James McCarthy
Founder of Spidertracks
Bachelor of Engineering (Mechatronics)
Massey University 2005
James McCarthy Time to save lives
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- James McCarthy
- Spidertracks story
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Spiderman
He didn’t get bitten by a spider, but by the take-apart bug.
Ever since he was a boy, James has been taking apart radios, cars, televisions, remotes – anything he could lay his hands on – just to see how it works. Although highly annoying to his family, who were quite keen on having a working TV, it’s turned into the most useful trait for an inventor – a desire to figure out how things work, and how they can be made better.
James didn’t invent tracking, but what he did invent was a cheap, simple, effective way of tracking flight movements in real time for both commercial and recreational pilots.
A world-first, the ‘Spider’ is a portable device, able to be plugged into the plane’s cigarette lighter. It relays your location constantly to the internet, so even if the box doesn’t survive a crash, the information does.
Other companies had tracking devices, but they involved red tape and complicated installation. In typical Kiwi fashion, James asked why – and went about inventing something better.
Spiderman
He didn't get bitten by a spider, but by the take-apart bug.
Ever since he was a boy, James has been taking apart radios, cars, televisions, remotes - anything he could lay his hands on - just to see how it works. Although highly annoying to his family, who were quite keen on having a working TV, it's turned into the most useful trait for an inventor - a desire to figure out how things work, and how they can be made better.
James didn't invent tracking, but what he did invent was a cheap, simple, effective way of tracking flight movements in real time for both commercial and recreational pilots.
A world-first, the 'Spider' is a portable device, able to be plugged into the plane's cigarette lighter. It relays your location constantly to the internet, so even if the box doesn't survive a crash, the information does.
Other companies had tracking devices, but they involved red tape and complicated installation. In typical Kiwi fashion, James asked why - and went about inventing something better.
James McCarthy
Founder of Spidertracks
Bachelor of Engineering (Mechatronics)
Massey University 2005
Spidertracks story
It’s head office is still in New Zealand, but the Spidertracks aviation tracking device is now sold all over the world. Get an insight into what makes the company tick!
Find out more about engineering
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If you want to follow in James’s footsteps or just want to learn more about what he does all day, check out our Area of Interest page for Engineering.
There you’ll learn more relating to what engineering is really all about, what kinds of careers you can get in that field, and how Massey University can help you get started down that path – just like James.