About Trackpac

Trackpac is a low-cost, long-range asset tracking application built on the Helium Network, which enables asset tracking for items previously too small to track online. From bags to pets to crates to individual parcels, with Trackpac it is possible to track at the fraction of the cost of traditional tracking systems, using NanoTags that offer years of battery life instead of just days or months.

Asset tracking with Trackpac helps businesses gain real-time visibility into inventory levels, detect and respond to theft or loss, proactively schedule maintenance and repairs, and provide real-time visibility into the location and status of shipments. This saves time, reduces costs, and improves operational efficiency, ultimately leading to increased profitability and competitiveness.

‍Leading-edge technology needs a modern map experience to match

Trackpac quickly identified that they needed a high-performance mapping platform. After an initial launch with a basic map feature, the feedback from product managers and customers was that the map functionality was too limited and fell flat of expectations. For a company using and building the latest asset-tracking hardware and software, the map interface needed to impress.

In addition, Trackpac noticed that the marker tracking a shipment location on their map would often jump around as GPS accuracy fluctuated. The marker would appear to switch between roads, or display as if it was on a different road than expected. Trackpac needed a solution to smooth out the traces of fast-moving tracker signals, such as from vehicles and road-based delivery trackers, to prevent a confusing user experience.

Mapbox provides a complete platform for custom logistics visualizations

Trackpac discovered Mapbox through the Helium community and quickly identified that the combination of Mapbox GL JS, Mapbox Studio, and navigation products like the Map Matching API was the location technology they were looking for.

Mapbox GL JS rendering provides a modern interactive map experience on the web with familiarity of smartphone use. The rich set of features offered by Mapbox have enhanced the Trackpac map interface, powering user-friendly visualizations of tracked items with features that customers expect including as building footprints, 3D views, and smooth camera controls when following a route. 

With the Mapbox Map Matching API, Trackpac can smooth the routes of trackers and snap them to the road segments of an expected route, resulting in a clearer and less distracting experience for customers as they watch the progress of their shipment or asset.

Customization at all levels, from routing profiles to marketing

Trackpac fine-tunes both the look and the function of map features to cater to the particular needs of customers. In some cases they use Mapbox Studio to offer custom-branded map styles to match the styling guidelines of their customers. In other cases, such as for customers tracking cyclists, Trackpac can rapidly serve multiple routing profiles.

As an unexpected benefit, the Trackpac team was inspired by the Mapbox GL JS FreeCamera options to produce videos that showcase the performance of their platform. The videos have delighted customers and encouraged them to share their own tracking experiences on social media to promote Trackpac services.

Mapbox features fuel rapid growth and customer adoption for Trackpac

Мapbox has enabled Trackpac to go-to-market quickly with technology they initially thought was out of reach for a small team building on a short timeframe. The integration of Mapbox has surpassed the Trackpac team’s expectations and enhanced their product and communications in ways they never anticipated.

By bringing maps into the foreground, Trackpac provides customers with a sleek, reliable, and tailored tracking experience. The result is increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, as well as greater opportunities for growth. Already, Trackpac’s largest customer has directly referred them to a company ten times their size, a testament to the level of customer satisfaction and trust in Trackpac’s platform decisions.