• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Excelitas Qioptiq banner

BATTLESPACE Updates

   +44 (0)77689 54766
   

  • Home
  • Features
  • News Updates
  • Defence Engage
  • Company Directory
  • About
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • Media Pack 2023

AUTOMATIC IDENTIFICATION TECHNOLOGY

June 8, 2004 by

AUTOMATIC IDENTIFICATION TECHNOLOGY AND MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT
By Mike Foster, Oxley Systems

Introduction

Maintenance managers within the armed forces face increasing demands to support a wide range of equipment of varying ages and complexity, whist continually being challenged to increase equipment availability. Coupled with budget constraints and personnel shortages the prospect of providing effective and comprehensive equipment maintenance for operations around the world is challenging. This challenge is now also being taken-up by industry as we enter an age of defence equipment Contractor Logistics Support (CLS) whereby MoD are transferring liability and risk for equipment reliability and supportability to the OEM.

The development and application of Automatic Identification Technology (AIT) is set to play a significant role in equipment support for the maintenance community. Benefits will include increased operational readiness, reduced cost of ownership and improved maintainer productivity.

The overall objectives in the implementation of automatic identification technologies is that those that have a requirement for information have immediate access to data about the appropriate equipment. In a fully integrated AIT application, maintenance personnel create and use accurate information about the equipment they use. This information is available on demand and is easily updated by the maintainer. The information provides specific equipment performance histories, links to appropriate technical data and comprehensive configuration information. In addition, other support personnel have access to the information for any related support activities.

The potential benefits of AIT to the maintenance community are now being recognised. In the UK the BOWMAN communication systems, being developed by General Dynamics UK is the first of the UK Army’s equipment to have automatic identification components integrated into the equipment during manufacture. These tags will enable the configuration and maintenance of the key BOWMAN assets to be recorded with the equipment – from manufacturing “birth”, throughout it’s “life” in-service , to its “death”, reutilisation or disposal. This information will be stored on over 250,000 contact memory tags being fitted to maintenance significant items within the systems.

Figure 1. Maintenance significant items of the British Army Bowman communication systems will be fitted with Oxley e-tag contact memory buttons for electronic engineering asset management.

AIT uses a collection of data storage technologies or “tags”, that enable information to be captured. These devices enhance the ability to identify, track, document, maintain and control equipment maintenance histories. AIT encompasses a number of technologies, including: contact memory tags; “smart” cards; radio frequency ID tags and bar codes. The devices are interrogated using a range of electrical contact, laser or radio frequency techniques. The information obtained from the electronic ‘tag’ can be sent to information systems that integrate with various military logistics and asset management IT systems.

Some interesting figures published by the US Army [1] details the quantity of equipment involved and the level of maintenance carried out on equipment.
* The US Army has more than 460,000,000 repairable items, with a unit price at least $1,000 on Army end items.
* 382 million products are either recoverable or reparable and the various maintenance support centres
* The US army identified more than 260,000 products for which 560,000 modification works orders were applied over a 5 year period with a program value of $28 billion.
* The Army records more than 940,000 non-depot maintenance work orders annually
* Maintenance facilities repair, overhaul, or modify more than 400,000 products annually.
* More than 500,000 new records are established annually for airworthiness related flight-critical parts.

The

Primary Sidebar

Advertisers

  • qioptiq.com
  • Exensor
  • TCI
  • Visit the Oxley website
  • Visit the Viasat website
  • Blighter
  • SPECTRA
  • Britbots logo
  • Faun Trackway
  • Systematic
  • CISION logo
  • ProTEK logo
  • businesswire logo
  • ProTEK logo
  • ssafa logo
  • Atkins
  • IEE
  • EXFOR logo
  • KME logo
  • DSEi
  • sibylline logo
  • Team Thunder logo
  • Commando Spirit - Blended Scoth Whisy
  • Comtech logo
Hilux Military Raceday Novemeber 2023 Chepstow

Contact Us

BATTLESPACE Publications
Old Charlock
Abthorpe Road
Silverstone
Towcester NN12 8TW

+44 (0)77689 54766

BATTLESPACE Technologies

An international defence electronics news service providing our readers with up to date developments in the defence electronics industry.

Recent News

  • EXHIBITIONS AND CONFERENCES

    January 27, 2023
    Read more
  • VETERANS UPDATE

    January 27, 2023
    Read more
  • MANAGEMENT ON THE MOVE

    January 27, 2023
    Read more

Copyright BATTLESPACE Publications © 2002–2023.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. If you continue to use the website, we'll assume you're ok with this.   Read More  Accept
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT