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Auto seller Texas Direct Auto uses RFID solutions to track vehicle reception, repair, test drive, storage, and delivery processes, helping to reduce the total output time by 30%.
Texas Direct Auto was just acquired by online auto retailer Vroom (the online retailer was established 13 years ago) last week. The company sells trucks and cars in Stafford, Texas and online, and also provides services such as test drives. Representatives of Texas Direct across the country inspect 10,000 vehicles per month, but the company only purchases and sells about 3,000 vehicles per month. Before selling to customers, the company will repair and refurbish vehicles in a 300,000-square-foot facility.
(When the test drive is changed, the RFID reader installed at the entrance will read the vehicle tag ID number. Then, the software will send a text message to the salesperson’s phone, indicating that the vehicle has been returned.)
Mike Welch, co-founder of Texas Direct Auto, said that he brought the technology to the company and hoped to realize the concept of a Web-based car sales system. He said: “We have been focusing on the use of processes and automation to transform the business.” Welch said that any item can be purchased online, and consumers can also visit the site and use the computer to inquire about the vehicle sales information and test drive there.
Just started,RFIDThe system is used as a simple method to help employees and consumers quickly locate the location of the vehicle. As the company needed to have a lot of inventory in huge locations, the company began to look for systems to determine the location of each vehicle. In 2012, Texas Direct Auto began to install the RFID system and expanded it in the following years. At the same time, the company also developed software and integrated it into the system.
In 10 locations in Houston, company employees installed EPC UHF RFID tags on newly purchased car windshields. The unique ID number of the tag is bound to the vehicle identification number (VIN) in the software.
After arriving in Texas, the car was transported to a 300,000-square-foot repair shop, where the RFID system was used to track the vehicle again. When the car arrives at the gate, the RFID reader will read the ID number, then open the door and update the status of the vehicle.
A set of RFID readers were also installed in the repair shop (the company did not disclose the number). A reader is also installed at each maintenance station, queue and photo booth.
When the buyer picks up the car, each car will go to the corresponding maintenance station queue. After the reader installed in the queue reads the tag ID number, the system will update the queue information of the vehicle.
(The RFID reader of each repair station will read the vehicle tag ID, so that employees can use the handheld computer to view the desired vehicle location)
Each repair site is responsible for a specific task, such as painting, dent removal, parts repair, etc. The site reader reads the ID number and regrets updating the car status. A display screen is also placed on the repair site to display the read data and the information of the next repair site. At the same time, employees can also use a tablet or handheld computer to read this information.
Texas Direct Auto engineer Jeremy Lorino explained that after the software collects all the data, the company can find system bottlenecks or other problems.
When the vehicle reaches the exit, the reader will read the tag again. The software judges that the door will automatically open after the vehicle has been repaired at all sites.
After the car is refurbished, the staff will transport it to the storage parking station. After the RFID readers all over the parking stations detect the area where the vehicle is located, the buyer will be notified by SMS to quickly find the location of the vehicle. The manual methods of the past are very error prone. Therefore, RFID technology provides an automated partition to provide location information. The company installed about 60 readers at the parking station to confirm the location of the car. Each reader is responsible for a specific area so that the RFID system can provide area information.
In order to confirm whether the information is correct or not and whether the label is missed, employees use RFID vehicles to patrol around every day. The RFID cart has an onboard reader, antenna, and a tablet computer for displaying the read data. RFID car drivers will drive vehicle inventory every day and read the location data of each car. The driver uses the tablet computer to enter the area the vehicle passes through, and then the RFID vehicle returns to automatically read the tag ID. Thereafter, these data will be transmitted back to the Texas Direct Auto software via the WiFi network.
Car buyers can obtain location data on a computer in the showroom. If a salesperson wants to know the location of the vehicle, he can send a text message to the system to get it. Welch said the company has considered allowing sales staff to obtain location data directly through a tablet, but they prefer to obtain it through text messages.
(The overhead RFID reader installed in the maintenance array will read the vehicle tag ID number and update the location information in the system.)
Now, companies can also use the technology to track potential customers’ test drives. The company claims that the purpose of reading the data is a kind of customer service. When potential customers test drive, the sales representative stays in the parking lot and binds the vehicle ID and mobile phone number to each other. When the car is returned through the gate, the tag ID number will be read again, and the software will also send a text message to the salesperson’s mobile phone to indicate that the car has been returned.
The RFID system can also be used to quickly link video images to quickly identify the cause when the vehicle is damaged or stolen. By knowing where the vehicle is at any one time, the company has cracked down on multiple thefts.
Welch said the company is also looking for other features of the technology. At present, the company has not measured the specific cost savings of the system, but he pointed out that car buyers are very satisfied with it.
(Exclusive manuscript of rfid world network, please indicate the source author for reprinting!)
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