Seeing Machines' (LON:SEE) fatigue monitoring technology has taken two more major strides with the world’s largest Caterpillar (CAT) dealer signing up and a road transport trial starting in South Africa.
Finning International, the world's largest CAT dealer, has signed an exclusive sales and marketing agreement for Seeing Machines’ DSS driver monitoring product for mining vehicles in Canada, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia and Uruguay.
In South Africa, a trial of DSS has started with Insurance Underwriting Managers (IUM), a commercial transport insurance underwriter.
IUM will trial DSS with a major South African lorry fleet to assess the technology's ability to reduce fatigue and distraction related road accidents.
If the trial is successful, IUM would work with its national broker network, their customers and Seeing Machines to broaden the uptake of the technology across their 25,000 insured commercial vehicles.
A number of other mining and logistics companies have started to trial DSS, Seeing Machines said, including First Quantum Minerals, Fortescue Metals, Linfox, Pacific National, QUBE Holdings and Scott's Transport and Logistics.
The trials include a new application for the technology with over 30 DSS units going into mine site buses used to transport mine staff between living remote quarters and mine sites.
House broker finnCap said Seeing Machines is making remarkable progress.
“In its core mining market, the world’s largest CAT dealership has now signed an exclusive sales and support agreement covering Canada, Chile and Argentina.
“The next (and far larger) target market is on-road fleet transport. Here, a new route to market has been opened as a leading South African haulage insurance underwriter introduces DSS to a major fleet customer with a view to rolling out across all its 25,000 insured vehicles.“
FinnCap added that insurance driven sales are a path successfully pioneered by telematics suppliers in the automotive industry, reducing the cost of individual direct fleet sales.
Mine buses, meanwhile, could potentially quadruple the size of the potential mining market while some of the new triallists have significant rail operations.
Buy with a 12p target price is the broker’s view.