In a previous ‘introduction to RFID’ post, we looked at the nuts and bolts of RFID, revealing what it is, how it works and the benefits to businesses.
For this article, we’re moving into real-world scenarios, showing how organisations across different sectors are enjoying significant benefits by rolling out RFID. Will implementing this technology be a substantial outlay for your organisation? Quite possibly. But what these success stories reveal is that the business case is compelling: the technology can contribute to increased efficiency and greater competitiveness. The data generated by RFID can also bring unexpected benefits that further improve business processes.
Finally, organisations adopting RFID can feel confident they're investing in a technology that will become standard practice in the coming years, while traditional methods like paper records, handwritten notes and manual spreadsheets will most likely become obsolete.
Despatch checks for car manufacturer result in 50% efficiency gain
A Renault factory in Argentina manually managed vehicle transport monitoring, using Excel spreadsheets and outdated processes. This was time-intensive and inaccurate, with vehicles sometimes arriving at the wrong dealerships after exiting the production line.
Zebra Technologies helped to develop a solution. Printed RFID labels were applied to each vehicle at the end of the production line before it entered the logistics yard, to accurately monitor its movement. Furthermore, despatch trucks were also labelled with an RFID tag, which helped to ensure the truck matched the load.
Zebra hardware deployed included antennas, tags generated by RZ 4XX series printers, MC33 mobile computers and FX9600 industrial readers.
Following implementation, inventory management achieved a 50% efficiency gain and a 10% reduction in involuntary and human errors.
See the full case study.
Months of military asset tracking work reduced ‘to about four hours’
Possibly the most dramatic example of a step-change in performance goes to this US Department of Defense case study from 2024.
A Marine Corps inventory system tracking combat-ready equipment and supplies relied on paper, pen and spreadsheets. This made it painfully difficult to return accurate inventory accounts and ship assets correctly, with the potential for serious repercussions.
The solution involved rolling out rugged RFID tags on inventory, which employees read using a combination of handheld and fixed RFID readers.
In terms of efficiency and accuracy, the results were staggering. A manual inventory of equipment traditionally required fourteen months of counting. With the new system, workers completed it in about four hours with, according to a spokesperson, ‘infinitely greater accuracy’.
Since the adoption of this new system, the Marine Corps passed its annual audit for the first time since inspections were mandated in 1990.
See the full case study.
Sports retailer embraces faster checkout and inventory management
A major sports merchandise retailer faced mounting pressure to enhance customer experience while streamlining operations. Traditional barcode scanning created lengthy checkout queues, while manual inventory counts consumed entire work days.
The company partnered with Zebra Technologies to implement a comprehensive RFID solution, deploying fixed readers, mobile sleds, mobile computers and industrial printers. The new system allows customers to simply place items in a checkout ‘sink’, where embedded RFID readers instantly scan all products simultaneously, eliminating the need for individual barcode scanning.
The transformation extended beyond checkout improvements. RFID-enabled inventory management now provides real-time stock visibility, dramatically reducing discrepancies and enabling more frequent counts.
The results were impressive. Inventory counting time reduced from around six hours to just one hour. Meanwhile, point-of-sale staffing requirements decreased from 10 to three employees and checkout processing time came down to seconds per transaction.
See the full case study.
Port authority uses RFID to speed up security checks and deliver a new off-peak service
Sometimes tracking and monitoring using RFID leads to unexpected benefits, as this case study for the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach reveals.
Previously, driver ID and security checks at ports were undertaken manually. A worker with a clipboard examined each driver’s details to confirm that they had an approved delivery before letting them through.
Then came the PierPass system. An active RFID tag was allocated to approved trucks. Reading the tag, port workers could quickly verify trucks, validate driver credentials and speed up the flow of traffic. This reduced congestion dramatically.
Furthermore, the vast amount of data generated by the PierPass RFID system helped the port authority to introduce an off-peak congestion pricing scheme. By closely monitoring and analysing entry and exit volumes, they engineered a night shift delivery and pick-up. This vastly increased the ports’ capacity without the need for building new infrastructure.
Overall, the introduction of RFID helped to reduce congestion, improve air quality and save millions by removing the requirement for port expansion.
Read the full case study.
Meta study reveals the many RFID benefits to healthcare
Our final example is not strictly a case study, but a meta-analysis of RFID technology in healthcare, published at the National Library of Medicine. So, while it may not strictly meet the criteria of our article title, it was just too good to leave out.
Some of the key conclusions of the study were that RFID can improve patient safety by reducing medical errors in operating rooms, through accurate auditing of tools and instruments. It helped to correctly identify patients (misidentification is one of the main causes of medical error). It also played a role in supply chain monitoring, including helping to overcome the illegal market in counterfeit drugs.
Some further promising applications included wound-monitoring using smart bandages, intelligent wheelchairs that alert providers if a wheelchair has tipped over, and vital signs monitoring for several diseases.
One important point from this 2022 paper is that while RFID is considered ‘a very valuable tool’, implementation is slower than in other sectors. To put this another way, untapped potential abounds…
Read the full paper.
Do you want to become an RFID success story?
Nuffield Technologies provides expert consultancy to help organisations build a business case for RFID and integrate RFID technology into their operations. We can analyse your current methodologies and develop processes that will provide the maximum benefits and return on investment. As a Zebra Technologies reseller, we can also access the leading provider’s extensive ecosystem of RFID technologies, helping you to develop a fully integrated RFID operation at preferential rates. Contact our team now to find out more.