The past 10 years has seen the development of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) rocket, making it easier for all companies to track and manage their fixed assets UK. However, the current technology is not yet fully optimised for all businesses. Currently RFID tagging is too expensive to use on everything, so far it’s only really been used on the manufacturer stages. The best and most ideal use of RFID tech would be for tracking items off shop shelves.
RFID is very similar to barcodes, it’s a form of tracking items. A barcode uses a tagging system that stores information which is then read by a scanner. An RFID tag is a chip that’s included into the item that stores data, it can then be accessed remotely using an RFID reader. The reader uses radio waves to activate the chip which then sends the data about the item.
Alas, asset tracking UK hasn’t managed to get to that level, however a significant amount of companies within the United States are already taking advantage of the RFID tagging. A few of the services that use the RFID tagging is public transport payment methods, libraries, museums and new passports. A great deal of the companies using this method of tracking are government controlled.
A large number of companies haven’t yet bought into RFID, despite knowing why it’s so useful. In the recent years, knowing where your assets are has become very important. However, a great deal of companies are finding that auditing assets takes time and can lose the business money. Many also find that after auditing, they have missed some of their assets.
By implementing RFID tags onto the majority of your assets, you can track and read hundreds of your items all at the same time. This simplifies the process of managing your assets.
One example of where RFID have become useful is in a Unilever factory. They have attached over 20,000 tracking tags to assets on their production lines. These tags mean that the company can audit their items remotely, avoiding having to shut down the production line for a manual audit.
This is just one example where RFID tracking can help your business and avoid you loosing money. There are a wide range of examples. Another example is in the fire service, they can track equipment to save vital time. It also makes sure that unequipped vehicles don’t go to the scene of an accident.
Unfortunately, RFID tracking comes at a hige price. With the better RFID tags costing between $40 and $60, it’s not cheap to efficiently track your assets. Hopefully as the development fees for the tags comes down, so will the costs to buy the tags. Once more industries adopt this method of asset tracking, fixed asset register UK programs will be used more and be more advanced.
