How Can I Use RFID in Building Construction?

Please provide some examples.

—Name withheld

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There are a wide variety of applications of radio frequency identification technology in the construction sector. Here are two of the major ones:

Tracking Inventory
Global oil and gas company BP employs a combined solution utilizing RFID and GPS technologies to track every component that it ships from its European warehouses to South Korea, as part of a $10 billion project to build a new offshore oil platform for use in the North Sea. BP is utilizing the technologies to ensure that materials are delivered as needed, on time, to Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), the company building the top side of the platform (see RFID, GPS Bring Visibility to Construction of BP Oil Platform).

Safety and Access Control
General contractor DPR Construction employs an RFID-based solution to manage building safety and access at the construction site for the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Medical Center at Mission Bay. The solution, provided by Trimble's ThingMagic division, enables the firm to ensure that all individuals are safely evacuated during an emergency, prevent site access by unauthorized personnel, and control access to clean or completed spaces on the project. DPR is using ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID readers and ID cards, as well as Trimble's cloud-based server integrated with IBM software, to better manage security-sensitive work areas, workforce logistics and project planning (see DPR Construction Uses RFID Building-Security Solution).

I answered a similar question earlier this year, so it might be helpful for you to peruse that post as well: How Is RFID Being Used in the Construction Industry?.

—Mark Roberti, Founder and Editor, RFID Journal