Knowledge is power, and with its tracker and logger devices Emerson Cargo Solutions is trying to provide as much of both to help its customers maintain food freshness and food quality during transit. 
Emerson’s trackers use cell technology to transmit data in real-time, “so customers can make decisions based on the alerts they are seeing,” said Matt Neidlinger, director of product management cargo solutions for Emerson. Emerson has a full-range of trackers available, from basic to high-tech.
There is the single-use, cost-effective way to monitor temperature, that can be disposed of after the load reaches its destination. “Emerson offers a recycling program on that product where if you send it back to us we give you a reward (X dollars per unit),” said Neidlinger.
The other option is a reusable or subscription-based model. There is a sim card inside the tracker and there are data fees associated. “Sometimes it can be a challenge for shippers to get the units back, but if they can get them back they recharge it, reactivate the same serial number and use it again and again,” said Neidlinger. “Ultimately the cost per load comes way down.”
However, Neidlinger said the biggest selling point for this product is CO2. “The CO2 basically puts the fruit to sleep,” he said. “For a retailer that means there is that much more shelf life that the fruit can have.”
Neidlinger said the true value in Emerson’s trackers and loggers is data. “More and more of our customers are looking at ways to integrate our data,” he said. “So we now offer a service where we partner with them to integrate our data into their system.”
Customers can be as hands-on or hands-off as they choose. Neidlinger said that for those that want the hands-off approach Emerson will do the tracking and monitoring, will call the customer if there are alerts and offer the data analytics that go with it.
“Its not just about the widget anymore, it is about the data we provide,” said Neidlinger. “So they can take whatever meaningful actions they want to take.”
