SiGEM Inc., involved in in global wireless location and vehicle/asset tracking, has announced deals with St. Louis County Cab of St. Louis, Mo., and the Diamond Taxicab Association of Toronto, Ontario, for orders of its newest mobile data terminal product, ePiNG Emerald(TM), and the latest version of its ePiNG Enterprise(TM) fleet management software. SiGEM will equip all St. Louis County Cab and Diamond Taxicab Association vehicles with what it calls "the only system on the market that uses GPS technology to enable fleet managers to automatically dispatch the closest vehicle to the caller and, at the same time, dispatch vehicles that have been booked into a zone." ePiNG Emerald features a large display and numeric keypad that enables two-way communication for drivers to receive and send text messages from their vehicles. The product works with the ePiNG Enterprise system to enable fleet managers to know exactly where each vehicle is so they can manage and customize the dispatch process to best suit their business needs, according to SiGEM. In addition to efficiency, driver security is also a concern for taxi companies. The City of Toronto recently passed legislation requiring all taxi companies to install some kind of approved security device in their cabs. SiGEM is one of only three Global Positioning System/Automatic Vehicle Location approved suppliers, because of the emergency tracking feature that ePiNG Enterprise offers. This feature provides drivers with a method to activate the system and alert the monitoring center if they need help. The monitoring center will then coordinate with a police force, who will know exactly where the vehicles are because of the in-vehicle GPS radio. "This system gives our company peace of mind because the GPS capability enables us to send police to the exact location of the drivers if they need help," said Jim Bell, general manager of Diamond Taxicab Association. "SiGEM's system also allows us to reduce the average operator's time per call by 40 percent, and over 80 percent of the calls do not require any calltaker changes to the order being taken. ePiNG Emerald and ePiNG Enterprise enable us to dispatch the closest vehicle at all times, which keeps our customers happy and our return on investment high." ePiNG Emerald and ePiNG Enterprise allow fleet managers to control the traffic of taxis, limousines and transit vehicles. SiGEM integrates every aspect of a complete product offering, including manufacturing, design and supply of hardware and software, in addition to 24/7 training and support, according to Bell. ePiNG Emerald includes three serial ports that allow for the addition of peripheral devices such as printers, credit card or smart card readers, and debit card pin pads. "We are using every aspect of this end-to-end fleet management system, including credit card swipes and printers so our drivers can process receipts for customers," said Basil Rudawsky, general manager of St. Louis County Cab. "In the beginning we will dispatch drivers by zone, but the technology allows us to switch to closest call whenever it makes sense - the fact that we can easily change the configuration at any time is a tremendous value-add for the company." "Diamond Taxi and St. Louis County Cab are leaders in adopting GPS-based technology for security and efficiency," said Herb Woods, president and CEO of SiGEM. "SiGEM's long history of innovation and our customer-focused approach keep us top of mind in the transportation market. We have the most mind share and a proven track record in this growing industry." About SiGEM SiGEM, based in Kanata, Canada, with offices in Arizona and the UK, (www.sigem.com) develops and markets hardware, software and services for the global wireless location-tracking industry. Its patented products utilize GPS and wireless communications technologies for cost effective, energy efficient, two-way location tracking and messaging, according to Herb Woods, president and CEO. SiGEM provides its ePiNG tracking services for a range of applications over private networks and the open Internet. The company's mission is to improve the productivity and security of its customers and business partners, according to Woods. SiGEM provides tracking solutions for the transportation, insurance and consumer markets.
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