Apr 01, 2009When you're making items composed of many parts, such as airplanes, automobiles, high-tech and consumer electronic devices, machinery, or medical equipment, it's essential—but difficult—to keep track of work in process (WIP). As many components and subsystems are assembled into individual products, discrete manufacturers need to ensure that the right parts make their way from warehouses to bins to assembly lines when they're needed.
It's also critical that the correct parts are diverted at the right time to the proper locations for painting, subassembly or other work before they can be brought together and incorporated into the final product. That's especially important if the manufacture of parts or subassemblies is outsourced to a supply-chain partner. Any delays or errors in these processes can cause a manufacturer to stop production to sort things out.
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Many discrete manufacturers track WIP manually, using paper-based logs or entering data into computers or handheld devices—all methods that are prone to error, thanks to human fallibility. Even manufacturers that have automated the process using bar-code scanners find that workers often forget to scan some parts or circumvent the system for other reasons. Typically, managers aren't alerted to errors soon enough, so they cause problems down the line.
Manufacturers that have been using radio frequency identification to automatically track WIP in real time say that improved visibility can decrease mistakes and inefficiencies in operations, as well as lower costs and reduce inventory. Hewlett-Packard Brazil (HP Brazil), for instance, deployed an RFID WIP system in 2006 to analyze the processes used to manufacture and distribute printers. The company has been able to decrease downtime on its manufacturing lines, reduce its printer inventory in the supply chain and move closer to perfect order fulfillment.
Many workers at discrete manufacturing plants are highly skilled, and tracking WIP with RFID can help ensure they aren't being paid to search the floor for needed parts or sit idly when production is down. If there were a problem or delay, RFID WIP would alert managers in real time so they could, for example, run an extra shift or start up another line to get an order out on time—and, perhaps, avoid penalties for failing to meet a customer deadline. RFID WIP also can improve quality control by tracking each step to make sure it was carried out correctly.
But deploying an RFID WIP system is no minor task. Most discrete manufacturers will want to work with a partner to help them determine how best to deploy the technology. "Basically, you have to bring in a vendor or reseller or integrator partner who can demonstrate credibly they know how to match the available technologies with your specific requirements," says Michael Dortch, lead RFID analyst at technology research firm Aberdeen Group.
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That said, several vendors make customizable RFID WIP solutions that facilitate deployments. Among these are AeroScout, KeyTone Technologies, OATSystems (acquired by CheckPoint Systems in June 2008), Omnitrol Networks and Spede Technologies.
For the most part, these offerings are software solutions, available either as PC-based server software or as software that comes installed as part of an appliance, both types often accessed via a Web browser. They support RFID WIP functionality, including managing the wealth of RFID data that can be generated from discrete manufacturing processes; capturing information from RFID-tagged raw materials, bins or carriers; and using that data to inform next steps, as well as to provide a detailed history that can be analyzed to drive process improvements. Most of these vendors have partnerships with key RFID hardware manufacturers to streamline the purchase of tags, interrogators and printers, and AeroScout's solution includes active Wi-Fi tags.
To help you decide which RFID WIP solution might be right for your company, we'll examine the issues you should consider and the features of the various systems. Since few discrete manufacturers have similar facilities, production processes and operations, it's hard to determine how long it will take your company to deploy an RFID WIP system, or what it will cost. Likewise, gauging return-on-investment timelines can also be dicey. But industry experts say companies can realize an ROI in less than a year, given that a single manufacturing error could cost thousands of dollars.
Whichever RFID WIP solution you choose, it should conform to your business processes so you'll need to make only minor, if any, modifications to your operations to accommodate the technology. Vendors say it's generally a matter of selecting menu configuration options to define specific rules to map manufacturing processes into their execution environments. They add that some coding may be necessary for business rules that integrate proprietary devices or have specific requirements.
It's important for the software to be able to support data from multiple types of input devices—ultrahigh-frequency passive and active tags, high-frequency (HF) passive tags, ultra-wideband (UWB), Wi-Fi, linear and 2-D bar codes, and programmable logic controller (PLC) systems. You might, for instance, want to use HF RFID to avoid performance problems in metal-laden environments, and UWB technology to precisely locate bins, totes or items on the shop floor. "Frankly," says Aberdeen's Dortch, "it's unlikely there is any manufacturing enterprise for which one, and only one, type of RFID technology would provide all the business benefits they want and could have access to."
