CEO Today Africa Awards

www.ceotodaymagazine.com CEO Today Africa Awards 2018 SOUTH AFRICA 58 ABOUT JACO GERRITS Jaco is one of South Africa’s leading technology entrepreneurs. He founded Dynamus Technologies at the age of 22, a company that has researched, designed, developed and implemented multiple award-winning technology solutions across various industries over the last 16 years. His latest venture, CrashDetech, have numerous international acclaims under its belt to date. Jaco believes that it is possible to do good while doing well - where enterprise and investment are used as powerful forces for good. He sees social enterprises as using traditional entrepreneurial methods to create new models for sustainable global change and is continuously on the lookout to solve problems in new and unique ways. “ The reality is that we face social problems on a global scale, which require innovative and sustainable solutions to drive positive change. There are few things as rewarding as the ability to positively contribute towards the lives of others, whilst doing what you love .” JACO GERRITS CEO of CrashDetech (Pty) Ltd FIRM PROFILE CrashDetech is a multi award-winning smartphone application, which automatically detects a serious car crash, pinpoints the location, immediately dispatches the nearest ambulance and supplies paramedics with life-saving information. The UN General Assembly proclaimed the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020 in a landmark Resolution co-sponsored by 100 countries, describing global road death and injury as a “ major public health problem with a broad range of social and economic consequences which, if unaddressed, may affect the sustainable development of countries and hinder progress towards the Millennium Development Goals. ” CrashDetech is aligned to this UN Decade of Action goal, aiming to stabilise and then reduce road traffic fatalities by 2020. The app uses sophisticated algorithms and the capabilities of smartphones, including accelerometers, global positioning system and other sensors, to detect when a person has been in a serious collision and requires emergency medical assistance. The app automatically activates when it detects that the user is in a vehicle, and does not run when the person is not travelling to save battery power and phone resources. It functions as effectively for public transport as for personal transport. When a crash is detected, the CrashDetech emergency control centre automatically receives a notification of where the crash occurred. The medical details of the user are then sent, along with the crash location, to emergency medical respondents. They are dispatched based on their proximity to the crash, reducing response times. A licensing model is also on offer, allowing third parties to integrate crash detection capabilities directly into their own apps. Numerous leading insurers in South Africa are already making use of this life-saving technology. “ Our aim has always been to make a large contribution to road safety and reduce roadside fatalities. Road traffic crashes take the lives of nearly 1.3 million people every year and it costs developing economies more than $100 billion a year. This is a strong indicator for the need of services like these, and the potential for such technologies to dramatically reduce fatalities, injuries and costs .” www.crashdetech.com CONTACT Tel: 0861 000 418 Website: www.crashdetech.com Email: support@crashdetech.com