With the machine-to-machine market projected to boom in the coming years, Numerex Corp. is finding a simple way to sell its services to potential customers: The “Numerex DNA” stands for device, network and applications. The company aims to deliver all three to customers, regardless the size of the business.
Numerex recently won a contract to launch its vehicle tracking service at Geomoto, a Dallas-based fleet-tracking company. Jeffrey Smith, Numerex CTO, said it took 60 days for Numerex to get Geomoto up and running.
Geomoto customers plug in a small box into a vehicle’s onboard diagnostic system. With the small black box installed, computer software is used to track fleets of vehicles.
Mike Field, Geomoto’s owner, said Numerex not only provided a device that can be self-installed, but the company also handles billing, shipping and inventory. “As much as I can get off my plate to someone I trust, I will do,” Field said.
Watch a demonstration of the installation of Geomoto’s tracking device.
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Source: Geomoto
Geomoto caters to small companies that have fleets between 10 and 100 vehicles, Field said, filling a gap in the market where these businesses can pay a reasonable rate to track their vehicles without having to pay for installation fees or extra features.
“Numerex provides some good tools and the flexibility of what I think is a unique product for the market,” he said.
Numerex’s Smith said Geomoto is a good example of the “Numerex DNA” in that the company can provide solutions, services and consultative support for the entire M2M lifecycle. The Numerex network has the capacity to handle millions of devices simultaneously, Smith said. Thus, Numerex can work with small companies like Geomoto or Fortune 5000 corporations. The company can help businesses get into the M2M market, provide services to companies already in M2M or help large corporations expand into different markets.
A bourgeoning market
Businesses looking to be more efficient in their operations are driving the M2M space, even as the hardware and network costs continue to decrease. Strategy Analytics predicts the mobile M2M communications market is set to grow from less than $16 billion in 2008 to more than $57 billion by 2014.
Numerex plans to focus its attention on a few key segments within the M2M ecosystem: asset tracking; security for homes and businesses; government and emergency agencies; and healthcare and utilities, according to Numerex CEO Stratton Nicolaides.
“We need to be careful that we don’t go after every opportunity,” he said. “We need to stay clearly focused.”
Numerex has been around since the mid 1980s, but first ventured into the M2M space in 1992, when it acquired derived-channel technology, which enabled data transmissions over existing telephone lines without interfering with voice communications. In 1998, the company teamed up with BellSouth and BellSouth Wireless, which later became Cingular (and then bought by AT&T Inc.). The companies formed Cellemetry L.L.C., which provided a two-way wireless data communications network throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and portions of Latin America.
In 2003, Numerex bought Cingular’s interest in Cellemetry and in recent years acquired other companies to bolster its position in the market. In 2006, the company bought the assets of Airdesk, which included wireless data solutions and network access. In 2007, Numerex bought assets of Orbit One Communications, which provided satellite data products and services to the government and emergency agencies.
Today the company counts 130 workers. Nicolaides said 2007 was a breakout year for Numerex, when it generated $68 million in revenues. The company reported revenues of $52.8 million in 2006 and $29.9 million in 2005.
