RFID Journal Virtual Event

08 Oct, 2014 11:00 am

Welcome and Introduction

08 Oct, 2014 11:30 am

Using RFID Within Extreme Environments

Harsh cold winters and deep ocean depths are among the difficulties inherent in conducting business in the North Sea and other areas throughout Northern Europe. Under these types of rugged conditions, tracking equipment and objects is critical to a business’ success and health. Learn how organizations are using the technology to increase operational efficiency within high-risk situations.

08 Oct, 2014 11:40 am

Tracking Assets on Industrial Construction Sites

With increasing frequency, RFID tags and readers are being used to monitor materials and tools at oil and gas facilities, power plants, and similar industrial construction projects—often from the point of an item’s manufacture until it is built into the facility. On average, each site tracks between 10,000 and 100,000 critical items, such as fabricated pipe spools, valves and cable. One company has deployed the technology at an oil-sands project, using vehicle-mounted devices with built-in RFID readers and GPS units. In this case, the device is installed in a truck or on a forklift, and personnel simply drive the vehicle around a construction site, warehouse or storage yard. Learn how the solution can identify the locations of all items, and determine if anything has been moved since its last RFID tag read, as well as whether that location is the one that management would expect.

08 Oct, 2014 12:00 pm

Choosing the Right RFID Technology for Manufacturing and Harsh Environments

Many tags claim to be suitable for harsh environments, but as different as tags are, so are the definitions of “harsh” for various use cases. Standards are difficult to read, however, and tend to show up mostly in the form of strange numbers on datasheets. This presentation will explain the most relevant standards, and visualize the test methods associated with each, thereby enabling attendees to better map their needs to datasheet specifications and make the proper tag choice for their particular use cases. This session will also outline the steps that manufacturers must take to choose the right RFID system for a wide array of applications, including tracking parts bins, returnable transport containers, tools, work-in-process, finished goods inventory and much more, while building out an infrastructure for tracking and better managing other assets.

30 Oct, 2014 12:35 pm

Improving Productivity and Materials Control at Offshore Locations With RFID

A leading engineering, procurement, construction and installation company recently completed a pilot project at one of its key fabrication facilities, utilizing RFID technology to help improve planning, work execution, progress reporting and materials management. The initiative focused on the entire work process for fabricating carbon steel spools from warehouse issue, fabrication, external laydown and final installation. The system enables personnel to generate customized RFID labels in-house that are not only weather-resistant, but also metal-friendly. Learn how the tagging process allows labels to be attached to metal, while still maintaining readability.

08 Oct, 2014 12:55 pm

Closing Remarks

08 Oct, 2014 11:30 am

Asset Tracking in Harsh Environments Using an Interoperable Active RFID System

Supply chain optimization is now an imperative for corporations. Unfortunately, current track-and-trace functionality does not cover the end-to-end supply chain. The greatest impediment to a complete solution are the varied proprietary active tagging systems that do not allow for interoperability. During this presentation, Tony Kington will introduce Omni-ID’s new Power 415, the industry’s first active tag that runs on the IEEE 802.15.4 protocol, enabling interoperability between provider products. This tag is the first combination UHF passive-active RFID tag that is certified intrinsically safe and designed for extreme durability and use in dangerous environments, such as the energy industry. This powerful combination provides the ability to create dynamic systems that include bar codes, as well as passive and active RFID, allowing vendors and operators to encode and identify assets over a common format, creating a truly interoperable system.

08 Oct, 2014 12:25 pm

Improving Visibility of Road Sensors With RFID

The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) is employing passive EPC Gen 2 UHF RFID tags to help it better identify the exact locations of the buried sensors it uses to test various road-construction materials and processes. The sensors, which measure strain and pressure levels, are used to test the performance of a variety of roadway materials, mixes and pavement design methods, as part of the agency’s MnROAD project. In the past, to determine the sensors’ exact locations, MnROAD would use a survey crew, as well as measurements from control points along the roadway. The team learned that neither of these methods is foolproof in determining a sensor’s exact location on the pavement’s surface, for a number of reasons. Learn how MnROAD is using RFID tags to accurately locate its roadway sensors, enabling it to better understand the relationship between sensor location and its response to traffic loading.

08 Oct, 2014 11:45 am

Automating Processes in Harsh Environments Via RFID: Case Studies and ROI Metrics

Harsh-environment use cases span multiple industries, including industrial equipment, oil and gas, mining, chemicals and life sciences. RFID is being used to automate processes in research facilities, exploration, manufacturing and aftermarket services. This session will discuss real-world examples of RFID process automation in harsh environments, from planning considerations and ROI metrics to systems integration and enterprise deployment. In addition, a deployment guide containing process flows and systems-integration examples will be provided.

08 Oct, 2014 11:05 am

Leveraging Ultra-Durable RFID for Asset Lifecycle Management

InfoChip’s holistic solution provides visibility to upstream and downstream oil and gas. The firm has created an eco-system for cradle-to-grave asset management. The solution is optimized when each party in the lifecycle interacts with assets for improved identification, location tracking and safety compliance. InfoChip will showcase rugged RFID tags currently being used in extreme oil and gas environments. This presentation will also review how equipment manufacturers, distributors and end users utilize RFID’s unique identification to work together in creating, updating and managing an asset record throughout its lifecycle. Moreover, the presenter will discuss additional benefits, such as purchasing alerts in the event that an asset fails an inspection.