Igovicinity implemented an RFID-based tracking solution for managing cable drums used by the Electrical and Instrumentation divisions (E&I) at the HRRL project site located in Barmer District, Rajasthan. The project involves tracking approximately 4000 cable drums to improve visibility, reconciliation, and reporting across their lifecycle.

1. Project Objectives

– Track cable drums using RFID across storage, laydown, and field areas.
– Reconcile issued and available cable drums efficiently and accurately.
– Provide ready-to-use formatted reports for data analysis and tracking.

2. Challenges

– Cable drums not laid in sequence, leading to unorganized storage.
– Manual identification and tracking are time-consuming.
– Shrinkage of drums makes tag visibility difficult.
– No real-time visibility of drum status or balance quantity.
– Manual reconciliation using ledgers and Excel files.
– Location and actual balance cable meters per drum often unknown.
– Physical verification takes up to a week.
– Frequent data entry errors and inconsistent records.

3. RFID-Based Solution

 Igovicinity implemented an RFID-based tracking system that:
– Tags each cable drum with RFID capturing cable specs, tag, and meter readings.
– Stores and manages lifecycle data in an RFID middleware solution.
– Operates on a cloud-based system hosted on LTEH-owned data center.
– Used handheld RFID terminals for data/event capture at each stage.
– Optimized current processes to fit the digital tracking mechanism.

4. Key Benefits

– Real-time visibility of drum location and balance cable quantity.
– Reduced manual tracking effort and errors.
– Faster and accurate reconciliation and reporting.
– Minimized delays from physical verification.
– Improved decision-making and operational efficiency.

5. System Architecture & Approach

– Cloud-based RFID system with middleware hosted on LTEH data center.
– Modular architecture enabling easy integration with future tools.
– Handheld RFID terminals used for on-site tagging and verification.
– Process flow covers drum receipt, storage, issuance, and return.