Why Use RFID Technology for Baggage Handling?
Estimates by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in their Corporate Air Travel Survey (CATS) put mishandled baggage costs at approximately $US 3.8 billion for 2009 alone. This industry problem spans worldwide. While many assume full participation by all parties is necessary to completely rectify the problem, RFID-enabled baggage tagging efforts already in place show that local or regional implementation of RFID on baggage can have significant benefit, resulting in improved service, substantial cost reductions or savings, and increased customer satisfaction. RFID on Baggage from Lyngsoe has had significant impact on capacity, handling efficiency and visibility of baggage in airports such as Hong Kong International, Italy’s Milano Malpensa, Lisbon Airport, and Denmark’s Aalborg Airport.
So why hasn’t the industry just adopted and implemented the technology?
Limited funding is one answer, but the penchant for believing that benefits will not be realized until adoption is comprehensive (bags tracked along all segments of a journey) also persists. This belief has led many airports, handlers and airlines to delay implementation until mandated. But proactive airport management teams who have taken a hard look at their own process have determined that performance improvements and savings resulting in a real return on investment are possible even with local implementation.
You Can’t Fix What You Don’t Understand
It is best to first clearly identify goals. Where are the baggage handling problem areas? What are the system loading and capacity point limits? Are there certain times during the day, particular weeks, or even months when more problems occur? Most operations people already have some idea of problem areas and are a good resource when considering where to begin. It is possible to extract data from existing barcode baggage systems to help determine problem areas, but it will not address all processes. As it turns out, RFID technology can provide visibility into processes without incurring the cost of a full implementation. With the RFID-enabled Lyngsoe ABQM (Automatic Baggage Quality Measurement) system that involves tagging a statistically significant percentage of the checked baggage, installing read points (both fixed and mobile) at critical areas throughout the baggage handling process, and providing unbiased data through an easily accessible interface, all participating parties have immediate visibility into problem areas. Through an iterative process, these parties can cooperate to fine tune the process.
Another benefit of beginning with a quality measurement approach is that organizations gain familiarity with the RFID technology, see the benefits first hand, and can help clearly define the ROI for full implementation using real, unbiased measurement data. It’s a cost effective, low risk process improvement approach that is used widely in the air transport industry by Lyngsoe Systems.