The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO

State News

Discussion

December 31, 2007

Tracking devices beneficial to business owners

The Associated Press

EDMOND, Okla. — Keeping an eye on people’s movements is big business to Jerry and Cindy Hunter of Edmond, owners of USFleetTracking Co. in Oklahoma City.

The Hunters sell equipment and service to track vehicles of all types across the world. Their small dashboard-mounted receiver/transmitter uses Global Positioning System technology and reports the vehicle’s position on computer screens.

Those who purchase the system can even receive e-mail or text message updates on a vehicle’s location.

Jerry Hunter holds two doctorates, one in software engineering and design and one in circuit design. For eight years before establishing USFleetTracking Co., he built 911 emergency dispatch systems.

Now his devices are used on automobiles, trucks, helicopters, small aircraft and other forms of transportation in places as far removed as Australia, Iceland and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office is one of many law enforcement and emergency response agencies that use the technology.

Other customers include construction companies, charitable organizations, landscapers and road departments virtually anyone who owns a fleet of vehicles.

“About 85 percent of our market is businesses,” Hunter said. “I can’t imagine having a business without having something like this.”

Hunter said USFleetTracking typically can give business owners a return on investment in less than one month, thanks to reclaimed time and mileage.

Hunter cited one Louisiana police department that reclaimed their expense in fewer than three days. The department found their officers were taking patrol vehicles home and spending time there between calls.

“Those are your tax dollars at work,” Hunter said.

Parents also use the devices to monitor their teenage drivers; wives and husbands purchase the units to keep tabs on one another’s whereabouts.

“The driver has no clue it’s there,” Hunter said.

Competitors’ systems usually update information every 1 to 5 minutes, or in increments of up to four hours. Hunter’s device updates as often as every second. Purchasers can view the vehicle’s activity in real time or replay up to 90 days worth of history.

The service has tracked buses and limousines for security at the Super Bowl and will be on all University of Oklahoma buses at the upcoming Fiesta Bowl. It’s placed on airport buses and on government vehicles across the country.

Hunter said he occasionally hears a complaint from employees about invasion of privacy.

“But if it’s my time (at stake), it’s my business,” he said.

And that business is booming; 18 months ago, Hunter said he was the company’s only employee.

Now the company has 12 workers, is outgrowing its second site, and doubles the number of vehicles using the technology every 2.5 weeks.

“We’ve just seen dynamite growth,” Hunter said.

USFleetTracking is working in partnership with U.S. Cellular and is in discussions with AT&T; and Alltel Wireless.

“That will push us literally into the stratosphere,” Hunter said.

Text Only
State News
  • Lions climb into share of MIAA men's basketball lead

    Without taking the floor, Missouri Southern has climbed into a first-place tie in the MIAA men’s basketball race.

    February 22, 2012

  • 2.6 magnitude earthquake recorded in Oklahoma

    The U.S. Geological Survey has recorded a 2.6 magnitude earthquake near Wellston in central Oklahoma.
    No injuries or damage is reported.

    January 19, 2011

  • Audit: $108,000 taken from Missouri Veterans Commission JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A former employee of the state auditor’s office embezzled nearly $108,000 while working as an accountant for the Missouri Veterans Commission, the state auditor alleged Monday.

    Stacy Griffin-Lowery was fired by the Veterans Commission in March 2008 and pleaded guilty three months later to a misdemeanor theft charge. She repaid the state $17,665, the auditor’s office said.

    But Missouri Auditor Susan Montee on Monday accused Griffin-Lowery of swiping an additional $90,192 by getting reimbursed for cash advances and purchases made on her personal credit card.

    April 12, 2010

  • Race in Kansas’ 2nd District could heat up for GOP incumbent TOPEKA, Kan. — A conservative Kansas legislator said Monday he will announce in a few weeks whether he will challenge freshman U.S. Rep. Lynn Jenkins in the Republican primary.

    State Sen. Dennis Pyle’s actions in recent months suggest the Hiawatha farmer, who’s served in the Legislature since 2001, is running against Jenkins in the Aug. 2 primary. He set up a campaign organization in November and has a Web site featuring a brief video of him on his farm, asking viewers for support.

    April 12, 2010

  • Oklahoma tea party leaders, lawmakers envision militia OKLAHOMA CITY — Frustrated by recent political setbacks, tea party leaders and some conservative members of the Oklahoma Legislature say they would like to create a new volunteer militia to help defend against what they believe are improper federal infringements on state sovereignty.

    Tea party movement leaders say they’ve discussed the idea with several supportive lawmakers and hope to get legislation next year to recognize a new volunteer force

    April 12, 2010

  • Missouri: Senate panel cuts $500 million from proposed budget JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A Senate committee declared Thursday that it has sliced more than $500 million from Missouri’s proposed budget for next year — meeting a target set by Gov. Jay Nixon to bring it in balance.

    April 8, 2010

  • Kansas: Wichita-area casino in doubt after governor’s decision TOPEKA, Kan. — A proposed casino south of Wichita was in doubt Thursday after Gov. Mark Parkinson refused to grant its developers a regulatory reprieve. Partners in the $225 million Chisholm Creek project wanted to delay a state board’s decision on their plans.

    April 8, 2010

  • Oklahoma: Groups oppose education spending initiative OKLAHOMA CITY — A coalition of business and labor groups said Thursday it will work to defeat a ballot initiative to dramatically increase spending on public education that coalition members said would devastate the budgets of many other state services and possibly force tax increases.

    April 8, 2010

  • Missouri: Gov. Nixon affirms support for tuition freeze COLUMBIA, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has no plans to sit idly while lawmakers consider whether to preserve a tuition freeze deal he assembled before the state’s dire financial status was fully known.

    April 7, 2010

  • Kansas: Agency uses YouTube to illustrate road woes TOPEKA, Kan. — It’s one thing to hear about potholes and state budgets. It’s another to see how the two are connected. That’s part of the thinking behind a new video presentation on YouTube this week from the Kansas Department of Transportation.

    April 7, 2010