Industrial environments include water and energy efficiency, monitoring of facility utility infrastructure and may include production lines that are producing goods.  IoT embraces the integration of a wide variety of facility and production line sensors and hardware that measure usage and performance.  And most importantly, integrated with the Trackr software platform for the intelligence, business rules and diagnostics that are critical to an organization’s performance.

An Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) sensor monitors machines and systems to provide real-time data to a maintenance staff. Instead of relying on periodic checks by maintenance technicians, IIoT sensors provide around-the-clock “eyes” on critical assets. This means equipment stays up and running more reliably and that minor issues are caught immediately before major breakdowns occur.

Industrial IoT sensors are widely used in different industries to monitor equipment, assets, systems, and overall performance. Real-time data is then analyzed and transmitted to a company’s centralized system. Management can then make informed decisions about maintenance priorities and future asset replacement needs.  Objectives and trends translate to a continually evolving data capture and ‘artificial intelligence’ that serves as a foundation for organization improvement and an evolving software knowledge-base.

5G technology is predicted to be equally or even more impactful than the creation of the Internet.  That’s a powerful statement.  5G is transformation because it enables low power data communication using phones as data access points for a wide range of tag readers, machine and environmental sensors.  

The positive impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and its related emerging technologies will be fully realized through the wide-scale deployment of 5G communication networks in combination with other connectivity solutions. The key functional drivers of 5G will unlock a broad range of opportunities, including the optimization of service delivery, decision-making, and end-user experience. 

5G is critical because it enables unprecedented levels of connectivity, upgrading 4G networks with five key functional drivers: superfast broadband, ultra-reliable low latency communication, massive machine-type communications, high reliability/availability and efficient energy usage.  

The main advantages of the 5G are a greater speed in the transmissions, a lower latency and therefore greater capacity of remote execution, a greater number of connected devices and the possibility of implementing virtual networks (network slicing), providing more adjusted connectivity to concrete needs.

GPS stands for Global Positioning System. The system involves a network of satellites orbiting around the Earth and devices that can help determine an object or a person’s location. GPS has a range of uses, from military exercises across the globe to directions that help drivers find their way.  

GPS tracking requires a tracking device installed in a vehicle, on a piece of equipment, or worn by a person. This tracking device provides information about the person or object’s exact location so that it can report details on where a vehicle, equipment, or person is located. A GPS tracking system does this by using the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) network. This network consists of satellites that communicate with GPS devices to provide information on the current location, direction, time, and speed of the people and objects being tracked.

GPS tracking can be utilized to track any object or person that is valuable to an organization, real-time, everywhere in the world where satellites can see tags.  Whereas GPS has become a seamless part of our day-to-day lives for many applications, GPS has been leveraged significantly for:

Underground mines, surface mines, placer mining and In-Situ operations are complex environments with diverse facilities, equipment, assets and personnel.  All of these components must be carefully maintained to enable peak efficiency and avoidance of down-time.  Trackr™ provides Mining companies with enterprise tracking and IoT software and technologies to enhance management and improve safety.

Oil and gas fields, refineries and nuclear, dam and electrical plants are complex environments with diverse facilities, equipment, assets and personnel.  Oil and gas fields, drilling stations and refineries must operate at peak efficiency with avoidance of down-time.  Trackr™ provides Energy companies with enterprise tracking and IoT software and technologies to enhance management and improve safety.

Ports and terminals have recognized that the best strategy for the future is no longer to prioritize massive physical growth but rather to optimize flows and logistics processes.  Trackr™ is utilized to optimize the mobilization of containers in terminals, monitoring the control of working hours and accesses, activation and use of equipment, control of cranes and preventative and physical maintenance.

Trackr™ helps you correctly identify where the processes can be optimized, which is the most difficult aspect of sensor data collection. No universal algorithm or formula exists, and each terminal, each product and each country has a different dynamic that must be evaluated and readapted to involve the complex analysis of experts who actually manage to identify the weak sections of the processes.  The analytics and process flow management is configured within Trackr™ for each customer’s specific and exacting requirements.

