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Editorial from the Managing RFID issue of Managing Automation

Active RFID Facilitates Repair

Posted on Friday, November 03, 2006 3:10:08 PM                                  Digg This Article   Add to Delicious

Tobyhanna Army Depot, a Department of Defense full-service electronics maintenance facility, plays a critical role in repairing and overhauling command, control, computer, communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) systems for the Armed Forces. Its mission is "total sustainment," including the design, manufacture, repair and overhaul of hundreds of sophisticated electronic systems.

The complex repair and overhaul process -- which can take as long as 12 months to 15 months for some C4ISR systems -- involves tracking assemblies, sub-assemblies, components and spare parts across refurbishment areas larger than two million square feet.

Tobyhanna's research and analysis division was seeking a way to automate the tracking of items moving through the repair cycle. They rejected bar-coding technology, which would require human interaction, opening the door to human error. After deciding on RFID technology, Tobyhanna led a competitive request for procurement, ultimately selecting the standards-based real-time locating system (RTLS) technology from WhereNet Corp., Santa Clara, Calif.

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