How RFID is Transforming Asset Tracking in AV
Backstage with Alford Media
English - July 09, 2019 20:00 - 27 minutes - 25.7 MBTechnology Business alford alford media corporate event event industry event tech event technology hybrid event in-person event virtual event live event Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
In the past, event technology specialists at AV companies had to manually scan each item of gear making its way to the warehouse. Some still manually scan to this day; it’s an antiquated system that takes days, or even weeks, and is prone to human error. Here at Alford Media, that has changed with RFID asset tracking technology.
On this episode of Backstage, Melanie Reed, Vice President of Business Operations, and Billy King, Director of Operations, share how we at Alford are leading the charge in asset tracking for AV gear, and how RFID revolutionized our logistics.
Melanie and Billy each have twenty years of experience at Alford Media and know the disadvantages of manually scanning barcodes for millions of dollars worth of equipment. When humans make a mistake, like misplacing essential gear, it can cause headaches at the show site and stop expensive productions in their tracks.
To optimize its processes, Billy explained that the company started looking into RFID tracking solutions in 2005 but the technology just wasn’t ready. As advancements were made, the company went back and started developing a custom solution that would allow scanners to instantly read and log tagged items as they were loaded on the truck.
As Melanie recalled, perfecting the technology wasn’t easy and took countless meetings, experiments, and trial-and-error. But now their RFID system provides real-time tracking of gear – no manual barcode scanning required. It dramatically speeds up logistics and removes human error so that crews can help put on the best event possible.
According to Melanie, all the hard work developing the software was worth it. On top of that, Alford’s culture of integrity and openness is the reason the company is happy to share what they’ve learned with other organizations looking to set up an RFID tracking infrastructure of their own.
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