Museums maintain extensive inventories and artifacts that are in storage until rotated to display areas, shipped-on-loan to other museums or institutions or pulled for maintenance and care.  It is difficult to maintain these inventories in an efficient manner, to rapidly locate needed objects and to track art and artifacts when they are exiting or entering storage areas.

Police seized property and evidence is often the difference between justice and injustice.  Evidence Trackr™ provides police agencies a comprehensive digital, computerized evidence management system that optimizes evidence and seized property management, tracking, workflow, and security.  Evidence Trackr™ delivers a robust and mature feature set, customized to your exacting requirements, including:

Weapons Trackr™ is the most robust, mature, functional and technology-advanced armory and weapons management system on the market today.  From installation for the U.S. Department of State for all weapons, gear and ammo issued to agents and embassies worldwide in 2007, through many implementations for police and military entities worldwide. Weapons Trackr™ is the proven and advanced weapon accountability that you need to track and secure your weapons, gear and ammo.

A GPS / GSM tracker utilizes either the Global Positioning System satellites or the Global System for Mobile Communications to determine precise location. However, while GSM and GPS tracking devices both accomplish similar tasks, they do so in very different ways.  

Both GPS and GSM tracking are accomplished by a receiver collecting data from at least 4 satellites in order to determine precise position. GPS / GSM tracker devices accomplish this task by referencing information from the cellular tower that is closest to the GSM / GPS tracking device. Between the two technologies, GPS systems are capable of much more precise location measurements, within a meter, whereas with GSM tracking technology, positioning can be determined within 10 meters. 

GSM tracking is ideal for any organization that needs visibility of goods, assets, personnel and vehicles on the move, no matter where they are. In contrast to GPS systems, real-time data such as motion, position and temperature, can be transmitted from anywhere in the world where there are mobile networks.

Wi-Fi is a radio-frequency technology for wireless communication that can be leveraged to detect and track the location of people, devices and assets, and can be easily activated for indoor positioning with existing Wi-Fi access points (APs) and hotspots. Incredibly vital and widespread, the Wi-Fi ecosystem is ubiquitous all throughout our daily lives. Wi-Fi is everywhere, especially in our indoor spaces, used by nearly all wireless devices and network infrastructures – including smartphones, computers, IoT devices, routers, APs, and more. Like other communication protocols including BLE and UWB, Wi-Fi can be used to transmit data between devices using radio waves.

The range of Wi-Fi positioning can differ depending on factors such as whether you are using Wi-Fi APs or sensors or the nature of the indoor space. Wi-Fi operating at 2.4 GHz generally performs at a range up to 100 meters (with optimal conditions and deployment), and can even be used in outdoor environments where adequate infrastructure is in place. 

Bluetooth Low Energy, or BLE, is a radio-frequency (RF) technology for wireless communication that can be leveraged to detect and track the location of people, devices, and assets for many indoor positioning use cases – including asset tracking, indoor navigation, proximity services and more. Incredibly widespread and accessible, Bluetooth is a technology prevalent throughout indoor spaces and supported by so many of today’s devices. Like other communication protocols including Wi-Fi and UWB, BLE is used to transmit data between devices using radio waves.

BLE beacons detect people and object tags.  They are small, versatile, and low-power Bluetooth transmitters that can be detected by wireless devices like BLE-enabled smartphones. Beacons can be deployed in fixed positions, such as mounted on walls or structures, or placed on mobile assets, to provide location references for indoor positioning applications. 

BLE indoor positioning solutions use either BLE-enabled sensors or beacons to detect and locate transmitting Bluetooth devices, such as smartphones or tracking tags throughout indoor spaces. Location data collected by the sensors or sent from beacons to mobile devices is then ingested by various locationing applications and translated into insights that power multiple location-aware use cases.

Airports are an incredible ecosystem of people, machines, tugs, dollies, trollies, baggage, repair facilities, inflight safety devices and the like. Aviation Trackr™ is software and technology that enables airports and MRO facilities to enhance visibility, management and decision making:

Fire and Emergency Medical Services organizations maintain a wide array of fire fighting and medical assets that are critical to the performance of duty and the protection of life.  It is critical that these assets are carefully maintained and monitored and that inventory data remains current and accurate.  Fire and EMS assets also require frequent testing, performance validation, calibrations and maintenance to maintain proper working conditions and to meet required regulations.

