Smart manufacturing for industry 4.0 using Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology

Industry 4.0 (I4.0) presents a unique challenge of efficiently transforming traditional manufacturing to smart and autonomous systems.Integrating manufacturing systems, materials, machinery, operators, products and consumers, improve interconnectivity and traceability across the entire product life cycle in order to ensure the horizontal and vertical integration of networked Smart Manufacturing (SM) systems. Manufacturing functions of Material Handling (MH)-control, storage, protection and transport of raw materials, work in process (WIP) and finished products- throughout a manufacturing and distribution process will need a revamp in ways they are currently being carried in order to transition them into the SM era. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), an Automated Identification Data Capture (AIDC) technology increasingly being used to enhance MH functions in the (SM) industry, due to opportunities it presents for item tracking, out of sight data capturing, navigation and space mapping abilities. The technology readiness level of RFID has presented many implementation challenges as progress is being made to fully integrate the technology into the preexisting MH functions. Recently, many researchers in academia and industry have described various methods of using RFID for improving and efficiently carrying out MH functions as a gradual transition is being made into I4.0 era. This paper reviews and categorize research finding regarding RFID application developments according to various MH functions in SM, tabulates how various I4.0 enablers are needed to transform various traditional manufacturing functions into SM. It aims to let more experts know the current research status of RFID technology and provide some guidance for future research

Elimination of misconduct in manual counting process as an improvement of inventory accuracy in a manufacturing company

Managing inventory is crucial especially for manufacturing companies as it has a direct influence on profits of the company. In order to have an efficient inventory management, inventory accuracy need to be achieved and this can be achieved by leveraging technologies and techniques that can minimize the human error. The objective of this study is to investigate the factors affecting inventory inaccuracy in Factory 21 of ABC manufacturing company. This study reveals that the inventory inaccuracy is influenced by the order received in the factory, which is due to the human misconduct during the manual counting process of cartons on pallet. This paper proposes the deployment of Arduino sensor network system in automating the carton counting process.The findings for this study show that the automation system able to improve the inventory record accuracy in ABC manufacturing company

RFID-teknologia varastotietojen tarkkuuden hallinnassa : Käyttöönottoon vaikuttavat tekijät vähittäiskaupassa

Varastotietojen epätarkkuus (engl. inventory inaccuracy), eli tietojärjestelmissä esiintyvän datan ja todellisten varastotasojen välinen ristiriita, on yleinen vähittäiskauppojen toiminnassa ilmenevä ongelma. Tämä voi johtaa vähittäiskaupan kontekstissa vakaviinkin seurauksiin esimerkiksi varastojen äkilliseen loppumiseen, joka aiheuttaa yritykselle suoria menetetystä myynnistä aiheutuvia tappioita. Varastotietojen epätarkkuuden syyt on luokiteltu yleisesti kolmeen eri luokkaan: tapahtumavirheisiin, väärinsijoitteluvirheisiin sekä varaston kutistumiseen. RFID-teknologiaa (engl. Radio Frequency Identification) on kuitenkin pidetty lupaavana ratkaisuna näiden varaston loppumisen juurisyiden vähentämiselle, mutta sen käyttöönoton luomat hyödyt ja kustannukset on määriteltävä ja tunnistettavat, jotta investointipäätös voidaan todeta kannattavaksi. Vähittäiskaupan on näiden yleisten RFID-teknologian käyttöönoton hyötyjen lisäksi tärkeä ymmärtää millaiset muut toimitusketjuun ja sen toimintaympäristöön liittyvät tekijät lisäävät investoinnin todennäköistä kannattavuutta. Tämän kandidaatintyön tavoitteena on luoda RFID-teknologiaa ja varastotietojen epätarkkuutta käsittelevää kirjallisuutta yhdistelemällä analyysi RFID:n käyttöönoton tueksi vähittäiskaupassa. Kirjallisuudessa RFID:n hyödyntämistä varastotietojen tarkkuuden hallinnassa on tutkittu varsinkin väärinsijoitteluvirheiden ja varaston kutistumisen vähentämisen osalta. RFID-teknologian lisäämä tuotteiden ja koko toimitusketjun näkyvyys on yksi keskeisimmäksi tunnistetuista RFID:n luomista hyödyistä, jolla varastotietojen epätarkkuutta voidaan vähentää. Käyttöönotossa on kuitenkin syytä hyödyntää erilaisia työkaluja ja malleja, jotta investoinnin luoma hyöty voidaan realisoida helpommin. Käyttöönottoon vaikuttavia muita tekijöitä on tutkittu kirjallisuudessa erilaisista näkökulmista. Yleisimmin tutkimukset keskittyvät määrittämään investoinnista aiheutuville kustannuksille sekä näiden jakamiselle kriittisiä raja-arvoja, joiden avulla kannattavuutta voidaan arvioida toimitusketjun eri osapuolien näkökulmasta. Kirjallisuudessa käyttöönoton kannattavuutta tarkastellaan kuitenkin myös esimerkiksi vertailemalla erilaisia toimitusketjun sopimustyyppejä sekä tuotekategorioita, joihin käyttöönotto kohdistetaan. Tutkimusaineiston perusteella RFID:n käyttöönot-toa tapahtumavirheiden vähentämisessä ei ole tutkittu paljoa

