Leveraging RFID For Demand Chain Optimization: Real-Time Tracking Of Field-Based Inventory And Assets

By SkyeTek, Inc.

This paper describes the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) to provide real-time visibility of finished-goods inventory from the point of manufacture to the point of sale — commonly referred to as the demand chain. Leveraging RFID in this way enables inventory management optimization that increases sales and customer satisfaction and decreases inventory levels, product loss, and legal liability.

As evidenced by RFID deployment at Walmart, Target, and the U.S. Department of Defense, RFID has proven to be an effective technology for allowing companies to track inventory in the supply chain from the point of receipt back to suppliers. RFID is also proving to be an equally, if not more, effective technology for allowing manufacturers and distributors to track inventory through the demand chain, as it moves from the factory and/or distribution center through the field to customer sites. Demand chain RFID provides real-time, highly accurate inventory visibility enabling the following improvements in sales and operations:

• Shorter more accurate cycle-counts
• Reduced out-of-stocks
• Improved merchandising effectiveness
• Improved service level attainment
• Higher inventory turns
• Reduced product loss
• Improved route optimization
• Expired product removal
• Shorter invoice-to-cash cycles