Trackr™ provides law enforcement with a single software platform that identifies, registers, tracks and secures all of the wide-ranging objects and people that make up the law enforcement ecosystem.  And integrates tracking and security technologies to provide maximum accountability, including barcode and RFID technologies  Capabilities include:

Indoor and outdoor motorized equipment, such as forklifts, sweepers, lift trucks, tugs, drill rigs, riding mowers, loaders and any motorized equipment can be tracked real-time and the locations and status viewed via Vehicle Trackr™.  Also keeps track of when equipment is due for inspection, calibration or maintenance.

Personnel can also be tagged, enabling Vehicle Trackr™ to monitor the proximity of people to equipment to prevent collisions and injuries.

Vehicles can be tracked at gates with UHF RFID or off-premises utilizing GSM and GPS.

In office environments, the use of documents during work processes remains prevalent, and documents that are digitized are often scanned and indexed for electronic archival purposes after business transactions have been completed.  In industrial environments, purchase order, work processing and shipping documents must be managed, and often, drawings, plates and dies are placed in filing system style storage.

Waiting and looking for documents has a significant impact on worker productivity, estimated by the Gartner Group’s study, at up to 4 weeks of lost productivity per worker per year.  We help you recover lost productivity, improve profitability and enhance customer service through rapid access of needed documents.

File Trackr™ is a robust records management solution capable of managing unlimited document and file types, rapidly configurable to your exacting needs, and including these standard features:

l close-proximity access control systems, one person can identify themselves to open a door, but many people may pass through the door without credentialing themselves or being identified. In office environments, the use of documents during work processes remains prevalent, and documents that are digitized are often scanned and indexed for electronic archival purposes after business transactions have been completed.  In industrial environments, purchase order, work processing and shipping documents must be managed, and often, drawings, plates and dies are placed in filing system style storage.

Waiting and looking for documents has a significant impact on worker productivity, estimated by the Gartner Group’s study, at up to 4 weeks of lost productivity per worker per year.  We help you recover lost productivity, improve profitability and enhance customer service through rapid access of needed documents.

File Trackr™ is a robust records management solution capable of managing unlimited document and file types, rapidly configurable to your exacting needs, and including these standard features:

Production down-time and productivity losses impact output, reduce profitability and put customer retention and service at risk.  Tool Trackr™ is the solution that you need to identify, register, track, secure and provide accountability of your tools, so that you know where your tools are located and can quickly allocate tools for priority work and overall production and facility maintenance.

Tool Trackr™ supports both unattended and attended tool management.  Computers and kiosks enable workers to perform self check-in and checkout, and make it faster and more accurate for toolcrib staff to manage tool issues and returns.  Tool data and photos display on the computer screen for quick confirmation of the person removing or returning tools and the tools that they are removing or returning.

Mobile Trackr™ enables quick inventories of the tool crib utilizing mobile scanners with touch-phone or touch-tablets, as well as scanning barcode and RFID tags.  Misplaced or other ‘missing’ tools can be found, similar to a Geiger counter.  RFID antennas at toolcrib doorways and gateways passively track personnel In / Out movements and the removal and return of tools without dependence on any manual tracking or use of a computer.  Alarm and lights at tool crib exit(s) are triggered in event of unauthorized tool removal

You need to have the tools that staff require, but not invest excessive funds in tools due to inefficient utilization, and make sure your facility hums at top efficiency, your machines and equipment are operating at peak performance and emergencies can be rapidly responded-to.  Count on Trackable™ and Tool Trackr™ to help you improve your performance

UWB RFID technology shares all the properties as does Active RFID, while providing unrivalled precision, transmission speed, and reliability. UWB is often the technology of choice for indoor localization of moving assets in complex and space-sensitive environments.  UWB is considered the gold standard of indoor localization technologies thanks to its numerous advantages over comparable technologies such as RFID, BLE or WiFi. It is an ideal solution for location-based automation.  UWB RFID typically enables defining object and people locations to within less than 10”.  UWB combines very short impulses that move at the speed of light. The arrival time of the signal is measured precisely over a high bandwidth, thus determining the position of the transmitter with high precision.

