Construction Magazine
As a contractor or equipment rental organization, you’re probably like many who worry about protecting, tracking, and managing your tools, equipment, and supplies. It’s this inventory that is often prone to theft, loss, hoarding, stock-outs, maintenance slips, and even improper usage by an employee without the necessary certifications to operate particular tools. In a recent security study by DeWALT, it was found that the top three job site concerns were replacement cost, lost time, and decreased personnel productivity.
Looking at theft alone, a pervasive problem within the construction industry today, it’s estimated by The National Insurance Crime Bureau that this industry loses $1 billion annually from equipment and tool theft, increasing on average 20 percent annually. The worst part is that organizations don’t even know something has been stolen until weeks or months have passed, making it almost impossible to recover. Statistics like this prove how important it is to provide the necessary protection and tracking of your valuable inventory.
Enter radio frequency identification otherwise known as “RFID”. You may have heard the term – maybe even got it confused with Global Positioning System (GPS) or Wi-Fi technologies. To you, it may just be a whole new set of unnecessary acronyms rather than the important wireless technologies and solutions these are.
RFID 101
Radio Frequency Identification is often confused with and seen as the improved “sister” to bar codes, the small image of lines (or bars) and spaces affixed to items for automatic identification by a bar code reader, which uses a laser beam to translate the reflected light from the label. You often see bar codes in retail stores and supermarkets, but in construction, they are used for timely identification and tracking of construction components on a job-by-job basis.
Although very useful, bar code technology does have its limitations, making room for RFID, a technology that uses radio waves instead of light waves to read a tag. Identification information stored in an attachable tag is collected quickly and automatically through a close-proximity reader that generates an electromagnetic field through its antenna. Once the tag enters the detection area, it becomes active as it receives a signal through its own antenna. This signal is used to turn on the tag’s transmitter and allows the tag to communicate and exchange information with the reader. The reader then transmits the data to a computer or server for processing and management. These identification tags can be either “active” (i.e. contains an internal battery) or “passive” (i.e. relies on the reader’s power) with varying read ranges.
The primary benefits of RFID are its improved, more comprehensive data collection and its ability to be read even if the tags are hidden out of sight. Plus, tag information is almost impossible to replicate. RFID tags are also more robust since they are not damaged as easily, can be read in direct sunlight, and survive harsh conditions - important in industries like construction. Despite these advantages, bar code and RFID technology should be considered complimentary technologies.
RFID in construction today
Several applications have already been developed using RFID technology and it has been proven that RFID is a promising technology for enhancing construction operations and providing improved asset management.
One such application is a pilot project under FIATECH, the only non-profit consortium focused on fast-track development and deployment of technologies within the construction industry. Begun in Fall 2003 and expected to wrap up this month, Zachry Construction Corporation of San Antonio, Texas, hosted a tool tracking and protection project to validate the benefits of RFID tags incorporated within tool management systems. This project included the ToolHound line of management systems for mobile industrial assets, which included active RFID tags placed onto tools and the management software to help track these tagged items. This particular RFID system improves tool crib issue and receipt, provides multi-location inventory control, and supports automatic maintenance scheduling, so that organizations like Zachry gain control of their assets and improve their bottom line. Not only is tool check-in and check-out easier and more efficient but now Zachry has the knowledge and tool protection it needs for its valuable inventory – a must for any organization looking to avoid becoming another insurance bureau statistic.
Additional construction-related RFID projects worth noting include organizations combining RFID and other locating systems, like GPS, so crane operators can electronically find pieces they need or for the recovery of stolen heavy equipment. Some sites are tracking finished products on high-rise job sites helping trace goods from production through to installation. Researchers say RFID represents a new way of doing business that will change the industry.
The future of RFID
As proven at Zachry and other companies utilizing RFID technologies today, RFID is here to stay. The Constructing Excellence Organization in the U.K. estimates RFID application adoption is likely to grow ten-fold by 2008, as more and more realize the benefits of improved operations and asset management. Companies like ToolHound have led the way in incorporating RFID technology into construction, especially as a key supplier within one of the important FIATECH RFID projects. A spokesperson from ToolHound said that on average, their customers reduce their tool budgets by 25 percent annually. One customer has even said that during the first 12 months that ToolHound was employed, they saved $92,000 in reduced tool and equipment inventory loss compared to the preceding 12 months. However, ToolHound also states that often customers don’t believe the returns on investment their solutions can deliver as most companies are unaware of their true inventory value and what they are spending in replacement costs. From bar code-based solutions to full-blown RFID systems, it is companies like this that are crucial to growing the adoption of this important technology.
What does it mean for you?
So is RFID for you? That’s really the question. Is RFID yet another intimidating technology with a lot of hype around it or is it a technology that deserves a deeper look? The answer for you lies in whether or not you need help with any of the following:
- protecting tools, equipment, and supplies from theft, loss, or hoarding;
- improving inventory tracking, re-ordering cycles, and maintenance scheduling;
- ensuring workers have the right accreditations to use the tools they check out.
- saving yourself money, time, and hassle from what can happen without a tracking solution like RFID offers.
If it seems like a daunting task, start small. RFID solutions like those from ToolHound are modular and allow you to grow as needed, even combining bar code and RFID to come up with the best solution for you. Monthly rental models are also offered so that you can avoid the up-front cost and risk of an RFID system and pay a low monthly fee instead. If you’re not ready for RFID now, at least learn more about the possibilities so that when the time comes, you’re ready to act and ready to save money while improving your operations.
