Globalstar
Europe Satellite Services Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Globalstar,
Inc. (NYSE MKT: GSAT) today announced that farmers have deployed a
new Globalstar IoT technology solution to track and protect thousands of
reindeer in the north of Finland and Sweden.
Since trialling its ReindeerApp and collar less than a year ago,
newly-signed Globalstar Value Added Reseller PrismaQuality
Finland has seen rapid uptake among reindeer herd owners whose
livestock roam fence-free in Scandinavia’s vast northern hinterland.
ReindeerApp enables farmers to keep track of their herds, and helps
mitigate losses from predators such as wolves and bears. The user
interface which PrismaQualityFinland developed notifies herders when a
deer is no longer moving, and thanks to Globalstar’s extensive satellite
coverage and accuracy, the farmer knows exactly where to go to check on
the animals.
Petter Kroneld, Product Development Manager of PrismaQuality Finland,
says, ”When farmers asked us to develop a tracking collar for their
reindeer, we knew right away that satellite connectivity would be
essential to deliver the reach we needed. We designed the collar around SmartOne
C due to its satellite coverage, superior battery life, small size
and low cost.”
The SmartOne C’s long battery power means farmers need only change the
collars’ batteries during the annual round-up in June, when herds get
health checks and new-born fawns are marked to identify who owns them.
Reindeer husbandry has been carried out in Lapland, Northern Finland,
and across the northern Scandianvian region by indigenous Sami
communities for over a millennium. Descendents of these original
reindeer farmers continue that tradition today, however modern farming
principles are being increasingly adopted. There is huge economic value
from the 200,000 reindeer in Finland including the sale of meat and
products made from skin and leather, horn and bone.
Reindeer tracking systems based on GSM have been trialled in the past,
but inadequate reliability in remote regions, higher price and poor
battery life made these systems ineffective.
Beyond Finland, ReindeerApp is also now being used in Sweden, where
there are 250,000 reindeer. Deployments are also expected in Norway, as
well as in Canada to track caribou, and to manage other deer species in
Nepal and Mongolia.
”Satellite IoT is transforming industries of all kinds, and applications
are limited only by human imagination,” says Robert Clarke, Regional
Sales Manager at Globalstar. ”Our state-of-the-art IoT technology,
combined with our worldwide fleet of satellites in Low Earth Orbit, is
now helping reindeer farmers preserve their livelihoods and their
traditional way of life.”
About PrismaQuality Finland
PrismaQuality Finland is a Finnish IoT service and hardware provider.
The company´s goal is to provide customers with complete IoT solutions
from concept-level to fully developed intelligent systems with hundreds
of sensors and several mobile apps. Major companies in Finland, and
customers around the world, rely on PrismaQuality Finland as their
collaborative partner. Customers operating in heavy transportation,
logistics, recycling, environmental technologies, oil & gas, sea
transport, navigation, building and farming are all benefitting from IoT
solutions provided by PrismaQuality Finland. A diversity of sensors, GPS
and WiFi tracking technologies are at the heart of PrismaQuality
Finland’s business. www.prismaquality.net
About Globalstar, Inc.
Globalstar is a leading provider of mobile satellite voice and data
services. Customers around the world in industries such as government,
emergency management, marine, logging, oil & gas and outdoor recreation
rely on Globalstar to conduct business smarter and faster, maintain
peace of mind and access emergency personnel. Globalstar data solutions
are ideal for various asset and personal tracking, data monitoring, M2M
and IoT applications. The company’s products include mobile and fixed
satellite telephones, the innovative satellite Wi-Fi hotspot, simplex
and duplex satellite data modems, tracking devices and flexible service
packages.
For more information, visit eu.globalstar.com.
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