UWB RFID helps solve prevalent industry challenges, including extensive search times, lack of documentation, error-prone manual processes and sustainability.

Data transmitted by a tagged object or person is received by multiple gateways, which forward the data packets to a centralized network server. The central server in turn handles packet filtering, security and network management. LoRaWAN is largely used to increase ability to communicate over longer distances, sometimes in conjunction with other technologies like GPS. This enables customers to implement advanced RFID solutions for a wider range of applications and use cases, customized at an affordable price point for a broad array of environments.

RFID empowered with LoRaWAN can supercharge facilities through IT and office asset management, production line material flow, consumables replenishment, room utilisation, state change notification, space/asset utilisation, field operations, ports, construction and mining, emergency detection, worker accountability, fleet monitoring, yard management and much more.

LoRaWAN is a low power wide area network (LPWAN) intended for wireless battery operated things in a regional, national or global network.  LoRa has revolutionized IoT by enabling data communication over a long range while using very little power. Networks with LoRa, such as those leveraging the LoRaWAN standard, fill the technology gap of Cellular, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) networks that require either high bandwidth or high power, or have a limited range or inability to penetrate deep indoor environments.

When business and organizations think of RFID, they are typically thinking of UHF RFID.  UHF RFID is the most prevalent type of RFID technology implemented for tagging and tracking assets, equipment and vehicles, because the tags are inexpensive and UHF RFID offers detection distances up to 40’ with standard tags or 100’ with larger, specialty tags.  UHF RFID is ideal for wide areas, such as a dock door or a passageway from one part of facilities to another, and at standard sized doorways and checkpoints.  UHF RFID is faster and easier to perform inventories, because the mobile scanner has a detention distance up to approximately 20’, so many tagged objects can be scanned simultaneously and quickly from-a-distance.

Whereas barcodes, NF RFID and UHF RFID tags are generally very small and flat, without requiring a battery.  Active tags require larger, more expensive tags, that have batteries.  However, the capabilities of Active RFID versus NF or UHF RFID are significant.  The choice of RFID technology is primarily driven relative to real-time versus choke-point tracking and the distance of detecting tagged people and objects.

Trackr™ provides military organizations with a single software instance that manages and tracks weapons-gear-ammo, armaments, facility assets, industrial assets, parts, tools, documents and people on an enterprise level.  Supports traditional computing, mobile computing, barcoding, RFID, long range tracking technologies, GSM, GPS and 5G technologies so that military entities can optimize tracking and have real-time location and status data for all objects and people.

Local, regional and national governments have a vast array of object-types and personnel for which they are responsible.  Trackr™ tracks all of your personnel and assets for accountability, readiness and high level utilization.

Healthcare has almost endless applications for tracking and accountability.  It is a matter of life and death.  From surgical supplies and surgical tools for surgeries, to the assets and personnel that keep your facility running and your patients cared-for.  Trackr™ is your turn-key solution that tracks all of your assets and personnel with a tracking system geared towards organizational efficiency and patient results.

Parts Trackr™ helps you turn your MRO parts into an opportunity for continuous improvement.  Whether it be from faulty design or normal wear and tear, parts eventually fail.  Being prepared and having a plan in place to remedy the issue is important to minimize downtime and ensure customer satisfaction.

Having a strong repairable parts management program is essential to manufacturing efficiency, extending the longevity of your assets and increasing the productivity of your equipment. From root cause analysis of failed parts to part rebuilds, emergency repairs, intensive warranty tracking and more, Parts Trackr™ delivers strategic on-site ownership — proactively eliminating waste, reducing costs, improving component reliability and optimizing your manufacturing performance.  Parts Trackr™ delivers:

Inventory Trackr™ helps you manage inventory and components to enhance business operations:

Manufacturers utilize materials and components to produce goods, requiring synchronization of many organizational workflows, including forecasting, ordering, receiving, storing, allocating, work-in-process, QC and finished goods.  

