SOTI MobiCoAs part of the current update 15.6, SOTI MobiControl receives the option for a location solution that locates devices indoors in real time. Companies can now use it to find, manage and track their indoor mobile devices.

Companies that don’t know where their devices are risk unnecessary downtime because critical technologies are not available in the workplace. Finding a lost device takes time and requires retracing steps, which can be an imprecise, slow and unreliable process. When a device is not found, causing costly processes to stall, it can cost an organisation up to $50,000 in lost productivity, support and management.

SOTI’s new ‘Indoor Location’ feature works in real-time to locate devices indoors. This means that organisations can track managed and unmanaged devices within the four walls of their facility. The solution does this by leveraging the WLAN infrastructure and Cisco CMX to provide a number of unique indoor location services. Organisations can find, manage and track their indoor mobile devices through a visually-driven, easy-to-use dashboard. If a device is online, its current location (with accuracy of up to 90 cm) is displayed; if it is offline, its last known location is displayed.

The update also protects staff health and data security. If a staff member enters a hazardous area (for example, a forklift crossing in a warehouse), they will receive a warning on their device asking them to leave the area immediately. If an employee enters a room to meet with external guests, the device is locked to prevent accidental access to sensitive data.

Companies can create exclusion zones for indoor spaces with this so-called geofence feature. Managers can then automatically take action or receive notifications when devices enter or leave the geofence. Similarly, exclusion zones can be set up in areas where the device should not be tracked. This can protect the privacy of employees (for example, in washrooms). In addition, historical movement patterns of a device can be easily viewed. This allows managers to track where a device moves within a facility, including the starting point, direction of movement, stops and the time it took to arrive at its current location.

“With an estimated 70 per cent of missing devices being misplaced by their owners, devices may be lost in mission-critical situations,” comments Stefan Mennecke, VP of Sales, MENA, Central, Southern and Eastern Europe at SOTI. “For example, if a tablet is lost in a retail shop, a handheld scanner in a transport and logistics warehouse, or a smartphone in a healthcare facility, not only does the direct cost of replacing the mobile device weigh heavily, but more importantly, so does the downtime. By now making these mobile devices visible and trackable on business premises, companies can more easily identify, streamline and optimise processes.”