Managing Automation - June 2008 - (Page 40)

[ INTEGRATION ] Transformation Integration TechWatch Industries Land Rover is using RFID to speed up the order-to-cash cycle. ownership [to Tata] is that a lot of the systems that we run at Jaguar/Land Rover came from Ford. So they’re going to give us all of those systems, which is the nice bit on their behalf,” O’Reilly says. He won’t reveal dollar figures when talking about the RFID investment, other than to say it was “quite a bit of money.” But he says the payback on the vehicle tracking system came within nine months. TOOLING AROUND AT LOCKHEED At five Lockheed Martin manufacturing sites, a new system for tool tracking has brought the aerospace and defense company not only an appreciable financial payback, but, more important, an added measure of confidence in the safety of its products. At Lockheed’s facilities in Palmdale, CA; Marietta, GA; Fort Worth, TX; Meridian, MS; and Clarksburg, WV, RFID-based CribMaster technology from WinWare is helping the aerospace giant to more intelligently construct fighter jets, such as the F35 and the F16, as well as carrier airplanes, such as the C5 and C130. In each of those plants, Lockheed has installed WinWare toolcribs that use passive RFID tags to log when a tool leaves or returns to its kit, as well as who takes it and where that worker plans to use it. If a tool goes missing, a supervisor can pull up the most recent log for details on where it likely ended up. The system earns its keep in a myriad of ways, according to Denis Klein, Lockheed’s senior manager of production distribution processes. First, it keeps costs in check by preventing the loss of tools. When workers know the system is tracking each tool that they check out — anything from a screwdriver to a wrench to a socket — they’re less likely to lose a tool or leave the plant with it. “We’ve demonstrated a reduction in lost tools and delinquent tools,” Klein says, without quoting dollar figures. But the system’s integration into the larger enterprise has created even greater savings, he says. Prior to the RFID installation, each program within Lockheed was responsible for its own tool purchasing. Under that structure, two separate programs might unknowingly purchase the same toolcrib. The integration of the RFID system across the enterprise allowed Lockheed not only to see that possible redundancy, but also to review the statistics on tool usage to determine whether one crib could be shared among programs. The same integration that helps Lockheed coordinate tool purchases also facilitated perhaps the greatest benefit of the system, according to Klein. Considering that something as small as a socket, if left inside a plane’s wing during assembly, can reduce a billion-dollar jet to rubble, it’s little surprise that foreign object debris keeps defense contractors up at night. A primary goal of deploying the RFID-based technology, Klein says, was “the creation of a system that allows us to provide a higher level of confidence that we’re not leaving something in an airplane that’s going to be pulling the turns with the G-forces that these aircraft do.” The integrated CribMaster RFID system allows workers to check in tools somewhere other than their point of origin — in another building, for instance. The system identifies the tool as safe and secured, and pings the appropriate personnel to collect and return the tool to its home. Creating that level of visibility in the previously manual world of tool tracking would have been difficult. Klein also anticipates a reduction in maintenance time and costs with the wireless tool-dispensing technology. With much success already in hand, Lockheed is contemplating extending the RFID tracking program to other sites and other company lines. VIRACON’S LOOKING GLASS For tracking materials, tools, or other factory assets that move in predictable patterns or have a home base, passive tags often suffice, experts say. Conversely, for assets that roam far and ma June 40 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Managing Automation - June 2008

Managing Automation - June 2008 Contents Take 1 SAP Cites Functionality, Cost Structure in Modified On-Demand Product Rollout Dassault Exec Predicts More PLM Consolidation The Blackberry Goes Native with SAP CRM QAD Brings MDM In-House with FullTilt Buy Power Experts Look to End Voltage Sags The Progressive Manufacturers Notes Cover Story: Playing the Globalization Game to Win Special Report Integration Transformation Industries Product Scan Advertiser Index Next

Managing Automation - June 2008

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