Singapore Shipyard Deploys UHF RFID Readers To Track Assets

Background
Sembawang Shipyard is a shipyard that specializes in ship repairs and fabrication. Owned by SembCorp Marine, it has five docks totaling 775,000 dwt with adjacent engineering and fabrication facilities. It has almost four kilometers of continuous deep and sheltered berthage of up to 14 meters in depth. The shipyard's 100,000 dwt dry dock is one of the deepest in South-East Asia. Formerly a British Royal naval base, the shipyard was built in 1938. After Singapore's independence in 1968, the naval base was converted and came to use as a commercial shipyard under the management of Sembawang Corporation (now known as SembCorp).
 
Challenges

• The shipyard has a wide range of maintenance tools and various types of management tools.

• When inspecting dock maintenance tools, writing down the asset information is time- consuming and inefficient.

• There is no effective mechanism to monitor the inspectors. The administrators cannot ensure that they are in place every day.

• The administrators have no timely access to fault information and cannot develop maintenance plans instantly. The maintenance often can't be made in time, which causes losses to the company.

 
Solutions
Each dock maintenance tool is equipped with a barcode or an electronic RFID tag with uniquely identifiable information. Chainway C3000 handheld computers, integrated with 2D barcode scanning, UHF RFID, Wi-Fi and other functions, can quickly identify and obtain the corresponding tool's information. Input relevant information when there is a breakdown or fault. In this way, workers can easily complete the inspection task. Besides, these information can be uploaded in real time via wireless networks so that maintenance won't be delayed.
 
Effects

• It becomes more efficient and convenient to track and manage dock maintenance tools.

• During on-site inspections, workers have no need to carry paper documents. Just take our portable PDAs to complete mobile asset tracking and inspection. It saves costs and improves productivity.

• Administrators can check on work attendance better.

• Thanks to the wireless communication function on C3000, maintenance plans can be made immediately when the breakdown is found.

• Tool maintenance records are automatically generated and saved to the database system, which facilitates future inquiries and comprehensive management.

 
PDA Configuration
P/N: C3000
Functions: 2D, UHF RFID, Wi-Fi