Case Study | RFID-supported smart automotive process

Lack of efficiency in the management of service/repairs

A large network of garages faced the challenge of servicing and repairing thousands of vehicles every day. For every car that arrived at the workshop, a repair order was first created. The vehicle then passed through various departments in the workshop before finally being delivered to the customer. Given this scenario, management wanted to make the maintenance and repair process more efficient and reduce both time and costs. Keeping records manually or recording data manually or semi-automatically did not help the customer achieve their goals.

Punctual delivery of the vehicles

The main objective of the project was to deliver the vehicles on time in order to increase customer satisfaction. To achieve this, it was necessary to ensure that vehicle movements in the workshop were monitored and data accurately recorded. In addition, gaps or idle times in vehicle movements between the individual service phases were to be identified, thereby improving efficiency and productivity. Another objective was to provide customers with a real-time overview of vehicle status.

RFID solution for tracking each vehicle throughout the entire service process

An RFID-based solution enabled the service provider to track the vehicles within the service workshop and service areas and to recognize the direction of movement in and out as the vehicles change position between the different service processes. A plan was created to automate data collection at each stage.

This required the use of RFID hardware components, the CrossTalk IoT suite and a dealer management system. Kathrein's CrossTalk IoT suite was used for Auto-ID, device management and track & trace visualization. With the Dealer Management System (ERP of a third-party provider), it was possible to manage the availability of spare parts, display the history of the vehicles and organize the pre-ordering of vehicles. RFID tags on the vehicles provided data to the antennas and readers installed at all entry and exit points. Customers waiting in the customer lounge were able to follow the current vehicle status on a screen. In addition, the management received live data from all devices via CrossTalk for analysis purposes and, if necessary, corrective measures.

Key performance indicators (KPIs)

These are the metrics that the management was able to track in order to achieve improvements:

•  Total number of vehicles per day - Throughput rate
• Average time spent by the vehicles from the gate IN to the creation of the repair order
• Average time in the car wash
• Time spent in repair
• Time spent in the hall
• Average time spent in the workshop
• Average idle time of the vehicle.

     

Illustration: Factory-fitted RFID tags (attached to the windshield on the passenger side) and a manual RFID card for hanging on the rear-view mirror

 

Conclusion

By introducing RFID technology in its garages, the customer was able to reduce service/delivery times and improve profitability at the same time. Customers were pleased to receive accurate information on the status of the car service and on-time delivery. The management of the workshop was able to improve efficiency in all departments:

• "Gate Entry" for order opening at ~50% more efficient
• Improvement in handling speed by ~20%
• Reduced vehicle idle time in the workshop by 25% Intellistride's implementation of the solution achieved the client's business objectives.

 

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Case Study | RFID-supported smart automotive process