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ATA Approves RFID Data Structures for Spec 2000
"This is a very important milestone," says Carlo Nizam, Airbus' head of value chain visibility and RFID. "All the players in the industry have come together—including competitors—and agreed on an interoperable and standardized data structure for low- and high-memory tags, and that is consistent whether companies are using HF, UHF or other auto-ID technologies."
"This will open the door to software companies who can now write applications that use the data captured from the tags," adds Airbus' Paul-Antoine Calandreau, who worked on the standard for the aircraft manufacturer. "Overall, this is going to enable new efficiencies for the industry."
Spec 2000 will continue to evolve in order to serve the airline industry's needs. For the standard to be adopted, Boeing and Airbus will need to require subcomponent manufacturers to tag subassemblies. But the approval of data standards is a prerequisite, because the aircraft manufacturers can not require suppliers to tag parts and subassemblies until there is agreement within the industry regarding which data should be stored on the tags.
"It's a positive first step, because you have to be able to identify a part before you can start sharing data about a part," says Ken Porad, an associate technical fellow for the Boeing Co. "The industry has now agreed on an architecture that requires a unique serial number within a CAGE [Commercial and Government Agency] code."
The CAGE code—a five-digit identifier assigned to suppliers to the U.S. Defense Department or other governmental entities—identifies a part's manufacturer, but a part number can change during that part's lifetime, making it challenging to track the part's history. Agreeing on a format for identifying an individual part throughout its life should eliminate this problem.
Moreover, by agreeing as to which data should be stored on RFID tags, the industry lays the foundation to begin using the technology to track parts throughout their life cycle. Sources tell RFID Journal that Boeing and Airbus will begin requiring their suppliers to place RFID tags on parts within the next year or so. And several airlines, according to the ATA, have already expressed interest in piloting the use of the newly adopted tag structure to help streamline their processes. "Although the impetus for the project was driven by the aircraft manufacturers, airlines are looking forward to researching possible opportunities to utilize these tag formats on existing fleets as well," says Elizabeth Merida, an ATA spokesperson.
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"This will open the door to software companies who can now write applications that use the data captured from the tags," adds Airbus' Paul-Antoine Calandreau, who worked on the standard for the aircraft manufacturer. "Overall, this is going to enable new efficiencies for the industry."
Spec 2000 will continue to evolve in order to serve the airline industry's needs. For the standard to be adopted, Boeing and Airbus will need to require subcomponent manufacturers to tag subassemblies. But the approval of data standards is a prerequisite, because the aircraft manufacturers can not require suppliers to tag parts and subassemblies until there is agreement within the industry regarding which data should be stored on the tags.
"It's a positive first step, because you have to be able to identify a part before you can start sharing data about a part," says Ken Porad, an associate technical fellow for the Boeing Co. "The industry has now agreed on an architecture that requires a unique serial number within a CAGE [Commercial and Government Agency] code."
Moreover, by agreeing as to which data should be stored on RFID tags, the industry lays the foundation to begin using the technology to track parts throughout their life cycle. Sources tell RFID Journal that Boeing and Airbus will begin requiring their suppliers to place RFID tags on parts within the next year or so. And several airlines, according to the ATA, have already expressed interest in piloting the use of the newly adopted tag structure to help streamline their processes. "Although the impetus for the project was driven by the aircraft manufacturers, airlines are looking forward to researching possible opportunities to utilize these tag formats on existing fleets as well," says Elizabeth Merida, an ATA spokesperson.
