Researchers tap into RFID to cut costs

       New technologies for real-time vehicle tracking will play a big role in lowering expensive logistics costs, improving transport management and the country's competitiveness, according to the National Innovation Agency (NIA).
       Logistics costs as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) in Thailand are as high as 19%, compared with 9.4% in the United States and single digits or low double digits in many other developed countries.
       Given that Thailand relies on exports for more than 60% of its GDP, logistics costs are far too high, industry leaders have said for years.
       The NIA has supported researchers pursuing innovations to reduce costs, a notable example being B-Move, which was a co-developed by Southeast Asia Technology Co and Burapha University's Logistics Department.
       The system, is based on radio frequency identification (RFID) for tracking vehicles to monitor transport.
       "The technology can not only be adapted to use in transport management in order to raise the efficiency of transport but also to lower transport costs and save time," said Supachai Lorlowhakarn,the NIA director.
       It can also be used in public transport for managing bus schedules and routes.
       A tag installed on each vehicle sends signals to RFID readers placed in telephone booths, which act as receivers.The information is then transferred to a control centre through an Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line or ADSL, which sends data over copper telephone lines faster than a conventional voiceband modem can provide.
       The NIA underwrote half of the project's cost of 3.12 million baht.
       The agency has also supported the use of RFID in the shrimp industry to create a 3D barcode on packaging. It identifies the origin, quality and safety of the product from the duration of transport from the farm to the factory, to what kind of food is fed to the shrimp.This prevents farmers from using harmful substances, said Dr Supachai.
       The project worth 5.96 million baht in total includes another technology called C-Move, a tracking system, developed by DX Innovation Co and partially funded by the NIA. It uses a global positioning system or GPS device to track vehicles that run across the country.
       Unlike B-Move which targets product transport within the city, C-Move looks after larger networks, such as transport to and from different provinces. Although B-Move's RFID technology has a higher quality, it can be used in a limited space whereas GPS uses a satellite system that allows a wider scale of usage.
       The two projects were commercialised two months ago.
       On the distribution side, a bidding website acts as a matchmaking service by allowing customers to see the avail-ability of vehicles that can transport products from one place to another.
       The current transport management system, which is not integrated into a network, means shippers cannot use the same vehicles for different products.
       Continuous trips can lower energy costs by reducing the number of empty trips, which account for up to 46% of all trips for land transport of products.
       Eighty-nine percent of all product transport in Thailand is by land, resulting in a total of 71.74 million trips per year.