions and elevate your bitumen transport operations to the next level.
