Quality Management using RFID and Third Generation Mobile Communications Systems

Quality management, radio frequency identification (RFID) and third generation mobile communications systems (3G) are increasing attracting the attention of corporate managers. This paper illustrates the convergence of the three seemingly independent initiatives. RFID provides data inputs into the company's quality improvement systems, such as Six Sigma, while 3G supports realtime data communications between remote RFID devices and enterprise applications. RFID readers can simultaneously scan and identify hundreds of tagged items. This detailed data give companies unprecedented visibility and insights into processes. Supplementing the "measure" step of the six sigma project, RFID enables companies to identify issues early in their lifecycle. This paper also presents two cases studies on using RFID and 3G to improve processes. The first case describes how property management companies leverage a property management system to improve operations efficiencies. The second case describes how hospitals and clinics implement smart medicine shelf to minimize the occurrence of dispensing the wrong medications to patients