Cisco Unveils Wireless Location Solution for Manufacturers

San Jose, CA — April 9, 2007 — Cisco has released a turnkey Wi-Fi Asset Tracking solution specifically geared for aerospace, automotive, mining and semiconductor manufacturing industries. This solution utilizes Cisco Wi-Fi location tracking technology with the goal of improving asset utilization, reducing costs and increasing operational efficiencies.

The misplacement of industrial assets such as mobile toolkits, machinery, parts and work in process (WIP) inventory is a significant issue for manufacturers, sometimes costing companies as much as $1 million per incident. By implementing the Wi-Fi Asset Tracking solution, Cisco said that manufacturers can gain greater visibility into their enterprise, can track the presence and real-time location of high-value manufacturing assets, and can increase operational efficiencies by reducing misplacement incidents.

"A Cisco wireless-enabled environment gives manufacturers a highly secure, robust and scalable platform to utilize next-generation mobility services, such as voice over Wi-Fi, location and asset tracking, and contractor and guest access," said Alan Cohen, senior director of mobility solutions at Cisco. "Built on the foundation of a Cisco Unified Wireless Network, the Cisco Wi-Fi Asset Tracking solution yields unparalleled management and control of vital assets throughout the manufacturing process."

Cisco's Wi-Fi Asset Tracking Solution is comprised of the Cisco 2700 Series Wireless Location Appliance, the Cisco Wireless Control System (WCS), Lightweight Access Point Protocol Controller, Cisco Aironet Access Points, AeroScout Wi-Fi-based Active RFID tags and AeroScout MobileView Software. Together, these components deliver an RF location architecture that allows organizations to gather location information and track assets even in demanding environments.

"Asset visibility has always been a business-critical issue within manufacturing, and now there is a convenient network-based solution that has been proven to increase efficiency and save organizations substantial time and money," said Gabi Daniely, vice president of marketing and product strategy at AeroScout. "Together, Cisco and AeroScout address the specific needs of a wide variety of environments with a complete, proven solution for lean and efficient manufacturing."

Cisco is targeting the solution at the following vertical markets:

Aerospace — The aerospace industry must keep track of a unique array of expensive systems, sub-assemblies, equipment and materials to complete its projects on time and on budget. Misplaced parts can cause assembly to stop, affecting direct labor costs, capital equipment utilization and cycle time. In addition, manufacturers may be required to pay large fines for late deliveries. Using Cisco's Wi-Fi Asset Tracking solution to monitor airplane parts throughout the building process — from the factory floor to final assembly — can limit process delays and reduce costs, Cisco said.

Automotive — As in the aerospace sector, the automotive industry must track high-value tools and parts through the vehicle assembly and production process, as any missing or misplaced parts can result in delays, high costs and quality issues. With Wi-Fi Asset Tracking, quality issues can be addressed more quickly to minimize the offline work-in-progress, eliminate costly delays and help ensure the rapid, cost-effective production of vehicles in this highly competitive industry, according to Cisco.

Mining — As recent events have demonstrated, safety is of paramount concern in the mining industry. Better management of tools and people underground is increasingly critical to improving visibility and ensuring safety. Cisco said that Wi-Fi Asset Tracking solution provides a clear signal underground to help maintain miner safety while speeding ore production. In addition, by using RFID tags and technology that are certified to be safe for explosion-sensitive environments, mining companies can better track trucks, containers, equipment and their miners, to assure continuous monitoring of all the mine's assets at all times, Cisco said.

Semiconductor Manufacturing — In the semiconductor industry, constant monitoring of valuable materials and equipment is essential to keeping costs low and quality high. The Wi-Fi Asset Tracking solution can facilitate work-in-process cases in fabrication facilities, mask shops and advanced test manufacturing environments, Cisco said. Real-time location of manufacturing lots can improve capital equipment utilization, save on labor costs and increase throughput. With rack-level accuracy of parts, materials and entire projects, semiconductor manufacturers can minimize waste and better drive toward completion, Cisco said.

Source: SDCExec