SUPPLY CHAIN OVERVIEW
1.2 RFID MARKETS
12 RFID in the Supply Chain: A Guide to Selection and Implementation
Manufacturing Execution Systems (MESs), Warehouse Management Systems (WMSs), Transportation Management Systems (TMSs), and middleware tech- nologies. The RFID infrastructure is a possible replacement for the Supply Chain Inventory Visibility (SCIV) system as the RFID tracking activities in real-time can contribute to increase the visibility of the products being tracked.
SCO with RFID technology aims at the best operating performance while optimizing schedules to reduce manufacturing and logistics bottlenecks in the supply chain. It employs the use of operations research techniques to maximize or minimize item tracking, production, and transportation capacity.
SCV is a means of capturing and analyzing the data from logistics activ- ities to enhance the visibility of supply chains with RFID technology. The RFID infrastructure allows tracking and tracing inventory globally on a line- item level, as well as a case or pallet level. It also permits sending alerts when events deviate from expectations or unforeseen incidents.
The visibility into orders and shipments on a real-time basis as provided by the infrastructure and associated enterprise integration hubs gives enter- prises advance knowledge of not only when the products will arrive, but also if a discrepancy occurs between the order and shipments of items, for example.
The infrastructure would provide executives with timely and accurate infor- mation on the location, movement, status, and identity of units, personnel, equipment, material, and supplies in real-time. This would give the executives the capability to make changes in plans, policies, and procedures.
SCPM employs event and performance alerts to allow supply chain parties to detect, resolve, and solve problems in real-time. For instance, the RFID infrastructure triggers an event alert when a shipment has not left the supplier as scheduled and a performance event when the order fulfillment throughput has fallen below a certain threshold level.
Depending on the size of the RFID infrastructure and the organization, it may be feasible to split SCPM into SCEM and SCpM, each handling a large base of event triggers. This allows SCEM and SCpM to collect real-time data from multiple sources across multiple supply chains over heterogeneous systems. It also allows them to launch workflows and issue alerts to appro- priate parties not only on the RFID infrastructure laptop screen but also via e-mail, phone, fax, personal digital assistant, or other devices.
Some vendors, however, specialize only in SCEM, whereas others have added SCEM components to their enterprise systems. Some vendors treat SCEM as one of the SCPM components. For others, SCPM is the SCEM. So, read the fine print about them.
Supply Chain Overview 13
Table 1.1 RFID Markets
Category Data type Processes Benefits
Waste Waste bin As a waste bin is emptied and parked, information in the tag affixed to the bin is updated.
Waste collection is optimized.
Bin parking is followed up.
Gas Customer site Cylinders are automatically filled.
Movements of the cylinders to customer sites are fully traced and recorded in a tag on the cylinder.
Inventories of empty cylinders are better controlled.
Gas cylinder losses are reduced.
Delivery is more timely.
Food Turnkey At each step of the
food transformation process, the label is updated and reused.
Losses are reduced.
Inventory is better controlled. Quality control of the product is maintained at certain levels.
Containers Content information of individual items
The processes of filling, cleaning, and
maintaining a container to which a tag is affixed are automated. They are processed throughout the supply chain.
Labels are resistant to rough handling.
Container flow and contents are better managed.
Video rentals DVD/video CD cassette
The cassette is distributed while updating the database about the client and the rental type:
traditional storefront video rental or DVD vending machine rentals. A tag is affixed to the cassette’s package.
The tag is
counterfeit-proof.
Identification on the rented item is secured. Losses and thefts are reduced.
(continued)
14 RFID in the Supply Chain: A Guide to Selection and Implementation
animal identification, automotive, and maintenance/security. The process of attaching a tag to a supply item begins with entering the data into a tag via a computer and then attaching the tag to a product or a container.
The tag must be positioned on the product or container so that it can be visible and at a certain distance between it and a reader. Each is assigned a unique identification number. A reader is portable, affixed to a vehicle window shield or installed at a control point.
The list also indicates how RFID technology automates the process of updating the label information while tracing the product, case, or container in a supply chain and what the benefits of automated processes are.
In Table 1.1, we mentioned that we can affix an RFID tag containing information about the contents of a container without opening it and viewing the products inside it. For some applications, we can use TagSys’ RFID tunnel technology [2] to read the tags affixed to the items inside a container without opening it. To get this technology to work, we must first position RFID antennas and then connect them to an RFID reader (the TagSys Medio™ L200), and, Table 1.1 RFID Markets (Continued)
Category Data type Processes Benefits
Animal ID Cow Data is updated
throughout animal life cycle. Processes are automated and tracked throughout the slaughterhouse.
Animal feeding, medical follow-up, and proof of ownership are followed up.
Automotive Car Immediate access to vehicle information is provided, such as registration number, owner, insurance policy, shipping date, receiving date, and final destination.
Maintenance operations are better managed and controlled. Service and satisfaction are improved. Stolen cars can be rapidly be identified.
Maintenance and security
Fire extinguisher Processes of tracking the product in the supply chain are automated.
Inventory of hazardous materials is very reliable.
Maintenance of materials is better secured, and programmed not to alter data.
Source: Tagsys’ video demonstration of RFID markets at www.tagsys.com.
Supply Chain Overview 15
in turn, link the reader to an information system. As all tags pass through the tunnel, they are simultaneously read either in bulk, or placed in containers, boxes, crates, or bags (e.g., laundry). A computer picks up tag ID numbers for display on the screen and then automatically updates the database [2], providing the speed of reader inputs is optimized or synchronized with the speed of a laptop and does not affect the tag readability.
Oracle chose TagSys RFID technology for its demonstration held during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in January 2004. It used this technology to simulate retail applications in detecting counterfeited products, tracing and profiling products, and managing inventory.