A Brief Corporate History
Rankin Research Corporation was founded in late November 1994. It's two original founders; Paul-Andre Savoie and Andre Boulay, were determined to develop an effective and inexpensive loss prevention device. The two entrepreneurs were convinced that no system currently available on the market could adequately prevent a thief from stealing a vehicle; alarm sirens are ignored, "kill" switches are bypassed and steering wheels are cut to remove "the club".
The Challenge
Rankin's goal was to create a system that would recover vehicles after an unavoidable theft had actually occurred. The idea was to create a homing device that, when installed in a vehicle, could be activated at any time to signal the location of the target anywhere across North America. Only one seamless communications infrastructure in existence is vast enough to support this project; the cellular telephone network. The "BOOMERANG"TM thus relies on this network infrastructure to report the location of the stolen vehicle anywhere among over 900 cities across North America. The innovation brought by the "BOOMERANG"TM is that it is the first system in the world that actually locates the vehicle within the cellular network accurately enough to allow for a successful vehicle recovery. The "BOOMERANG"TM relies in no way on satellite (G.P.S.) technology to recover a stolen vehicle. This dramatically reduces the cost of the unit, making stolen vehicle recovery systems affordable for everyone for the first time. Furthermore, the "BOOMERANG"TM works around the many geographical limitations of G.P.S. such as indoor garages, underground parking lots, and metal freight containers.
How it works
After the T.V. remote control sized "BOOMERANG"TM is installed, the vehicle owner is not even aware of its presence... Unless of course, his/her car is stolen! At this point, the 24 hour monitoring central must be called promptly at 1 (888) 234-TRAC. The customer must then answer a few short questions. The vehicle will be located immediately and the nearest tracking vehicle will be sent out to recover it.
The customer is given a "Credit Card" style card with the purchase of his/her "BOOMERANG"TM, to be kept in a safe place. In the event of a car theft, all the procedures are indicated on this card, along with the customer's client number.
The Partnerships
In January 1996, Rankin Corp. joined forces with two large Montreal based companies to improve the company's strategic position. An association with Cellular One has allowed Rankin Corp. to develop important ties with a national cellular carrier. The second partner, Automobility Distribution, will act as the distributor for 12 volt retailers and car expiditers in Canada.
Track Record
The "BOOMERANG"TM does have a real "track" record. It's not just a new product that promises to find missing cars... It has! On June 7, the "BOOMERANG"TM system was officially proven for the first time when a "BOOMERANG"TM unit was installed in the personal vehicle of Lt. Detective Douglas Hurley from the M.U.C. Police. Lt. Detective Hurley hid his car in a location unknown to anyone else. He was pleasantly surprised when one of Rankin Corporation's tracking vehicles recovered his car in no more than 16 minutes after he had reported it missing.
Since then, Boomerang has recovered over 50 stolen vehicles, resulting in 25 arrests and the recovery of over $ 500,000 of contraband drugs.
Police Co-Operation
Rankin Corp. has established intervention protocols with local and provincial police authorities to allow for an efficient vehicle recovery program. The "BOOMERANG"TM relies on a specially equipped tracking vehicle to close in on a stolen vehicle once the general location is established at the monitoring central; therefore, it is important to co-operate with the police, and thus far, their reaction has been extremely positive. As a result of our proven track record, Boomerang technology is now able to obtain critical search warrants rapidly every time.
Insurance Benefits
Needless to say, insurance companies stand to benefit greatly from the "BOOMERANG"TM. That is why Rankin Corporation has been actively involved in an awareness campaign over the last two months, aimed at all insurance companies. Rankin Corp. is demonstrating the advantages of the "BOOMERANG"TM over conventional alarm systems, mainly extra security against car-jacking, potentially breaking up theft rings, and loss prevention.
Security
The "BOOMERANG"TM offers an unequalled level of security to the vehicle owner. The "BOOMERANG"TM transmitter is virtually undetectable. A back-up battery comes as standard equipment with every unit, in the event that the thief unplugs the car battery, the "BOOMERANG"TM will continue to operate within the vehicle for several days. As mentioned earlier, the latest trend in vehicle theft, car jacking, is considered in the design of the "BOOMERANG"TM. The owner of the vehicle will now be able to simply hand his vehicle over to the aggressor, knowing that not only will the car be returned, but that the criminal will most likely be brought to justice.
Availability
The "BOOMERANG"TM is now available throughout Quebec and Ontario at select automotive and electronic retail stores.
The Cost
The suggested retail price of the unit may or may not include the cost of the installation. There is a minimal monthly monitoring fee and annual system access fee. In the event that a "BOOMERANG"TM customer's vehicle is stolen, there is a recovery fee which in every case to date has been subsidised by insurance companies.
Guarantee
If your vehicle is not recovered after it has been stolen, Rankin will waive the recovery fee and re-imburse the owner each and every dollar he or she has spent on both the "BOOMERANG"TM device and the monitoring service dating back to the date of purchase.
RANKIN RESEARCH CORPORATION - 9280 l'Acadie Blvd. Montreal, Quebec H4N 3C5
(514) 234-8722 Fax: (514) 234-3050 Central (888) 234-TRAC |
