The solution consists of IDasset®, Mojix and Zebra TC20 scanners
Euro Tap Rent contacted PHI DATA with an aim to automate its asset management. Euro Tap Rent, a company that rents out glasses, bar counters and tap installations, had trouble tracking its material. The limitations of barcodes and accompanying scanners sometimes resulted in job errors and loss of precious time. By introducing RFID tags and portals designed for reading them, PHI DATA helped the employees save considerable time. Now the company always has an up-to-date and accurate summary of the material that is ready to use.
Clear overview through automation
‘In the past, it often occurred that a product was not correctly scanned at the intake,’ explains Johan Cardon, Managing Director of Euro Tap Rent. ‘This was sometimes due to human error, but also occurred because our system could not handle the scanning speed. The fact that not everything was scanned upon arrival caused errors in our stock list.’
‘When talking to a friend about my plans for automation, he referred me to PHI DATA,’ says Johan Cardon. ‘The most important thing for me was a system that worked properly and I have certainly found that with PHI DATA. Together, we assessed our needs and what the best way was to tackle them.’
Euro Tap Rent and PHI DATA agreed on the IDasset® solution. This is a way to track material during your entire process. At Euro Tap Rent, this begins when material is brought to the Intake zone. An RFID portal has been installed there, through which all material must pass. In this way, it is added to the ERP package and it is immediately clear what has been brought in. From there, it passes to the washing zone, where it returns through a portal after a wash, before ending up in stock. Thanks to the portals, you have a clear view of the material at all times. When the products are sent out again, employees scan them with handheld scanners, to ensure that no errors creep into the process.
Implementation
After the initial contact between PHI DATA and Euro Tap Rent, the process went quite smoothly. ‘I knew exactly what I wanted,’ says Johan Cardon. ‘The process that required automating is actually pretty straightforward. So the implementation was quite easy. The only challenge was choosing the right tags and the exact position of the portals.’ Depending on the material and the product usage, we selected different types of tags. ‘We opted for hard tags for stainless steel materials, foldable bar counters, tap installations and fridges. For the glass baskets, we wanted a cheaper solution and chose plastic tags. And objects that are rented out for a longer period are given an on-metal tag.’
The implementation was completed about six months after our first meeting. ‘We would have liked a shorter deadline, but the delivery period was longer because we wanted personalised tags. We then needed to spend about a month and a half applying tags to all our products before we could get started. I think that we fitted about 15,000 products with a tag at that time.’
Not much has changed for our employees. ‘The biggest difference is that jobs that needed doing in the past no longer need doing. For example, in the washing zone scanning is now automatic, whereas it used to be done by hand. Furthermore, few changes have been made since the first implementation. We have only needed to resolve a small number of teething problems.’
Advantages
‘It is easy to automate such a straightforward process and there are many advantages,’ says Kurt Nauwelaerts, Business Development Manager at PHI DATA. ‘The process is much more efficient and accurate thanks to the use of RFID and less human intervention.’
The benefits were quickly clear to Euro Tap Rent. ‘We do sometimes run out of particular products,’ explains Johan Cardon. ‘In the past, this could happen because of a scanning error. Then we would wait until the material reappeared. This was not always the case and then, of course, we lost lots of time. We now simply assume that we have really run out and can inform our clients more quickly of shortages. This makes our invoicing more efficient and we order extra material more quickly, meaning that we are able to respond more rapidly.’
Euro Tap Rent is really delighted about the solution and the partnership with PHI DATA. ‘I would certainly recommend the company to my partners. Moreover, we are also considering what else we can automate. There are certainly still some opportunities,’ concludes Johan Cardon.