Improving business processes with RFID technology.

Rakic-Skokovic, Marija ; Ostojic, Gordana ; Lazarevic, Milovan 等

1. INTRODUCTION

In the last two decades, business process improvement has become a widely accepted path to greater efficiency and profitability in operations. Oriented around outcomes instead of routines, business process improvement aims to provide significant change in organizational performance. With the proper solution companies can develop, debug, and run sophisticated business processes that bridge distributed organizations and their suppliers, partners, and customers and meet large-scale information requirements. Implementation of RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology can be a potential way to meet these demands.

RFID technology allows a machine-readable and thereby rapid and efficient identification of tagged items. Data obtained is immediately passed on to the overall management information system, thus providing crucial assistance for the exact and up to date IT-supported tracking of movements taken by items within a business. The potential offered by RFID for operative management improvements is enormous and it has become indispensable in the automobile and consumer goods industries, as well as for providers of logistical services.

The use of RFID is particularly beneficial in closed loops requiring the highest level of process security. The examination of RFID deployment must first identify process innovation and improvements. Only then can the selection of suitable technology components and the system integration take place. A structured approach helps to both minimize any potential start-up problems and to fully exploit the potential of RFID.

In order to organize the deployed RFID technology so that it is as effective as possible, the carrying out of a material flow analysis for the business is essential. A resulting draft solution should explain the organizational, process-related and technical changes to be made, should contain a cost-benefit analysis and also provide an initial project plan for the implementation, (Gizanis, 2006).

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

A survey of 275 manufacturing companies across a wide range of enterprise sizes and industries found that two-thirds of the companies' RFID implementations were driven in part or entirely by process improvement goals, rather than just by customer mandates. The report found that 67% of smaller companies (under $25 million) are implementing or planning to implement RFID. And these smaller firms are the most likely to be driven by process improvement goals (63%) or both process improvement and mandates (27%), rather than by customer mandates alone (10%), (McBeath, 2006).

By applying RFID technology on the plant floor, manufacturers can seamlessly integrate the newly captured information into the existing information and control infrastructure, thereby using the RFID tag as a unique identifier and minimizing capital equipment costs and investment risk. On the plant floor, RFID will provide the greatest impact in the areas of inventory visibility, labour efficiency and tracking and genealogy. The better a manufacturer is able to collect, manage and use information to drive production assets and processes, the more visibility (and value) it can provide to its trading partners. Increasingly demanding FDA requirements are forcing consumer goods manufacturers of all types to more effectively manage product information, including lot tracking and related quality data across their entire supply chain. In the event of a product recall, access to reliable, accurate and real-time information is absolutely critical. RFID can also complement existing manufacturing execution system efforts in genealogy tracking, (Chand, 2007).

Scientific literature has widely debated the reasons and the current limits to RFID adoption and related benefits on supply-chain processes. Jones et al. (2004) argue that a main reason for RFID diffusion is the capability of tags to provide more information about products than traditional barcodes. Manufacturing site, production lot, expiry date and components type are among information that can be stored into the tag chip.

Prater et al. (2005) have discussed the main benefits of RFID adoption for supply-chain processes, for the specific case of the grocery retailing. The availability of real-time information is regarded as the main benefit, although additional outcomes can be found in increased inventory visibility, stock-out reduction, real-time access and update of current store inventory levels, etc (Bushnell, 2000). Despite the achievable benefits, several authors agree that the main limit to a wide use of RFID technology has to be found in its cost (Prater et al., 2005; Karkkainen & Holmstrom 2002; Burnell, 1999). Consequently, critics to RFID argue that investments in tags and readers, as well as in the related informatics infrastructure, are still not profitable.

Not every conceivable use of RFID makes sense, at this time. The cost of tags, maturity of solutions, and availability of skilled implementers, is improving dramatically over a short period of time. Ever-increasing numbers of RFID-enabled business process improvements are becoming feasible and cost-justified. Selecting the right approach and timing requires knowledge and creativity.

3. EXAMPLE OF IMPLEMENTATION OF RFID TECHNOLOGY IN CITY OF NOVI SAD

One of the business processes which can be improved by implementation of RFID technology is parking revenue. Parking plays an important role in the traffic (and logistic) system since all vehicles require a storage location when they are not being used to transport passengers. Whether it is a parking lot or on-street parking there is a problem of parking revenue convenience.

There are different types of parking system in city of Novi Sad: on-street parking, parking lots and garages. Parking revenue is done by a Parkomat, SMS (Short Message Service) message over mobile phone and by parking ticket. Instead of parking revenue collectors there are parking checkers (checking parking price payment). Parking revenue for parking lots and garages is done by parking collectors, because the parking price varies with the time spent on a parking lot or in a garage.

We have implemented RFID technology in parking system of city of Novi Sad, meaning both on-street parking and parking lots and garages, thus creating intelligent parking control management system which integrates RFID technology, automatic control technology and applications software.

This parking system could not be fully automated because of limitations like: lack of needed infrastructure, cost of system implementation, security and privacy concerns.

