Logistics Management Supply Chain Management Review

From the May 2013 Issue

Army/Air Force Exchange: Reporting for duty

With an upgraded conveyor system and new picking technologies, the Exchange’s Waco distribution center supports our nation’s service men and women.

Exchange: Keeping up with peak demand

Making the case for WMS

Supply Chain Software Survey: Off the fence and into the future

Light-directed activities: Order fulfillment at the speed you need

In Sync: Data capture and mobile computing

Using a combination of diverse technologies—often in one compact package—gives users the edge in asset management and operational efficiency.

To give users the ability to deploy one platform across multiple applications, mobile computing vendors are providing smaller, faster data capture devices with multimodal functionality.

Read What's Related

RFID: ROC IT Solutions partners with Zebra Technologies

Top 20 automatic data capture suppliers

Overall RFID market to hit $5.35 billion this year

RFID surges ahead

By Sara Pearson Specter, Editor at Large

October 18, 2010

With ongoing pressures to drive costs out of manufacturing and distribution processes, facilities increasingly rely on a blend of data capture and mobile computing technologies to gain better control of assets and inventory. The application of a single solution— such as RF bar code scanning, imagers, voice-directed picking or radio frequency identification (RFID)—developed into a blending of technologies embedded into a single device for maximum labor flexibility and operational efficiency.

Users need data capture and mobile computing solutions that generate enhanced supply chain visibility and overall business efficiency improvements, says Mike Liard RFID practice director at ABI Research. “To do that, suppliers have become more ‘technology agnostic,’ offering a broader range of automatic identification data collection (AIDC) solutions for use in combination as complementary technologies.”

“The technologies are used not just to find assets, but also to track the mission-critical things that get tied to your process,” Liard adds. “People are looking beyond labor cost reduction to overall cost reduction—a more holistic approach.”

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About the Author

Sara Pearson Specter
Editor at Large

Sara Pearson Specter has written articles and supplements for Modern Materials Handling and Logistics Management as an Editor at Large since 2001. Based in Cincinnati, Specter has worked in the fields of journalism, graphic design, advertising, marketing, and public relations for 15 years, with a special emphasis on helping business-to-business industrial and manufacturing companies. Specter graduated from Centre College in Danville, Ky., with a bachelor’s degree in French and history.