of trackers are all that is found when police
arrive at the last known location of a stolen
asset. Often the theft is realised only after
the assets have already left the country,
with a trashed tracker or the remnants of
scratched-off markings.”
With an estimated R40-billion worth
of in-demand movable assets currently
having no record and hundreds travelling
into Africa every week, the scope for
SAMAR is substantial.
“One of the biggest challenges for
border officials is the lack of a system to
systematically check an asset as it arrives,
whether it’s going in the right direction,
is in the hands of the right people, and
is heading to a legitimate destination,”
Dutton elaborates.
“As SAMAR has been designed to
cover the entire life of an asset, the names
of both the titleholder and owner are
maintained and updated in real time. It
also provides a certificate of registration
that is similar in look and feel to that
issued by eNaTIS.”
18
JULY 2018
Use of the SAMAR app promises to
streamline the border-crossing process
significantly.
Having secured the support of all the
major banks, each of which completes
up to 45 000 new financing deals a year,
running into billions of rands, business
for SAMAR is destined to be brisk. The
team is still heavily in marketing mode,
says Dutton, with efforts to bring on board
the smaller banks. “To ensure complete
success in management of commercial
assets, every financial institution and
importer of equipment should be signed
up,” he says.
The next step — one scheduled for
completion by the end of the year — is the
launch of a website on which customers
can manage their ‘garages’, whether
commercial or private, through sales and
changes in ownership.
In an industry populated by valuable
assets, clearly the SAMAR team is setting
itself up to become an asset that is not
only valuable, but indispensable. ■
BUSINESS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Susan Unsworth has wielded a pen for
more than 35 years. Initially with The Star,
she has written for numerous consumer
and trade publications and survived a long
stint in public relations. In 20 years of
freelancing, she has tackled hundreds of
corporate and government assignments
and believes that words, regardless of
subject matter, should have personality,
and strives to make hers a breeze to read.