Meitrack USA is a GPS tracking company who manufacture personal and vehicle trackers as well as providing OEM and fleet management solutions, working across a range of industries. In this week’s GPS Bites’ interview we took some time to speak to Iris Cai, the president of the Meitrack USA. In the interview Iris talks about the challenges that have faced the company, plans for the future, and how the changing landscape of the telecomms industry has impacted the way in which they work.
1. Hello Iris Cai, thanks for agreeing to be interviewed by GPS Bites. In your role as President at Meitrack USA could you give our readers a little bit of insight into what the job entails?
Sure, to put it simply, my primary job responsibility at Meitrack USA, is overseeing all aspects of the business. From Research and Development to the Manufacturing of our products, it’s my role to ensure that the entire organization is running efficiently. I have to devise strategic plans that will generate growth and revenue, create opportunities for emerging businesses, and help the company remain competitive in the marketplace.
2. During your time working in the GPS tracking industry, what have been the biggest changes and challenges that the organization company has had to adapt and react to and why?
This is a great question. One of the biggest challenges we had to face and adapt to, is the development of the Telecommunications Industry. Since all of our products rely on the GSM network for use, any changes or regulations implemented with any Wireless Service Provider affects our entire business. When we introduced our first GPS Tracker, we were faced with high cost for data usage. Data usage was still in its infancy in the early 2000’s and it was nearly impossible for any consumer to afford such data costs. The growing Smartphone Industry really helped us compete in the marketplace as data usage became more common among consumers and prices were becoming more affordable. And we were wrong.
Although, the growing Smartphone Industry helped reduced the high cost of data for consumers, it presented more challenges than it helped. Today, if you pull your Smartphone out of your pocket, that Smartphone is most likely using GPS technology. We now have apps on our phones that provide location services that reduces the need for personal tracking. So, in order for Meitrack USA to stay competitive, we needed to create new products that offered features not currently found on Smartphone’s. Such features are Listening-in (voice monitoring), Track by time interval, track by distance interval and tons more.
We are in a whole different market now and we can no longer offer location based services. We need to continue and institute new features for a tech savvy society.
3. How was Meitrack originally conceived and started, and where do you see the company developing over the next few years?
Meitrack was originally started in 2002 as an idea by Mr. Kejian Liu who founded Shenzhen Meiligao Electronics Co. Ltd. in Shenzhen, China. Mr. Liu who currently holds the title as CEO and has a background in hardware engineering, asked himself, “what product can I develop that can revolutionize the GPS industry?”.
After U.S. Congress authorized the global modernization effort of GPS technology in 2000, Mr. Liu jumped on the opportunity and sought to create a solution to a growing problem in many developing countries. Homicides, Missing Children, Robberies, Alzheimer’s, etc, are all words that encompass and describe the foundation of our first GPS personal tracker developed and manufactured in China; the GT60.
Today, we have expanded our global operations into US shores under the corporate name Meitek Inc. We continue to pioneer the latest and greatest advancements in GPS Technology and market a large portfolio of quality products for homes, businesses, and vehicles under the Meitrack brand. We have also grown to become the largest manufacturer and exporter of GPS tracking products in China.
We see there is tremendous growth in this market and over the next few years, we plan to continue expanding our operations in more emerging countries. We plan to open an R&D department in Taiwan over the next several months to further research new technology that we can incorporate to our already extensive product portfolio.
Meitrack is inspired by growth and innovation and that pretty much sums-up where we see our company heading the next few years.
4. Is there one particular customer testimonial or story that highlights an innovative or interesting way in which the Meitrack GPS tracking products and solutions have been used?
Yes. What inspires Meitrack to continue pushing for innovative products is the feedback we get from many of our consumers. It’s not easy to create such a great product that everyone will love. Stories are told, we know our product has changed many lives -that is the most rewarding aspect of this business.
5. The company has already placed GPS tracking products in over 25 countries. What have been the greatest challenges to the company during this period (for example GPS functionality on smartphones)?
One of the biggest challenges we’ve encountered at Meitrack, was creating a universal product that everyone will love. A product that is easily adaptable in multiple industries.
We introduced the MT90 as a Portable GPS Tracker in November of 2011. It took many trial and errors in order to get the product just right. Many of our engineers had to go back to the drawing board and it took nearly 2 years to produce the first prototypes. We wanted to create a product that encompassed useful features for an over growing population- and we succeeded.
When the MT90 first launched, we were amazed as to how people were incorporating our product in daily use. We launched the MT90 with the elderly in mind. Several months after its launch date, we heard stories from many of our consumers in more than 25 countries who adapted the device in other applications. Our device is currently being used for Elderly, Children, Pets, Helicopters, Luggage, Cargo, Law Enforcement, and so on…
The extensive research done on the MT90 has succeeded beyond our expectations. We were faced with many challenges, but we created a product that everyone loves and will remember for generations to come.
6. Which is the best selling GPS tracking device that you manufacture and what are the stand out features and functionality that it includes?
The best selling device in our portfolio is the MVT380 gps tracker. This is a great product and we are very happy with it. The MVT380 offers many features for consumer and companies who need to keep tabs on family, vehicles, employees and more. The MVT380 offers:
- Track by SMS / Mobile Phone
- Track on Demand
- Track by Distance Interval
- Inbuilt Tremble Sensor
- Speeding, Impact, Tow Alarm
- Mileage Report
- Engine Cut
- and dozens more features
7. What’s coming soon from Meitrack? Do you have any products or plans for the future that you can tell the readers of GPS Bites about?
Meitrack USA will be showcasing the Revolutionary TC68 and Z1 Vehicle Trackers in Las Vegas at CES 2013. The TC68 and the Z1 are cutting edge vehicle trackers that are set to revolutionize the GPS tracking industry. At CES 2013 consumers can look forward to live demos of our GPS products in action. We will teach customers how to draw a geo-fence and explain specific details about each product’s features and functions. We’re super excited!
Want to Know More? For more information on GPS Manufacturer Meitrack USA please visit their website on www.meitrackusa.com