Managing production processes are enhanced through machine sensor and tracking technologies for components, goods-in-process and goods from receipt to storage locations, when  dispatched for manufacturing, finished goods storage, and shipping.  Production Trackr™ is aa array of powerful software, tracking and sensor technologies that vitalize production management:

When business and organizations think of RFID, they are typically thinking of UHF RFID.  UHF RFID is the most prevalent type of RFID technology implemented for tagging and tracking assets, equipment and vehicles, because the tags are inexpensive and UHF RFID offers detection distances up to 40’ with standard tags, or 100’ with larger, specialty tags.  UHF RFID is ideal for wide areas, such as a dock door or a passageway from one part of facilities to another, and at standard sized doorways and checkpoints.  UHF RFID is faster and easier to perform inventories, because the mobile scanner has a detention distance up to approximately 20’, so, many tagged objects can be scanned simultaneously and quickly from-a-distance.

Whereas barcode technology requires staff to physically scan bar codes, NF RFID functions passively, without staff having to scan tags.  A popular example of NF RFID is the use for libraries, including the self check-in, check-out stations and the security portals at library exits.  

NF RFID antennas can be placed at doorways or any choke-point or passageway, and transmit radio waves approximately 3 to 4’.  This short range saturation of RFID improves tag detection and avoidance of missed tags, and, prevents the unintentional detection of RFID tagged objects and people in proximity to a NF RFID detection zone.  

NF RFID mobile scanners have a detection distance of approximately 8”, enabling exacting and accurate inventories of objects at any location and on specific shelf and shelf locations, without inadvertent scanning of tags on adjacent shelf locations or shelves.

Barcoding is the most extensively used tracking technology in the world, replacing paperwork, spreadsheet and manual software applications with the ability to scan barcodes to speed processes and eliminate errors.  The Trackr™ software platform supports 1D, 2D and QR Code barcode technologies.  Barcode scanning is accomplished using PC-based USB scanners, such as for check-in and check-out, and mobile scanners that can be used anywhere, such as for inventories, and the data syncs to Trackr™ software via cloud, Ethernet or USB connection.

Corporations across the many sectors of business all have structural commonalities, where Trackr™ provides important benefits for accountability and tracking:

Distribution operations, whether as a component of a broader manufacturing enterprise, a wholesaler or as a temporary receive-and-forward facility,  incorporate broad and inter-dependent workflows and processes, with the efficiency of these operations critical to an entity’s success and profitability.  In a distribution environment, it is essential to track goods and personnel to optimize throughput and get products to customers correctly and on-time.

Managing and utilization of raw materials is an essential element of efficiency, customer satisfaction and cost-containment.  Ensuring that you have the materials needed for your current and forecasted operations, without requiring excessive quantities of materials to compensate for inadequate materials management tools and systems, which impact cash flow and financial performance.  Materials Trackr™ keeps track of raw materials in storage and as work-in-progress through finished goods, enabling continuity of the business and lean manufacturing.

Materials Trackr™ manages both direct and indirect materials, providing accountability and tracking based on serialized units, unserialized bulk materials and by weight.  Forklifts can be equipped with RFID scanners for tracking real-time throughout the warehouse and production areas.  Mobile scanners supporting barcodes and/or RFID tagging enables rapid cycle counts and inventories, and, can be used to rapidly access needed items like a Geiger counter.

Materials Trackr™ includes API’s and integration tools with MRP systems, tracks historical data and generates projects for future demands.  Materials Trackr™ is your out-of-the-box, customizable tool that delivers improved materials management and production efficiency.

Personnel Trackr™ registers all workers and visitors and tracks their movements.

With typical close-proximity access control systems, one person can identify themselves to open a door, but many people may pass through the door without credentialing themselves or being identified. 

Asset Trackr™ improves your management of office and industrial assets, so that you maintain accountability and enhance utilization.

Assets are critical to day-to-day operations, and they are equally important as to financial reporting, regulations, currencies and taxation.  Asset Trackr is your turn-key solution ready out-of-the-box and rapidly customizable to all of your requirements.  All of your asset management and utilization are optimized with Asset Trackr.

Raw materials, components, goods-in-process and inventory have to be tracked throughout the manufacturing and finished-goods process.  Parts and tools have to be available to maintain production lines and facilities and ensure maximum run-time.  Trackr™ provides you everything that you need with software, tracking and sensor technologies to increase production throughput and reduce lead times.