Businesses are increasingly using RTLS technology to manage, monitor, and track their inventory. Failing to know the location of items within your company can cause inefficiencies that may plague your supply chain. In the current global marketplace, time is money, and any hiccup in the supply chain can have severe consequences. You’re likely to experience the headaches that come with delays, misplaced inventory, customer dissatisfaction, and increased costs. These issues can harm your company’s reputation and erode your profitability.
The good news is that you can transform your supply chain and make it a finely tuned machine. Through RTLS technology and indoor asset tracking, you can have an unprecedented level of control and transparency over your supply chain. In this article, you’ll learn some insights into streamlining your supply chain with RTLS technology.
Challenges Faced In The Supply Chain
Supply chain managers encounter several challenges when conducting their daily operations. If these challenges aren’t addressed on time, they can greatly disrupt operations. Some of them include:
1. Overwhelming Demand
Keeping up with fluctuating demands can be a constant struggle. When demand rises, you should deliver promptly to keep your customers satisfied. However, maintaining cost-effective operations can be difficult if you don’t have the right systems in place. This, in turn, can negatively affect your supply chain’s efficiency, and lead to insufficient or excess inventory levels.
You can conquer this challenge by incorporating demand forecasting tools into your supply chain management. These tools will help you examine market trends and historical data that will enable you to adjust your production levels and flow of goods.
2. Increased Regulation
Constantly changing compliance standards and regulations can turn your smooth supply chain into a regulatory minefield. When there are strict rules related to environmental sustainability and product quality and safety, you need to constantly monitor your operations and adaptation. This can increase your administrative burdens.
Investing in technologies, such as warehouse asset management tools can automate compliance tracking and help you save resources and time. They’ll also help you keep an eye on regulatory changes that affect your industry, and ensure your operations align with these standards.
3. Security Concerns
As global supply chains become interconnected, security has become a significant concern. The risk of cyberattacks, fraud, and theft, is constantly on the rise. Each risk prevents a unique threat that can harm your supply chain’s integrity and product safety.
You need to implement strict protocols within your supply chain to address these security concerns. Some measures you might take, include using GPS tracking for high-value goods and tamper-evident packaging. Bolstering your cyber security measures can also help to shield your sensitive information from hackers.
How RTLS Is Streamlining The Supply Chain
Real-time location systems technology uses a combination of sophisticated systems to provide real-time visibility into products, assets, and equipment. Some of the systems it uses include radio-frequency identification (RFID) and global positioning system (GPS). Here’s how RTLS technology can streamline your supply chain:
1. Increased Warehouse Safety
For a supply chain to be effective, your warehouse needs to be safe. Accidents can lead to injuries, product damage, liabilities, and other inefficiencies that you may not want to deal with. Through RTLS technology, warehouse managers can monitor personnel and assets in real-time, and offer the required safety measures.
This technology will allow you to set up geofences and trigger alerts that will tell you if equipment and personnel have entered restricted areas. These tools will also help you to control access to some areas and minimize accidents. In the event of an emergency, real-time tracking will ensure an accurate and quick response.
2. Minimize Equipment Downtime
Equipment downtime can drive up costs in the supply chain. Unscheduled breakdowns and maintenance could cause reduced productivity and lead to delays which could be expensive to deal with. Luckily, RTLS technology provides a solution. Through its predictive maintenance capabilities, it will enable you to monitor your equipment’s condition and analyze factors such as usage patterns and temperature. If the system detects some equipment problems, it will schedule maintenance before a breakdown occurs. The result is that your equipment will have a longer lifespan and your supply chain will experience reduced operational disruptions.
3. Reduced Waste
Waste isn’t just an environmental concern; it’s also a matter of financial prudence. RTLS technology minimizes waste by optimizing inventory management. For example, tracking temperature-sensitive goods with this technology will help you keep the temperature within the required range throughout the supply chain. This monitoring can minimize product spoilage and prevent waste, saving your company money. Additionally, it will enable you to track your inventory levels and help you to reduce overstocking.
4. Better Operational Visibility
Every supply chain manager requires operational visibility to make effective decisions. RTLS technology offers insights into asset and status inventory. Such visibility can help you make prompt decisions. For example, if you know the location of a particular product, you can redirect it to meet changing customer demands. This could lead to higher operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.
The Bottom Line
The challenges that supply chains face are obstacles that could hinder a company’s profitability and operational efficiency. Thankfully, RTLS technology presents a viable solution to streamline your supply chain operations. Effectively implementing this technology can help you unlock the full potential of your supply chain. And there’s more. RTLS doesn’t only address challenges, but it also provides the tools you need to make your supply chain a well-oiled machine.