New temperature-recording company enters U.S. market
New temperature-recording company enters U.S. market
A new company has emerged in the temperature-monitoring business with an eye toward making a mark in an already- competitive U.S. marketplace.
Escort Data Loggers LLC, which was incorporated in January and is based in Redmond, WA, will handle U.S. sales, marketing and distribution of technology and products developed by Escort Data Systems LLC, an Auckland, New Zealand-based company founded in 1989 by Andrew Maskill.
According to Pat Vach?, chief executive officer of Escort Data Loggers LLC, Escort Data Systems LLC had focused primarily on the European market in the past and had minor operations in North America.
EDL offers a "fairly broad product line," said Mr. Vach?, who added that the company will initially focus on food but will eventually branch out to the medical industry, which requires temperature and humidity monitoring for vaccines and other items.
The majority of EDL models are now used in transit for perishable items, such as produce and meat. According to Mr. Vach?, some customers are using the loggers in innovative ways as a tool to evaluate refrigerated storage conditions and estimate product shelf life following Hurricane Katrina and other power outage-causing events. Also, the tree fruit industry is in a test phase for using loggers in ripening programs.
Mr. Vach? brings extensive temperature-monitoring experience and knowledge to EDL, gained from nearly four decades in the industry. In 1966, he joined Ryan Instruments Inc. and rose to the level of president of the company in 1987, the same year Ryan was sold by its parent company, the Pullman Co., to the new limited partnership, Ryan Instruments LP, of which Mr. Vach? was a limited partner. He remained in that position until Ryan Instrument LP was purchased by rival Sensitech in 2001, and Mr. Vach? was appointed Western operations manager before leaving the company in 2003.
Of the strengths he brings to EDL, Mr. Vach? said, "I have the ability to put together a strong sales and marketing group, as well as the infrastructure to bring in products from worldwide sources. I also have the ability to put together a team to distribute the products."
Mr. Vach? said that he is currently in the process of building the EDL team, which he thinks will be completed in about a year, adding that the company is fully operational at the present time. "We have the facility in Redmond, and now we are just looking to add the right people," he said.
Currently, there are three salespeople in place with plans to add two more in the future, said Mr. Vach?, who added that when fully staffed, the company will have about 15 people working from the Redmond office.
The important issues now facing the temperature-monitoring industry deal with tracking and tracing product, according to Mr. Vach?, and he said that EDL is keeping a close eye on developments in the RFID field. Like the produce industry, the temperature monitoring industry has challenges pertaining to reading the tags in moist environs. Also, he said that problems can arise when trying to read tags through aluminum truck bodies.
EDL also has developed proprietary software that enables shippers and receivers to share data simultaneously.
"We're excited about being able to cover the cold chain without breaking the line of data," said Mr. Vach
Escort Data Loggers LLC, which was incorporated in January and is based in Redmond, WA, will handle U.S. sales, marketing and distribution of technology and products developed by Escort Data Systems LLC, an Auckland, New Zealand-based company founded in 1989 by Andrew Maskill.
According to Pat Vach?, chief executive officer of Escort Data Loggers LLC, Escort Data Systems LLC had focused primarily on the European market in the past and had minor operations in North America.
EDL offers a "fairly broad product line," said Mr. Vach?, who added that the company will initially focus on food but will eventually branch out to the medical industry, which requires temperature and humidity monitoring for vaccines and other items.
The majority of EDL models are now used in transit for perishable items, such as produce and meat. According to Mr. Vach?, some customers are using the loggers in innovative ways as a tool to evaluate refrigerated storage conditions and estimate product shelf life following Hurricane Katrina and other power outage-causing events. Also, the tree fruit industry is in a test phase for using loggers in ripening programs.
Mr. Vach? brings extensive temperature-monitoring experience and knowledge to EDL, gained from nearly four decades in the industry. In 1966, he joined Ryan Instruments Inc. and rose to the level of president of the company in 1987, the same year Ryan was sold by its parent company, the Pullman Co., to the new limited partnership, Ryan Instruments LP, of which Mr. Vach? was a limited partner. He remained in that position until Ryan Instrument LP was purchased by rival Sensitech in 2001, and Mr. Vach? was appointed Western operations manager before leaving the company in 2003.
Of the strengths he brings to EDL, Mr. Vach? said, "I have the ability to put together a strong sales and marketing group, as well as the infrastructure to bring in products from worldwide sources. I also have the ability to put together a team to distribute the products."
Mr. Vach? said that he is currently in the process of building the EDL team, which he thinks will be completed in about a year, adding that the company is fully operational at the present time. "We have the facility in Redmond, and now we are just looking to add the right people," he said.
Currently, there are three salespeople in place with plans to add two more in the future, said Mr. Vach?, who added that when fully staffed, the company will have about 15 people working from the Redmond office.
The important issues now facing the temperature-monitoring industry deal with tracking and tracing product, according to Mr. Vach?, and he said that EDL is keeping a close eye on developments in the RFID field. Like the produce industry, the temperature monitoring industry has challenges pertaining to reading the tags in moist environs. Also, he said that problems can arise when trying to read tags through aluminum truck bodies.
EDL also has developed proprietary software that enables shippers and receivers to share data simultaneously.
"We're excited about being able to cover the cold chain without breaking the line of data," said Mr. Vach