All the vendors say their software can support multiple input devices. Generally, they say their solutions can connect, manage and receive tag reads from RFID interrogators in several ways, such as via Web services interfaces or APIs based on specifications like LLRP (Low Level Reader Protocol) or OPC DA (Open Connectivity Data Access), where the devices support those specifications.
Some vendors offer hardware options and other RFID solutions that can be used in conjunction with a WIP deployment. AeroScout, which leverages existing Wi-Fi networks and access points, also manufactures chokepoint exciters that can provide real-time alerts whenever tagged assets come within proximity of a doorway or dock. In addition, the company says its Wi-Fi-based real-time locating system (RTLS) can track materials outside in the yard as effectively as on the shop floor, because it employs different algorithms appropriate to each environment. Omnitrol offers, among its extra options, a secure Smart Shelf that gives authorized users access to components, including raw-material storage containers and partially built products. The system tracks that access and sets off an alarm if something is removed without proper authentication.
The key to a successful RFID WIP deployment is integrating the data collected by WIP modules from these input devices with your business applications, such as manufacturing execution, enterprise resource planning or warehouse management systems. Most of the vendors say that the way to achieve integration with back-end systems is through Web services, databases or proprietary interfaces (the latter likely requiring professional services work).
RFID WIP solutions can alert IT departments when manufacturing operational problems arise, such as if a tagged component fails to reach a given point in the process within a specified amount of time. These alerts can be communicated via e-mail, cell phone or pager, or they can trigger lights mounted on light stacks that are commonly found in manufacturing and distribution environments to indicate whether a process should continue or stop. Some RFID WIP solutions can be integrated with existing IT infrastructure management systems to trigger alerts around more technical issues for IT to address, such as a reader failure. OATSystems' solution, for example, can run within IBM WebSphere to supply this information.
RFID WIP solutions also can deliver reports that provide historical analyses of manufacturing processes, which can be employed to improve operations. Other reports enable manufacturing floor executives to start the day with clear insight into issues such as accurate inventory level status, or which machines must be reprogrammed to produce more items to make a deadline.
Another point to consider is how a solution supports the Electronic Product Code Information Services (EPCIS) standard, which enables companies to share data generated by EPC RFID reads with suppliers and customers that are also using EPCIS-compliant systems. EPCIS eliminates the need for individual proprietary solutions with different supply-chain partners. This feature could be helpful for a variety of purposes. Say, for instance, you're scheduled to deliver a subassembly to a customer to incorporate into a final product, and your work in process is running behind. Your customer can get that information so it can plan for the impact on its own manufacturing line. But note that EPCIS support is not always a cut-and-dry proposition. For example, OATSystems supports the EPCIS capture interface and uses its own production/enterprise database or an external EPCIS repository. And Spede's WIP is a closed-loop system, but its data can be stored in standard SQL formats that can be transformed to be compliant with EPCIS standards.
Services and Support
Given the complexity of an RFID WIP deployment, all the vendors provide varying levels of services and support. AeroScout and its channel partners offer site surveys, consulting, solution deployment, customization and integration, training and support worldwide. KeyTone provides ROI assessment, solution blueprints, customization services and training. The company also touts a 30-day warranty under a standard maintenance and support contract. Omnitrol offers system integration services directly or through its network of system integrator partners throughout North America, Europe and Asia for site surveys, installation, training and support. OATSystems and its partners provide a suite of services, including needs assessment, integration and deployment services, and ongoing support and training. Spede offers systems integration and training services.
You'll likely spend a lot of time with your RFID WIP provider, so consider whether the vendor will be easy to work with. Find out how long the project leads have been with the company, and ask if you could talk to some customers to gauge their experiences. When you have visibility into the company, you'll be more confident that its RFID WIP solution will provide the real-time visibility into your processes that can help you save time, improve quality and reduce costs.