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Business Case for RFID in Industrial

Applications

Soroush Amidi

Product Marketing Manager

Honeywell

Agenda

• RFID Overview– Passive RFID– Active RFID

• Business Case for RFID in Industrial Applications– Safety– Security and Traceability– Workflow Optimization

What is an RFID?

• RFID system are composed of RFID Tags or Transponders and RFID Readers or Transceivers.

• Used to automatically identify and locate objects.

• Most RFID tags contain at least two parts:– An integrated circuit used for storing and

processing information, modulating and demodulating (RF) signals and perhaps other specialized functions.

– An antenna for receiving and transmitting the signal.

RFID Tags

Three types of RFID Tags:• Passive Tags

– No internal power supply. Incoming radio frequency signal provides enough power for the CMOS integrated circuit in the tag to power up and transmit a response.

• Active Tags– Own internal power source used to power the

integrated circuits and broadcast the signal to the reader.

• Semi-passive Tags– Own power source but used just to power the

microchip and not broadcast a signal.

RFID Innovations

• Innovation around the design and manufacture of RFID tags is an ongoing process:– Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) technology. SAW

technology involves the propagation of radio frequency acoustic waves on the surface of polished crystals.

– Smart Active Label (SAL) technology offers enhanced range and accuracy attributes while being less vulnerable to liquid or metal. A SAL tag is essentially a semi-active smart label with its power source in the form of a thin, flexible battery.

RFID vs. Barcode

• Economics of RFID more and more attractive as cost of tags drop, battery life increases and technology standardized.

• Passive RFID tags– Small and inexpensive (50 cents)– Tags must be placed in close proximity (less than a feet) to

be read

• Active RFID tags – Bigger than passive RFID and more expensive ($10-50)– Battery life varies depending of technology

• Barcode– Much lower cost (1 cents)– Need to be scanned

RFID Passive Tags

• LF – 125KHz and 134.2 KHz– Range: Few inches to several fee– Access Control, Security, animal identification

• HF – 13.56 MHz– Range: 5 to 1 m (2 to 3 ft)– Tracking for individual items, contact less payment

• UHF – 860 to 960 MHz– Range: 3 to 5 m (10 to 15 ft)– EPC Global Class 1, V2– Selected by Wal-Mart for Pallet/Container tracking

• Microwave – 2.45 GHz– Range: up to 1 m (3 ft)– Lower Tag cost

RFID and Location

Gateway Location Server DCS or SCADA HMI

Accuracy vs. Range vs. Battery Life

GPSAGPS

1 cm

1 m

10 m

100 m

>10000 km 100 m 10 m 1 m

UWB

Active RFID

PassiveRFID

10 cm

Wi-Fi

Det

ecti

on A

ccu

racy

Detection Range

1 year

Battery Life

<1 day

>3 years

Agenda

• RFID Overview• Business Case for RFID in

Industrial Applications– Safety– Security and Traceability– Workflow Optimization

Location and Identification

RFID is used to:• Automatically identify assets within the reading range

– Ensures data is time stamped while person is close to asset (e.g. cannot be falsified "pencil whipping" as is the case with bar codes)

– Ability to read and write to the tag should information change (e.g. new SAP #)

– Long term more cost effective – they last for a decade or longer based on studies and hold up to harsh environments (e.g. painting, corrosion, sand blasting etc. )

– Ability to store significant amount of data (e.g. SAP #, OEM #, location #, Tag #, warranty/repair status etc.)

• Locate with various accuracy assets

• Toll Roads• Cattle Industrial - Cattle identification• Shipping Industry – Pallet and container

tracking• Pharmaceutical – Prevent counterfeit and

errors• Automotive industry – Tracking engines

and transmissions• Health care industry - Patient and

equipment tracking• Retail industry - Inventory management

systems as per Wal-Mart requirements

RFID Applications in Non-Process Industry

Operational Efficiency- Locate assets quickly on the field- Analyze asset utilization rate- Lay-down yard management- Maintenance and Inspections

Safety- People/Asset Tracking- Process Interlocks

Security- Access control of areas without physical barriers-Traceability

Unlocking the Value of RFID-enabled Applications

Safety Business Case

Improve Safety and Emergency Response Time• Real-time Mustering

– Real-time tracking of personnel during industrial incident– Mustering reports generated within seconds– Accurate location of missing personnel– Comply with WAC 296-24-567 and OSHA 1910.38c

• Prevention– Automatically stop or start a process based on location of

equipment/assets– Automatically generate notifications when unauthorized personal or

assets located in a restricted area.– Historical personnel/asset tracking for auditing purposes

Safety Applications

ROI• Defined by safety

regulatory bodies for not meeting the requirements

• Safety is #1

Examples• Steel plant tracks trucks loading and unloading

molten iron pot• Tracking 1,500 employees and contractors in a

refinery during an emergency and obtain real-time head count at mustering areas and process units.

Board Operator View

Integrated with Controls(Proc Ops or Interlock)

Process Mode change

interrupted

due to people/asset in Unit

Link to Security View

Safety Applications

Security Applications

Improved Security and Traceability• Monitor restricted areas without any physical barriers• Locating hazardous material within a plant• Reduce shrinkage

ROI• Measure number of units disappearing on a yearly basis• Measure time require to collect data for compliance purposes

Examples• US based chemical company tracks railway cars carrying hazardous

materials by combining RFID and GPS• India based chemical company tracks cylinders throughout its global

supply chain. This allows them to increase safety and security during the order fulfillment process.

Operational Efficiency

Maintenance and Inspection Data• Ensures data is time stamped while

person is close to asset (e.g. cannot be falsified "pencil whipping" as is the case with bar codes)

Equipment Management• Locate accurately expensive

equipments used in the field• Lay-down yard management system

(example: tracking assets during a Greenfield project)

Operational Efficiency

ROI

• Measure errors generated due to poor documentation

• Measure time spent locating an asset during commissioning or construction phase

• Measure equipment lost during a greenfield project

Examples

• Scan tags associated to an asset during an inspection

• Analyze the number of occurrences and time spent maintaining 80 batch reactors

Conclusion

• RFID is already being deployed today around the world in various industrial markets (Oil and Gas, Refining, Pulp & Paper, etc…)

• Important to be aware of the different technologies available before selecting one

• Identification and location data provided by the technology is used to improve safety, security, and operational effectiveness.

• Business case required to provide a detailed look into improvements in key processes and related metrics to validate project ROI