NZ glass manufacturer AGP tracks delivery trolleys with IoT technology

The Internet of Things (IoT) is helping New Zealand glass manufacturer Architectural Glass Products (AGP) with round-the-clock tracking of its products and delivery trolleys, leading to minimised asset losses and enhanced customer service.

AGP has installed low-cost IoT tracking devices to its 1,750 purpose-built delivery trolleys, which communicate over Thinxtra’s low power wide area network (LP WAN), known as the 0G Network.

This allows the glass manufacturer to track assets in real-time, so they can be retrieved efficiently to maintain its four-day order-to-delivery service.

“Before AGP came to market, the time from ordering the glass to delivery was unpredictable, and customers never quite knew specifically when their products would arrive,” said Gene Sanford, a spokesperson at AGP.

“We have completely disrupted the market by delivering in four days,” Sanford revealed.

Rather than resorting to the time consuming task of counting assets on a map with a basic GPS solution, he said they have a dashboard and data that inform which customer has the trolleys and how long they have had them, enabling AGP to quickly take action to maintain their high service levels.

“Our customers’ cash flow can be improved significantly knowing their supply will be delivered on time; getting our assets back quickly to fulfil the next set of orders helps mitigate any knock-on effect that might impact them,” he said.

Pollin8, a New Zealand technology service provider, supplied the IoT devices to AGP’s delivery trolleys.

The devices record data location at all times, including where GPS signals are unavailable.

Through the 0G network operated by Thinxtra information, the information is relayed to AGP in real-time using web and mobile applications in an easy-to-understand format.

Pollin8 CEO Nick Pickering said that although GPS based tracking solutions have been available for powered vehicles for decades, IoT has introduced the capability to deliver tracking of non-powered assets using devices with long battery life in an affordable manner and at scale.

“That means we can provide AGP with not only around the clock tracking, but tailor the solution to its unique business requirements now and as its business expands in the future,” Pickering said.

According to AGP, the combined IoT solution was “extremely cost-effective” and suited the manufacturer’s plans for continued expansion.

The devices are quick to install, and the 0G Network allows AGP to simply connect the sensors to the IoT without needing to invest in building or maintaining any communications infrastructure.

“Since foundation, AGP has built a highly-sophisticated operation underscored by incredible efficiency, which has catapulted the company to the pinnacle of glass supply in NZ,” said Nicholas Lambrou, CEO at Thinxtra.

“By bringing IoT into the mix from a very early stage, AGP gained granular visibility over the assets responsible for safely transporting its glass products to a fast-growing network of customers, avoiding unnecessary losses, and maintaining its stringent customer service level agreements,” Lambrou said.

Craig Weise, CEO of New Zealand Green Investment Finance (NZGIF), said the combination of IoT devices and data has created a tremendous opportunity to reduce carbon emissions.

“With the ability to better track vehicles and assets, organisations can reduce their environment impact by optimising fleets and routing to shorten time on the road, while avoiding waste from lost assets,” Weise said.

“It’s great to see Thinxtra continuing to partner with companies to help them achieve efficiencies and reduce their carbon impact.”