| Abstract: | Diverging slightly from its roots as a custom RFID vendor, OATSystems delivers a packaged offering for RFID-based asset tracking of work in process. |
| Keywords: | RFID asset tracking, RFID-based asset tracking |
RFID technology provider OATSystems, Inc. has announced the availability of out-of-the-box RFID software for asset tracking and work-in-process that is based on best practices and relies on case studies from prior customer installations.
The Asset Tracking and Work-in-Process Solution eliminates custom coding in common applications of RFID asset visibility and utilization, the company said. It is intended for industrial, aerospace, and automotive manufacturers, officials said.
OATSystems is generally known for offering RFID middleware and customized asset management systems to customers such as Hewlett-Packard, Kimberly-Clark, and Tesco. This is the first time the company has offered a packaged solution aimed at a large swath of industrial manufacturers looking to deploy a lower-cost and less-risky RFID-based asset tracking application.
"This product addresses key primary end-user requirements, such as rapid and simple customization and integration, scalability, and mitigation of investment and technological risks," Drew Nathanson, RFID practice director for market research firm Venture Development Corp., said in a statement.
Preloaded "use cases" from prior customer implementations are built into the asset tracking and work-in-process software. In one application developed with OAT customer HP, for example, the software was used to create and store a product's "DNA" on an RFID tag, which then was used to track products returned under warranty — HP could then call up the results of quality tests performed during assembly and expedite delivery back to the customer.
In the case of U.K.-based retailer Tesco, OATSystems tailored the software to track roll cages from the company's distribution center to individual stores. Shipments from Tesco were traced to retail stores, and real-time alerts notified workers when the wrong roll cage was delivered. The benefit, according to Paul Cataldo, vice president of marketing at OATSystems, was realized in reduced cases of overstock at one location and under-stock at another, so that Tesco was able to avoid losing sales (in the case of an under-stock) or dealing with markdowns (in the case of overstock).
In addition to Tesco and HP, OAT has been working with a large, unnamed aerospace company to track and trace parts from suppliers into the company's supply chain. With the OAT software, the manufacturer has reduced the amount of inventory on hand and avoided having to maintain a "safety stock," due to 100% visibility into its inventory, Cataldo told Managing Automation.
In addition to tagging and data capture applications, the new software provides analysis and information specific to asset timeline utilization, visual track and trace, historical analysis, as well as exception reports and real-time visibility into asset and product location.
Companies looking for an out-of-the-box, pre-configured software product to track assets in work-in-process operations can use the software with various tag technologies, including passive, active, and sensory tags, OATSystems said. The company offers some system integration and installation services, but works with partners for hardware or systems integration expertise in certain industries, Cataldo said. Partner companies include Tyco, IBM, Rush Tracking Systems, and Domino, for systems integration, and ADT, Alien Technologies, ThingMagic, and Motorola/Symbol for hardware.
In the wake of retail RFID mandates, which ended up on the cost side of manufacturers' balance sheets, many companies have looked to asset management and logistics applications to boost ROI from their RFID implementations.
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