Written by SmartSense | Supply Chain, Warehouse
In our complex global economy, implementing Sensing-as-a-Service solutions for supply chain tracking is critical. Industries such as food service, healthcare, luxury, and fashion, which have perishable or high-value assets, must meet strict regulations and consumer demands for safety, quality, and authenticity as their products traverse a multifaceted supply chain network.
As discussed in our previous post, mitigating cargo theft is one of the primary benefits of IoT-enabled supply chain tracking. Equally important within a Total Retail Loss framework are other non-malicious forms of loss, such as product waste, spoilage, and damage.
Tracking with integrated sensor devices locates traveling assets and their conditions in real time and at scale. The benefits are many: enhancing visibility into margin destruction, identifying operational corrections, and increasing profitability for the enterprise.
In this post, we explain the functions and benefits of supply chain tracking, provide a few tips on implementing an IoT-enabled tracking solution, and focus particularly on potential infrastructural issues that may arise during systems integration.
What is supply chain tracking?
Supply chain tracking involves the integration of software, hardware, and processes that collect and analyze data at every link in the supply chain from origin to destination: sourcing, production, transportation, storage, inventory management, and delivery. This crucial information provides complete visibility into a product’s lifecycle: where it is now, where it has been, and how it’s been handled at each stage. And if a problem occurs, it can be quickly identified and corrected to prevent further delays or complications.
Supply chain tracking can be categorized into three types:
- Raw material tracking: accurately recording and monitoring the movement, usage, and location of raw materials from their initial acquisition to their eventual use in production, ensuring efficient inventory management and production processes.
- Production tracking: systematically monitoring and managing the manufacturing process, from raw materials to finished goods, thus allowing businesses to identify inefficiencies and areas for improvement.
- Distribution tracking: monitoring and tracking the movement of goods from the point of origin to the final destination to identify bottlenecks and ensure timely and efficient delivery.
In each type of supply chain tracking, the conditions of the product are also monitored, including temperature, humidity, light, impact, tampering, and inventory levels.
Supply chain tracking works by integrating various technologies with IoT-enabled logistical capabilities:
- Radio frequency identification (RFID): wireless technology that uses radio waves to identify and track products using tags and readers, allowing for data transfer without direct contact or line-of-sight.
- Global positioning system (GPS): Real-time location data of vehicles and shipments across large geographical expanses.
- Barcodes: a visual representation of numbers and characters that can be scanned by warehouse and delivery staff at key checkpoints to identify products and locations.
- Data collection tools: software applications or platforms used to gather, organize, and store data efficiently to ensure accuracy and efficiency, especially when dealing with large volumes of information.
- Analytical software: Applications that analyze data to identify patterns, predict outcomes, measure performance, provide actionable insights, and improve operations.
- Communication networks: Systems that facilitate the exchange of data among various stakeholders along the chain.
Supply chain tracking benefits all aspects of conducting business:
- For Management: better, informed business decisions to identify cost-saving opportunities and gain a competitive edge in the market.
- For Operations: enhanced transparency across stakeholders, improved worker productivity, optimized transportation routes, and reduced delivery delays.
- For Inventory: streamlined order processing and delivery scheduling, guaranteed on-shelf availability, and reduction of overstocking and waste.
- For Safety: ensured regulatory compliance, minimized risk of recalls, and mitigated fraud and theft.
Implementing supply chain tracking
If you’ve been using a system to manage your supply chain that has not been upgraded in years, it’s definitely time for a change. Here are some signs that your organization would benefit from an IoT-enabled supply chain tracking system:
- You’re using a paper-based system to manage your supply chain.
- You want to make your supply chain more efficient.
- Your inventory consists of sensitive, perishable, or high-value products that require very specific conditions to maintain safety, quality, and authenticity.
- You regularly have difficulty locating delayed, lost, or stolen shipments.
- Your customers are requesting more detailed information about their products, such as their country of origin, sustainability, raw materials, and fair trading practices.
Conducting a supply chain tracking needs assessment
If your organization meets any of these conditions, a first step in implementing an IoT-enabled tracking system is to conduct a needs assessment.
Map your supply chain. Identify the critical points in your value chain that require tracking, from procurement to delivery, to ensure the system aligns with your specific business needs and objectives. Prioritize areas that impact product quality, safety, compliance, and customer satisfaction.
Consider the scale and value of your goods. High-value assets such as luxury and fashion products, perishable foods that may spoil and trigger outbreaks of foodborne illness, and vaccines and medications that must remain frozen to maintain potency warrant advanced, secure tracking solutions.
Consider your physical infrastructure. What systems does your solution need? The following systems are fundamental for a seamless, effective supply chain.
- Warehouse Management System (WMS): Data from tracking systems can be fed into your WMS to maintain real-time inventory visibility, optimize packing processes, and improve warehouse efficiency.
- Transportation Management System (TMS): Tracking data can be integrated with your TMS to track the location and status of shipments in real time, which allows for better dispatch planning, route optimization, and improved customer communication regarding delivery timelines.
- Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System: Integrating tracking data with your ERP system provides a holistic view of your entire supply chain. This data can be used for better production planning, demand forecasting, and resource allocation.
Infrastructural challenges to supply chain tracking integration
Supply chain tracking can be challenging to implement due to differences in technologies, standards, and regulations. A common pitfall is underestimating the complexity of integrating new systems within existing infrastructure to create a single cohesive and efficient solution.
For example, a company might implement a new WMS without considering the integration with its legacy ERP system, which can lead to data silos, poor communication between systems, and the duplication of efforts. The different components of infrastructure must be integrated seamlessly to achieve optimal performance.
Integrating a new tracking system with existing ERP systems and other operational software can be costly and time-consuming if it requires substantial investment in new infrastructure. Furthermore, depending on the system you choose, integration may require significant purchases of new hardware and software and greater investments in labor and employee training. Often, infrastructure development also involves complex regulatory and environmental issues that add to the expense.
SmartSense Voyage: Seamless supply chain tracking with no new infrastructure required
Some businesses aren’t willing or able to shoulder the costs of new infrastructure and its related costs. SmartSense Voyage avoids those costs. Our solution provides state-of-the-art IoT-enabled supply chain tracking without the need for new infrastructure:
- Easy integration with your existing enterprise systems
- Global cellular connectivity with multi-network support
- Cloud-based central platform with user dashboards and alerts
- Scalable architecture and configurable alerts and reports
SmartSense Voyage complies with strict regulatory requirements for storing, handling, transporting, and tracking high-value or condition-sensitive products. Real-time visibility into the condition and location of these assets helps avoid theft and loss while improving revenue. Watch our video for a brief overview.
