RFID in logistics - where are we heading?

by Frank Linti

RFID has been an increasingly important topic in logistics over the last 10 years.

Since passive long-range UHF RFID transponders have been available in self-adhesive designs, nothing has stood in the way of fast programming and bonding of data carriers. Read ranges of up to 8 metres allow objects, panels or containers to be tracked in bulk as they pass through the gate with the forklift truck. This turns route planning and stock control into an automated event that only requires personnel if the recorded data does not match the notified data.

Until now, the cost factor of RFID tags and the investment in the reading system has stood in the way of full-scale use in logistics. Secondly, many industries had not yet agreed on a standardisation of data assignment and the required content.

For this reason, all the first projects that were realised with RFID were  returnable logistics containers that belong to a company itself, which means that an ROI with RFID pays off extremely quickly.

Returnable logistics with RFID

In closed loops where there is one owner of the logistics containers, RFID integration pays for itself in a very short time.

Realised projects have shown that the pool owner needs at least 25% fewer stock containers if he knows exactly where the containers are located and what his empties routes look like.

The RFID labels are somewhat more expensive as they often have to be wash-resistant. However, they can be used seamlessly throughout the entire life of the container.

When RFID is used on metal containers, mesh boxes or racks, special RFID labels are required, as RFID labels on metal cannot normally be read.

However, thanks to the customised design of Schreiner RFID data carriers, read ranges of up to 4 m are now also possible on metal .

The logistics containers can thus be tracked seamlessly, enabling end-to-end tracking of the supply chain.

Comprehensive RFID logistics chain

The next step in the evolution of RFID in logistics is its use across the various partners in an RFID utilisation chain.

The products are transported from the supplier to the manufacturer where they are assembled, checked and transported on to the manufacturer of the end product.

RFID serves as a superordinate medium in which every party involved can utilise both the basic data and their own data.

All partners use the bulk recording and route optimisation. The partners use the product ID or quality data for assembly or batch tracing.

Thanks to chip sharing, all participants in this chain can share the costs of RFID labels and thus utilise extensive RFID options at the same price as barcode labelling.

This trend is being driven primarily by the increasing standardisation of RFID data records at industry level. For example, the major OEMs in the automotive industry in Germany are already specifying the assignment of chip data to their suppliers.

The VDA association has drawn up specifications specifically for the automotive industry. The same scenario can be seen in the pharmaceutical and aviation sectors.

Intelligent RFID tags for the logistics of the future

In the future, RFID data carriers will be able to communicate even more diverse, additional information. By using RFID labels with a sensor function, the logistics provider or end customer will be able to determine immediately at the destination whether the freight was within the temperature chain, has become too damp or has been dropped. Thanks to NFC technology, several million smartphone users can already read RFID labels and also read the stored sensor data using a suitable app.

This development will primarily affect high-value and security-relevant goods.

What does this mean for logistics companies?

The classic logistics approach of transporting goods from A to B will not change significantly with the use of RFID. What will change are the variable data and the reading techniques as well as the speed to the loading ramp. A process that works entirely with RFID bulk detection at the outgoing and incoming goods zones is extremely efficient in terms of goods throughput and empties management.

The innovative logistics provider of tomorrow will have to become even more deeply involved in its customers' processes if it wants to generate good profits. This means that logistics will take over the transport or provision of goods and materials earlier and earlier. Tomorrow's customers will continue to optimise their production logistics, Kanban stocking or assembly logistics thanks to modern tracking solutions such as RFID and real-time recording in omnipresent databases.

Thanks to standardised data records on the individual products, tracking can be carried out by the logistics provider down to individual product level and stocks can be adjusted automatically.

In the future, Industry 4.0 will provide increasingly intelligent products which, thanks to RFID chips, will be able to tell the logistics provider what to do with them. This decentralised intelligence at component level enables the external logistics provider to carry out work instructions with the object without being connected to the customer system or having to maintain a constant network.

We are still at the beginning of this development, which was first driven by RFID islands and is now increasingly being networked and expanded. For logistics, this development is a good opportunity to become even more deeply networked and, as a long-standing partner of the respective industries, to be a value-adding part of the future.

Frank Linti, Business Development Manager RFID at Schreiner LogiData, has been active in consulting, sales and business development for RFID and coding solutions for over 20 years. At Schreiner LogiData, Frank Linti is responsible for analysing customer processes with regard to end-to-end RFID integration and for supporting technical sales in customer applications relating to RFID.