Equipment Theft on the Rise

Ontario Provincial Police estimate that 15 to 20 million dollars worth of heavy construction equipment is stolen in that province alone each year. According to CBC News, across Canada the cost to the industry for heavy equipment theft is estimated at 46 million dollars per year. Organized crime has moved onto building sites, CBC says, and as a result, stolen Canadian equipment and materials are ending up everywhere from Russia to the Middle East.

Individual thieves and crime rings whose sole business is stealing heavy equipment access unattended jobsites, load equipment onto trailers and haul it away to resell to unsuspecting buyers, or dismantle the equipment to sell the parts, or they illegally export the heavy equipment to buyers overseas.

Commercial owners who rig their heavy equipment with LoJack C, a construction equipment and commercial vehicle recovery solution, can take effective, proactive and timely measures to avoid the hassle, cost and downtime associated with heavy equipment theft.

LoJack C uses self-powered Radio Frequency (RF) technology and unique integration with law enforcement agencies to track and recover stolen equipment. LoJack developed the technology more than two decades ago and have since helped recover more than 300,000 vehicles, valued at $4 billion worldwide.

LoJack Canada’s 24/7 dedicated inhouse tracking team can locate and recover stolen heavy equipment quickly – very often before thieves have sufficient time to damage, dismantle or transport the asset far away from a site.

Typical heavy equipment assets rigged with LoJack C include backhoe loaders, wheel loaders, skid-steer loaders, air compressors, generators, welders, mini excavators, light towers, fork lifts, scissor lifts, light utility trucks, work trucks and trailers.

The LoJack C unit is covertly located on the equipment asset. It is ruggedized, reinforced and water-resistant. Plus, it is self-powered and does not require connection to the asset’s battery.

LoJack system is cost effective

Due to the prevalence of international theft rings operating across borders today, LoJack C is a cost-effective investment for construction companies. It is available to heavy equipment owners and construction equipment rental companies for one single payment. There are no annual service fees, and no additional service fees of any kind. It offers a 5-year limited parts and labour warranty, and ownership can be transferred with the asset.

Here is just a small, representative sampling of recoveries made in 2014 in Canada using LoJack C.

The owner of a 2005 Kubota R520S wheel loader, valued at $42,000, called the LoJack Canada security central department, which operates 24/7, 365 days a year, to report his equipment stolen. It was last seen on a construction site in Lavaltrie, Quebec. The LoJack C technology made it possible to track the equipment; it was quickly located and recovered in Rawdon, Quebec.

An International Eagle 9400i valued at $40,000 was also stolen and recovered in Montreal. The owner of this truck called the LoJack Canada security central department to report his vehicle stolen. Using LoJack technology, the vehicle was located and then returned to the authorities in less than 30 minutes.

Another LoJack client called the Lo- Jack Canada security central department to report the theft of his 2010 Caterpillar 216B3 skid steer loader, valued at $27,500. The machinery was last seen on a construction site in Ottawa. Once again, the Caterpillar machine was recovered in less than 24 hours.

Frequently, the recovery of one stolen asset leads to the recovery of another. For instance, a Multiquip DCA 20SPX Generator, valued at $6,000, and a 2005 Olympian generator, valued at $4,000 – both stolen on a jobsite in Castleton, Ontario in February – were recovered by LoJack Canada tracking technicians in Grafton, Ontario in less than 24 hours. On the scene, Ontario Provincial Police investigators also found a John Deere 920F combine harvester, valued at $165,000, which had been stolen in the Barrie, Ontario area.

Rental fleets

Installing a covert LoJack C unit on heavy equipment is particularly costeffective and beneficial for larger heavy equipment rental companies. More and more construction business owners are opting to rent construction equipment, since this is less capital intensive than buying. While this boosts business for the rental firms, it also makes their equipment loss exposure greater. Many renters aren’t as likely to take precautions to protect equipment that does not belong to them. So, equipment is often most vulnerable to thieves in the hands of renters.

However, the rental companies aren’t the only ones to absorb the impact of their stolen equipment. Cost ramifications for renters, when rental equipment is stolen on their “watch,” can range from business downtime and insurance deductibles to having to replace the piece of equipment – a cost that could put a small contractor out of business.

Today’s contractors frequently collaborate on a single jobsite and jointly rent heavy equipment. This can be a nightmare in terms of managing and tracking construction equipment assets. Equipment that is not tracked is an easy target for thieves, particularly on weekends and holidays when most thefts occur.

A cost-effective solution to all these challenges is for rental companies to install covert tracking devices on all their heavy equipment.