WhereNet Corp., a Zebra Technologies company and the leader in wireless solutions for tracking and managing enterprise assets, announced that Navistar Defense has deployed the standards-based WhereNet active RFID, real-time locating system (RTLS) to automate work-in-process tracking at its West Point, Mississippi, manufacturing facility. Implemented in 30 days, the system helps reduce production costs and accelerate delivery of the MaxxPro MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicles for the United States Department of Defense. MaxxPro MRAP vehicles are designed to protect troops from roadside bombs and other growing threats in Afghanistan and Iraq.
"After a thorough evaluation of solutions providers, we selected WhereNet because its real-time visibility solution has a proven track record of reducing costs, improving quality, and expediting production in industrial manufacturing environments," said Rex Baldwin, IT project lead for Navistar Defense. "Among all of its other benefits, the system's impact on reducing cycle time aligns perfectly with our ultimate goal of rapidly delivering MRAP vehicles to the U.S. military to protect our troops in harm's way."
Spanning more than one million square feet indoors and out, the WhereNet system consists of a local infrastructure of 5 wireless WhereLAN location sensors and 13 WhereLAN locating access points that can be used for determining the location of assets as well as Wi-Fi mobile data communication; 400 active RFID WhereTag transmitters that are attached to MRAP chassis at the beginning of the armor-plating process; and WherePort magnetic "exciters" that trigger the transmitters to emit a signal when entering or leaving a specific work cell, enabling the system to automatically record such information as arrival, dwell, and departure time without any human intervention.
The WhereNet Visibility Software Suite (VSS) provides constant visibility for each tagged vehicle, enabling Navistar to track and manage the manufacturing of every MRAP vehicle as it passes through the assembly, paint, testing, adjustment, and inspection processes. After the on-site Defense Department officials perform the final testing on each finished MRAP vehicle, the WhereTag transmitters are removed, and the vehicles are loaded onto flatbed trailers for final delivery.
Navistar expects to realize a complete return on its investment in less than one year through numerous benefits, including:
Reduced labor cost for MRAP production processes, as the WhereNet system eliminates search time and automates much of the workflow
Increased throughput/reduced on-site dwell time
Higher-quality vehicles, as the system support Six Sigma standards and ensures that every finished vehicle meets the customer's specifications
Based on the rapid deployment and benefits the company has already gained from this initial implementation, Navistar will install additional WherePort devices this summer to provide more detailed event management reporting from the production line. Navistar is also evaluating WhereNet's vehicle tracking and management system (VTMS) software, which would leverage the same WhereLAN infrastructure and drive additional value and return on investment through enhanced workflow automation.
"We are proud to not only support Navistar's production processes, but also to provide value to our troops by shipping MRAP vehicles into theater sooner than ever before to ensure warfighters' safety from improvised explosive devices," said Jason Rushton, system architect for aerospace and defense, Zebra Enterprise Solutions. "From the manufacturing assembly line to maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities to logistics hubs located around the world, Zebra Enterprise Solutions drives value across the DoD supply chain by automating business processes and consistently delivering a complete ROI in a matter of months."
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