Updated 22 October 2026 · InVirtus Technologies, Nantes, France
To track reusable containers (bins, racks, crates, pallets, carts) between your plants, suppliers and subcontractors, the most reliable approach combines three things: a GPS tracker on the containers that travel, Bluetooth (BLE) tags on the ones that stay on site, and a platform that shows where each container is, who holds it and for how long. InVirtus designs all three in France and already tracks several thousand industrial containers.
| Technology | What it gives you | When to choose it |
|---|---|---|
| QR code or barcode | One event per manual scan | Small fleet, partners with smartphones, minimal budget |
| Passive UHF RFID | One event each time a container passes a gate or reader | Large volumes of low-cost bins, repetitive dock-to-dock flows |
| Bluetooth (BLE) tag and anchors | Continuous presence and zone on an equipped site | Containers that stay inside your plants or warehouses |
| Cellular GPS tracker | Position between sites, with nothing to install at the partner | Racks and high-value containers that travel to suppliers |
Most projects combine both: GPS trackers on the containers that travel, BLE tags or RFID for on-site inventory. To understand the Bluetooth side, read our guide to Bluetooth Low Energy and our page on industrial BLE beacons.
The ivTrack Classic (GPS, LTE-M and NB-IoT networks, up to 8 years of battery life depending on reporting frequency) follows containers between your plants and suppliers. The ivTrack Evo adds Bluetooth to take over inside buildings, an eSIM covering more than 190 countries, and RTCA DO-160G electromagnetic compatibility testing, useful when containers travel by air. Both trackers report over the cellular network, so your suppliers have nothing to install.
For containers that stay inside your buildings, a Bluetooth tag such as the ivBeacon Lite (IP67) is detected by anchors such as the ivScan Chronos, which cover up to 50 m (165 ft) indoors. You get an inventory per zone without scanning containers one by one.
The platform shows every container on a map, with geofences per plant and per supplier, alerts for zone exits and idle time, movement history, and an API that sends the data to your ERP, WMS or TMS.
| Customer | Assets tracked | Technology |
|---|---|---|
| European rolling-stock manufacturer | More than 2,000 parts containers | GPS, site to site and at suppliers |
| Building-materials manufacturer | 1,000 racks | GPS, site to site |
| Shipyard | 1,000 containers | GPS, site to site |
| Asset-financing company (leasing) | 500 assets | GPS |
| International logistics provider | 100 containers | GPS |
The railway case is described on our railway sector page.
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No. GPS makes sense for high-value containers or those that leave your sites. For large numbers of low-cost bins, RFID or QR identification is often enough, combined with trackers on racks or on part of the fleet.
No. The GPS tracker sends its position over the cellular network, with no reader, gate or app at the supplier.
It depends on how many positions are sent per day. The ivTrack Classic reaches up to 8 years and the ivTrack Evo up to 6 years in the most economical configurations.
Yes. The ivTrack Evo uses an eSIM that covers more than 190 countries, so you can follow containers sent to suppliers abroad.
Yes. The InVirtus Cloud platform provides an API that sends positions, zone entries and exits, and alerts to your systems.
More than 2,000 parts containers for a European rolling-stock manufacturer, 1,000 racks for a building-materials manufacturer and 1,000 containers for a shipyard, among others.
