SiGEM Inc., a provider of low-power wireless location tracking systems and products, has announced the launch of ePiNG(TM) Echo, a product that can provide integrated GPS and two-way data communications to monitor vehicles over the Internet. Fleet managers can log onto the Internet to monitor the location of their vehicles; generate productivity reports for information on vehicle location, travel time and speed; and give vehicle drivers access to a panic button that can be programmed to alert certain paging devices and PCS phones once it is activated. Drivers can also lock down their vehicles so that if a vehicle moves after it is parked, the driver and fleet manager are notified immediately. This new product is the first in the ePiNG family of mobile devices, a line of products SiGEM is designing to provide a range of wireless location tracking applications to consumers and enterprises. ePiNG Echo is an in-vehicle location and telematics platform that comes in two main configurations: an integrated version that combines SiGEM's 12-channel GPS engine and application platform with an internal wireless radio modem; and a standalone version that is designed to work with a range of external radio modems on systems such as the MPT1327 trunked radio standard. ePiNG Echo will significantly enhance mobile worker productivity and asset utilization by enabling fleet managers to view, manage and geographically track their assets in real-time on SiGEM's ePiNG web server, according to Herb Woods, president and CEO of SiGEM. "The launch of our ePiNG family of mobile devices represents a breakthrough in price, performance and flexibility for wireless location solutions and we're seeing tremendous interest in the world marketplace for these products," Woods said. "We're currently working with a number of major VARs, system integrators and end users who are excited to support and deploy this new suite of location services in large numbers in 2001." ePiNG Echo is designed to work on a variety of wireless networks and will first work on the Cellemetry(R) Data Service and on GSM in Europe. The Cellemetry Data Service has the largest wireless communications footprint in North America, serving the continental United States, Canada and Mexico, while GSM serves Europe, Asia and, increasingly, North America and South America. SiGEM is currently working to make the product available on a wider range of networks, such as CDPD. Customers who use ePiNG Echo will have access to the ePiNG Web-hosted application service which presents location information in a graphical map-based format or in a digital report. Customers are given access to a password-protected site that is customized so that they can log on and view only the vehicles or assets they need to see. ePiNG Echo also works in a traditional client-server environment, meaning that companies can use a call center to monitor mobile assets and respond to emergency situations in real-time. The launch of ePiNG Echo is a step forward in SiGEM's effort to develop a miniature personal and asset tracking ePiNG device that will be available to individual users from wireless carriers. Integral to this effort is the support of a development program with the Bell Wireless Alliance/TELUS Mobility/CANARIE wireless investment consortium. In January 2000, SiGEM was chosen as one of nine innovative emerging Canadian companies to benefit from contracts under phase one of the Wireless Telecommunications R&D Investment Program. "This is a major milestone in the development of cost-effective products to track assets and people," said Jean Barrette, Director of Research and Development for Bell Mobility. "We are excited about the potential for the ePiNG Family of Products within the emerging telematics market, which will bring peace of mind to fleet and mobile asset managers in the near term, and to groups like parents and the elderly in the future. Bell Mobility is proud to be involved with a company like SiGEM that is using Canadian talent and innovation to further initiatives in the wireless domain." About SiGEM SiGEM, based in Kanata, Ontario, Canada, (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 low power, two-way location tracking and messaging. SiGEM provides its ePiNG tracking services for a range of applications over private networks and the open Internet.