For anyone not in the know, RFID is the acronym for radio-frequency identification; the technology where digital data is encoded within tags or smart labels, to be read by a device (called a RFID reader) via radio waves. The simplest RFID system would consist of two basic components, an RFID tag or smart label, and an RFID reader. The tag would contain an integrated circuit and an antenna, which would transmit data to the RFID reader, which would then convert the radio waves to a readable form of data. You can read this post to find out more about the intricacies of the RFID technology.
Now, even though the RFID technology has been technically in use since World War II, an increasing demand for it has been noticed across a range of industries in the past few years.
So much so that, in fact,the global RFID market size was valued to be $9.22 billion in 2020, and that amount is projected to reach $19.47 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 9.79% from 2021 to 2028. Ever since the widely known Walmart announced the requirement for their suppliers to enable all products to be traceable by RFID, a lot of industries have been exploring the potential of the technology. One such industry that stands to benefit a lot from the use of RFID is surely the automotive industry.
The automotive industry is clearly one of the most competitive of industries, especially with globalization in the market. However, the complexity of the logistics of operating an automotive factory is not letting up either, making survival infinitely harder for auto industry professionals.
In current times, RFID technology is shaping up to be an essential addition to any automotive manufacturer looking to lead the pack;
The advantages RFID brings to the Automotive manufacturing Industry
RFID technology in the automotive industry can involve attaching RFID tags to all the elements in a particular operation (that is tools, containers, parts, shipping boxes, and other supplies) and tracking every bit of said operation using RFID software and hardware.
RFID as a technology proves very useful when one needs to ensure that all manufacturing lines run smoothly and all material is at its correct place in time. For global supply chains, this can mean optimised operational efficiency and also reduce wastage.
Listed below are the impacts that adoption of RFID can have in the automotive manufacturing industry.
Reduced Manufacturing Errors
It’s a given that manual processes are cumbersome and error prone. In the automotive manufacturing industry especially, with so many parts to handle and all looking identical, there is a huge scope of making mistakes. In such a situation, RFID labels can be extremely useful. They can handle extreme conditions and can also store crucial information. With automation therefore, parts can easily be identified and installations can be accurate thus saving time and effort as well.
Easy Adaptation to the post-pandemic world
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a severe impact on several industries across the world, the automobile sector prime among them. As per the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, the industry in India documented negative growth in sales of all vehicle categories in FY21, with a fall of 13.19% in the sales of two-wheelers, and 66.06% fall in sales of three-wheelers. On top of the increasing global demands, the pandemic adds another challenge for the auto sector to tackle, and therefore contactless services are a necessity for them in the post-pandemic world. Examples of contactless services would include online shopping for parts, pick up and drop car maintenance services, contactless payments, and more. The use of RFID tags and readers in an automotive factory reduces the need for the workforce to manually collect or record product related information
Efficient Track and trace system
UHF tags come in varied sizes and designs, and can be affixed to a range of surfaces. UHF tags in the automotive industry would enable longer distance transmission and automated processes. General applications of a UHF tag would include item-level tracking, retail inventory control, and increasing supply chain efficiencies. Aside from a comparatively longer reading distance (a passive UHF tag has a range from 20 to 40 feet, while an active UHF tag can have a range of over 100 feet), UHF tags also come with the capabilities to provide very high read rates and to enable simultaneous readings of multiple tags. Therefore, with the appliance of UHF tags, massive quantities of automotive parts can be tracked and traced within milliseconds.
To find out more about different types of UHF tags or to acquire some for your company, you can visit the Bar Code India webstore here.
High Rate of production
RFID automation allows for a significant increase in production rate. Firstly what happens is that the time taken to complete activities is reduced phenomenally. Secondly RFID automation improves shipping processes by allowing easy verification of all inward and outward moving shipments.
Additionally, RFID enables easy tracking of all components within the manufacturing facility therefore giving the companies an edge by identifying problems that cause delays. Also, Real-time monitoring ensures prompt corrective action to obtain replacement inventory and avoid production delays.
Efficient Lot Management
Post-production, RFID tracking is effective to locate any vehicle, especially given the huge lots of thousands of identical vehicles. A unique RFID serial number can be associated with the VIN number and the car’s manufacturing history, ensuring that re-work is completed accurately and effectively. This also ultimately means ensuring shipping the final product to the right place in good time.
At Bar Code India, we offer RFID solutions customized for your business and industry. By combining hardware and software solutions, we have already aided organizations across a variety of industries with RFID solutions, and the list includes automotive companies too.
Do give our website a visit to find out how RFID solutions can help out your business as well!
