The Potential of RFID for Moveable Asset Management

Moveable asset management is still not appropriately supported by existing IT systems. Items are not managed individually, information about location, status and usage is not accurate or lacking. This can cause delays in industrial operations, inefficient use or excess inventory of costly assets. We propose RFID technology as the key to link the necessary data directly with the physical assets. Assets become able to manage themselves, which eliminates many manually tasks, like searching for assets, inspecting for damages or counting them. The article demonstrates the potential of RFID based asset management solutions using the example of tool management in aircraft maintenance. The example includes the smart toolbox and smart tool inventory application as an implemented solution.