Mining houses in southern Africa are increasingly seeing the value of a specialised lock on containers used to move high-value commodities, says Chris Wynne-Potts, deputy CEO of DPS March.The company owns the patent for the Leopard Lock, a container locking device that mitigates the risk of transporting goods and is tracked in real time as it secures shipping containers against possible theft.It also decreases the risk of any foreign or illegal objects being placed in the container by criminals, says Wy nne-Potts.“Since 2010, more than 250 000 containers and trailers have been secured by the Leopard Lock, with more than 2 000 containers and trailers secured a month in southern Africa.”According to Wynne-Potts, insurers and underwriters recommend the locking of containers transporting any valuable commodities, with preferential rates available for Goods in Transit and 3rd Party Liability insurance premiums.“The biggest benef it of this particular lock is its real-time tracking mechanism. Cargo can be pinpointed in transit at any time of the day or night, while tailored daily progress reports are available.”The device has been particularly well received in the mining industry, says Wy nne-Potts.“The lock is always clamped and unclamped by our own teams or dedicated agents and we track through our own control rooms. The driver of the vehicle, for example, has no way of opening the lock. Also, this lock will withstand any conventional cutting equipment such as hacksaws, crowbars and bolt cutters.”Strong and robust, it is strategically placed on the container, disabling the mechanism of the container at the most vulnerable spot.“They are also quick and easy to fit and remove and do not impact on turn-around time of containers at all,” says Wy nne-Potts.