March 31, 2017 Controlling RTI Costs

The cost of shrinkage from a company’s returnable transport items increases quickly if not given proper attention. These returnable transport items are necessary when shipping finished goods. The fact they’re recycled makes them an asset with respectable value. Every time a returnable transport item successfully returns with minor, if any damage, their value increases. On the other hand, losing one costs the company double, if not more; doubled because of the cost to replace it and the loss of the would‐be value when re‐used for another shipment. In addition, lack of a container tracking system increases labor costs by requiring time‐intensive manual tracking processes and the extra inventory costs of having a backup supply on hand to compensate for missing or late containers.

A system in place to track and guarantee the return of RTI’s will produce substantial cost‐savings. Once a tracking system is in place, a significant decrease in shrinkage would be a goal easily within reach. If these returnable transport items are not currently listed individually in a tracking system, why not?

It may seem complicated to develop a system for tracking, valuing, and reusing containers, but technology, as usual, can make the job easier. Treating your returnable transport items as an asset by labeling them with a unique number and listing them separately on all paperwork such as invoices, packing slips, bills of lading and inventory reports can provide the information required for shrinkage control. RFID is one possible solution to container tracking. An RFID tag consists of a tiny chip and antenna called an integrated circuit. This tag may also be part of a barcode label that may be attached to or inserted in containers such as bins & pallets.

Assigned with a dedicated number and tracked within an asset tracking software system, any decrease in the count on hand, not adjusted and accounted for in some way, will appear on a returnable transport asset report. Backed by data, received through RFID tagging and interpreted through the tracking software, companies are prepared to address the reasons for the shrinkage: damage, loss, etc. Discovering the cause for any discrepancy becomes a much easier task with a quick resolution, saving labor and inventory costs.

Gain visibility to your RTI’s across multiple locations as they move through the supply chain. Radley’s end‐to‐end RFID solution includes not just tags, labels and hardware, but the middleware software required to process and validate the data to update your back‐end applications. Contact us for your free consultation or visit our website to learn more. www.radley.com

Subscribe to Industry Today