The packaging is checked by employees.
Reusable load carrier management (Returnable Transport Item Management – RTI)
Durable boxes, crates, pallets, trolleys, baskets and other recyclable containers are used to package goods and transport them from one location to the next - this packaging is called returnable transport items (RTI). Reusable transport packaging often makes up a high proportion of a company's inventory, regardless of the industry. Therefore, companies invest an enormous amount of capital in order to be able to use them permanently. RTIs are an important part of sustainability, especially in the supply chain, and help companies save valuable time and reduce costs when recycling RTIs for the transport of goods.
The main task with RTI goods is to have an effective strategy to optimally manage and track them. Often the packaging units are used by non-owners with little liability. This can amount to a loss of 25% annually as RTIs are lost in transit, damaged or stored. As a result, additional RTI purchases arise to avoid stockouts and downtime.
What is meant by RTI management?
The RTI system optimally organizes the processing and management of logistical load carrier solutions. This simplifies and optimizes the use of costly logistics packaging and provides integrated management of transactions between customer and supplier business locations.
You can find further information on the topic of transport logistics here
How RFID technology can help manage RTIs
RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) offers a cost-effective and efficient way to get the most value from RTI assets. Try to imagine the following scenario. You are in a company, more precisely in a bottling plant. There, cartons of beverages are loaded directly into plastic RTIs at high speed and transported to regional distribution centers. As the drinks roll over the loading ramp onto the truck, the RTI inventory report is updated automatically and simultaneously. Updated regarding the units going out and exactly what units they are. It is also clear which truck transports them and which dealer receives them. The advantages that result from this are that no employee is busy counting and no forms have to be signed. The RFID tags on each individual packaging unit make it possible to track their movement precisely and automatically by placing stationary readers at strategic entry and exit portals of the distribution center or by using handheld readers for mobile reading points at remote facilities or on site at the customer's site.
The automation of the management of such mobile packaging means that each employee is also responsible for the units that pass through their department. This means losses can be kept low, throughput times are optimized and RTI stocks are of optimal size. This shows that RFID is the ideal solution to overcome the challenges of reusable transport packaging management. Using RFID, it is possible to track each individual packaging unit in real time - from the moment the unit leaves the facility to the moment it is returned - permanently. RFID technology (Radio Frequency Identification) is an optimal way to get the best possible benefit from RTI stocks.
If you would like to read more information about RFID, simply click on the RFID button.