Digital transformation in the footwear industry : assessing the potential of IoT on portuguese SMEs in the footwear industry

In the last few years, manufacturing companies, from the most diverse industries and sectors, have been investing in industry 4.0 technologies. One of these technologies is the Internet of Things (IoT), which has been revolutionising industries, namely manufacturing, healthcare, energy, retail, and agriculture. Manufacturing firms are adopting IoT not only to improve quality, production and reduce costs but also to enhance the logistic chain and improve customer experience. However, very little progress has been made in the Portuguese footwear industry towards the implementation of the Internet of Things, particularly in the SME segment. This dissertation has analysed the potential operational and production advantages of IoT, the associated economic impact, as well as the limitations of this technology and the challenges for its implementation in Portuguese footwear SMEs. Finally, this dissertation aims to present an adoption roadmap. The results provided positive indicators of operational and productivity gains translated into cost reduction in work insurance, energy, travelling, acquisition of raw materials and decrease of inventory units, and production waste. Nevertheless, the associated potential of each IoT use case is dependent on the capacity of Portuguese footwear SMEs to invest and acquire the necessary technical resources. The main barriers to the adoption of IoT derive from the limitations of the technology and the specific challenges associated to the Portuguese footwear SMEs economic and technical framework. Nonetheless, the technological advances, the cross collaboration among the different footwear stakeholders, and a well-defined implementation strategy can overcome these barriers and bring operational and economic benefits.A Internet of Things (IoT), uma tecnologia da indústria 4.0, tem revolucionado indústrias como a da manufactura, saúde, energia, retalho e agricultura. As empresas de manufactura estão a adoptar a IoT não apenas para melhorar a qualidade dos productos, eficiência produtiva, e reduzir custos, mas também para aprimorar a cadeia logística e melhorar a experiência do cliente. Contudo, poucos foram os progressos feitos referentes à IoT na indústria do calçado Português, principalmente no segmento das PMEs. A seguinte dissertação analisou as potenciais vantagens operacionais e productivas da IoT e os seus impactos económicos, bem como as limitações da tecnologia e os desafios de implementação para as PME do calçado Português. Por último, é apresentado um plano de implementação da tecnologia. Subsequentemente os resultados mostraram indicadores favoráveis de ganhos operacionais e produtivos, que se traduzem na redução de custos com seguros de trabalho, inventário, desperdícios de produção, custos de manutenção, encargos com deslocações, custos de energia e custos de aquisição de matérias-primas. Contudo, o potencial de cada caso de uso de IoT depende da capacidade das PMEs do calçado Português para fazer o investimento financeiro e adquirir os recursos técnicos necessários. As principais barreiras à adopção da IoT derivam das limitações da própria tecnologia e dos desafios relativos ao quadro económico e técnico das PMEs Portuguesas do calçado. Não obstante, os avanços tecnológicos, a colaboração entre os diferentes intervenientes e uma estratégia de implementação bem definida podem superar estas barreiras e garantir a adopção e trazer ganhos operacionais e económicos