Motorola Solutions Rfid System

Motorola Solutions RFID System

Title of Paper

As technology continues to advance on a daily basis, businesses and organizations are looking for ways to become more efficient in their overall production.  Technology is changing the way a business once performed its daily operations by relying on IT systems to perform unnecessary manual functions. As more manual functions are being replaced by technology, it is allowing the human aspect of the business to focus more on duties/operations that cannot be replaced by the technology.  The current Warehouse Management Systems still rely on a ton of manual functions, such as data entry.  After reviewing the Riordan's Inventory Management and Control Procedures, it was determined that a more efficient technology system could bring vast improvement in these areas.  The Radio Frequency Identification technology could relieve meaningless data entry while providing a better security of Riordan’s inventory and equipment.  

What is an RFID system?

The Department of Homeland Security defined RFID technology in 2012, “Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology uses radio waves to identify people or objects. There is a device that reads information contained in a wireless device or “tag” from a distance without making any physical contact or requiring a line of sight.”  The RFID works as an automated data collection (ADC) technology.  Some have suggested that this technology has begun to replace the traditional method of identifying and tracking items by manually scanning a barcode.  “Bar codes and associated technology are being replaced with RFID tags and readers in hospitals. The tags are essentially smart labels and, in most cases, have a chip and an antenna as their main components. The radio waves generated during the reading process are able to penetrate many materials and therefore can be employed where tags are not readily visible.”(Davis, 2004)   At this time, we researched Motorola Solutions as a company that could provide Riordan with implementing RFID technology.  

Components.

An RFID infrastructure consists of an RFID tag, RFID reader, RFID antenna, and supporting software that is ran on a computer.  To fully operate the RFID structure, a working WLAN (wireless local area network) must be present.  It is important to understand that every business location is different within its structure.  A Motorola Solutions representative will have to come to Riordan’s location to give an assessment of what components are needed to ensure the RFID system works to its full capabilities.    An example is the size of the Riordan warehouse and manufacturing could cause for more WLAN access points to assist the RFID system mobile processing.  

An RFID tag has an underlying microchip and antenna, which allows it to transmit stored data to the reader.  Motorola Solutions does not name specific tags that they offer but do have systems that support inventory and manufacturing processes. “Motorola’s RFID solutions support a broad range of RFID tags and labels – from consumable, low-cost tags and labels for item, case, and pallet-level applications, to rugged, high-performance tags built to withstand harsh environments and challenging surface applications.”(Motorola Solutions, 2014)