Just because radio-frequency identification (RFID) is the hot topic in the trade media doesn’t mean barcode technology is going out of style any time soon. Barcode tracking in factory operations is widely adopted and inexpensive. In almost all instances, RFID technology is brought in to augment barcode tracking.
“I don’t think it’s ever going to be either-or with barcodes and RFID,” says Steve Banker, service director, supply chain management, at ARC Advisory Group Inc., in Dedham, Mass. “There are some processes where RFID makes more sense, but barcode is cheaper. In the future, you’ll need a platform that handles RFID, global positioning systems and barcode.”
One of the pluses of the traditional barcode system is that it’s ubiquitous. In industries such as consumer packaged goods, barcode has long been fully adopted. “Barcode is a given in the industry,” says Kara Romanow, research director at Boston-based AMR Research Inc. “The consumer packaged goods industry is 99 percent compliant with barcodes.”
Because barcodes work well in most manufacturing settings, RFID is not yet widely used. “RFID in manufacturing is still a niche,” says Banker. “It has not become widely adopted. It’s growing fast, but it’s coming from a small base.”
Barcodes are used in manufacturing to measure the effectiveness of operations and the constraints in the factory. “If you have a barcode on an item in manufacturing and it comes to my station, I scan the barcode and it gives me the start time for a particular piece in work-in-process,” says Banker. “When it’s done, I scan it and that gives me the end time. I can measure the wait time.”
See the story that goes with this sidebar: Getting Smart with RFID
