Dow employs Savi’s SmartChain to track chemicals

The Dow Railcar Shipment Visibility solution incorporates GPS, satellite communication systems and sensors attached to tank cars, enabling Dow to ‘ping’ on demand or receive automated alerts of possible security breaches, unsafe temperatures or high impacts to tank cars. Geo-fencing capabilities that leverage satellite images enable identification of the nearest first responder in the case of an emergency or security threat, according to Savi.

“Dow places the highest priority on safe production and transportation of hazardous materials, and through this best-practices project with Savi we are working aggressively to reduce risk and improve performance,” said David Kepler, executive vice president, chief sustainability officer and chief information officer of the Dow Chemical Company.

The integrated solution encompasses a number of components. First, a variety of sensors can be affixed to rail cars to detect unauthorised opening of the dome, unsafe temperatures inside the tanks, impacts and chemical odours. Second, GPS devices placed on the tank cars communicate the sensor data and their location to satellite or cellular communication systems.