Implemented parking system expects that parking place user stop a vehicle on inductive loop, and then reader query's a RFID tag. The RFID tag detects the interrogating signal and transmits a response signal containing encoded data back to the receiver. This data is: UID--Unique Identification--encode check, validity period--locked data for date, time, and year, so that the tag can be used only in defined period (after locking this data no one can unlock these blocks for reuse), check bit (one block memory) to determine is the user's vehicle already is in the parking lot or not. This check is practiced for prevention of malversation. PLC software analyses gathered data and if it is correct, sends a signal to barrier to lift an arm and sends a command to RFID reader to write on RFID tag information that the vehicle is entering/exiting parking lot. While PLC is processing information, green led diode is blinking, thus informing a user of activity of checking and writing information on tag process. After writing data to RFID tag green led diode stops blinking and user can drive in/out a parking lot (or garage).

If one or all of the named data are not correct, system will inform a user by lighting red led diode. An arm of a barrier will not lift a user can't enter/exit a parking lot. If a user still wants to enter a parking lot (or a garage) he or she must press the pushbutton, placed on a control centre side and follow the procedure already mentioned above. In case of error during exiting parking lot, a parking collector checks an RFID tag to determine the problem. If a problem is related with the validity period parking collector calculates revenue for the time spent from the end of the validity period till now. Calculated time and a price for the parking service are displayed on the PC monitor. Those data could be seen by both a parking collector and a parking place user. After paying for the parking service, parking collector prints a receipt and exit barrier arm lifts, so the user can leave a parking lot or garage. If the problem relates to the value of the check bit then a user of a RFID tag an authorized institution deals with this problem.

Parking collectors at parking lots and garages are authorized to visually check, every now and then, validity period and quality of graphics printed on a RFID tag (in case of a forgery).

4. CONCLUSION

Implementation of the RFID technology, in an existing parking lot access control system in city of Novi Sad, has given benefits to all interest parts (the Parking Operator, parking place users and parking collectors).

Parking Operator has gain robust system, easy to operate, easy for maintenance, with the reliable RFID tag-ticket check for the prevention of malversation. Also, RFID reader is placed in a way that it doesn't violate exterior. Till now collection of the parking service revenue has been increased for 17%.

People using parking place are spending much less time in waiting in line to buy the tickets for the on-street parking and much less time waiting at the entry and exit barriers of a parking lot or garage.

Parking collectors that are working at parking lots and garages are much less involved in collecting revenue. They are only active when dealing with parking place users who don't have correct RFID tag-ticket and, of course, when they have to charge for the parking place users who don't have RFID tag-ticket.

Conclusion is that implementation of RFID technology in parking system leads to process improvement related to:

* Reduced cash handling and streamlined back-office operations

* Scalable system that can fit current and future needs

* Automatic data capture and detailed reporting

* Improvement of traffic flow at peak hours

* Improvement of customer service

* Cash-free convenience

* Quick online access to parking users data related to revenue, thus enabling giving penalty tickets for users.

RFID technology will be more widely used in the next period, when RFID infrastructure will be installed in number of object (facilities, roads, parking lots, etc).

Future research will be directed towards the designing a parking system so that a parking place user will be able just to drive thru and enter/exit parking lot or garage. Also we will try to automate the in and out privileges of the subscriber and then transfer this data to the enterprise software for the traffic analysis that will allow optimization of the human resources needed for traffic flow in and out. For customer payment, the RFID tag could be read to debit a pre-pay system or charge the parking services against a credit card. All of this will facilitate customers entering and leaving and this improves service levels and increases capacity in the parking lot. These benefits will drive higher revenues.

5. REFERENCES

Burnell, J. (1999). Users will overcome many obstacles and implement RFID, study predicts. Automatic ID News Vol. 15 No.5, pp. 26.

Bushnell, R. (2000). RFID's wide range of possibilities. Modern Materials Handling Vol. 55 No.1, pp. 37.

Chand, S. (2007). Embracing RFID technology drives process improvements, Available from: http://www.plantengineer ing.com/article/CA6414253.html Accessed: 2008-06-27

Gizanis, D. (2006). Process Improvement with RFID, Available from: http://www.snt-world.com/Content.Node/boxcontent/ process_improvement_with_rfid.doc Accessed: 2008-06-27

Jones, P., Clarke-Hill, C., Shears, P., Comfort, D., Hillier, D., 2004. Radio frequency identification in the UK: Opportunities and challenges. International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management Vol. 32 No. 3, pp. 164-171.

Karkkainen, M., Holmstrom, J. (2002). Wireless product identification: Enabler for handling efficiency, customization and information sharing. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal Vol. 7 No. 4, pp. 242-252.

McBeath, B. (2006). How Manufacturers are Improving Processes by Using RFID, Available from: http://www.chainlinkresearch.com/research/detail.cfm7guid =823E0D5A-9F41-5EBA-2428-6BAF7BFD1737 Accessed: 2008-06-27

Prater, E., Frazier, G.V., Reyes, P.M. (2005). Future impacts of RFID on e-supply chains in grocery retailing. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal Vol. 10 No. 2, pp. 134-142.