Exploring How RTLS Can Begin to Reduce the 7 Wastes of Production

By Lyndsey Heavner, Ubisense France

The concept of Lean Manufacturing is no longer just buzz terminology. Lean Manufacturing concepts are proven and practiced approaches to holistically improve operations through the streamlining of processes via the reduction of specific wastes. Coming from the Japanese philosophies of the Toyota Production System, the original categorisation of "wastes" within production resulted in 7 Wastes - Transportation, Inventory, Motion, Waiting, Overproduction, Over processing, and Defects. (A helpful acronym to remember the 7 Wastes is “TIM WOOD”.) Without going into to much detail of what each of these wastes are, we can effectively say that having any of these wastes in a production facility adds up to one business issue: more money is tied up in goods, assets and labour than necessary. So, reducing the 7 Wastes means reducing costs, and in today's economy, that's big money.

Within the manufacturing sector, notably in large industrial equipment manufacturing arenas such as automotive, aerospace, etc., applying Lean Manufacturing philosophies can be challenging. Where do you start? How do you identify the areas to target for improvement projects? How can you quantitatively and qualitatively measure wastes? The use of Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) can provide the automated, accurate visibility of process performance, asset usage, space usage, etc., that is needed to identify wastes and define improvement initiatives to reduce them. There are 2 key areas where Ubisense Location-driven manufacturing solutions can highlight the 7 wastes and enable process improvements - real-time process tracking and real-time asset tracking.

Real-time Process Tracking

Tracking parts or components as they move through an assembly process will provide visibility on a few of the mentioned waste areas. Let's start with Inventory. At a very basic level, real-time process tracking ultimately enables the accurate identification of all work in progress (WIP) in a factory. Visibility of WIP = visibility of inventory, both in progress part inventory and parts in stock. Lean philosophy is all about moving to single part flow and just-in-time manufacturing – i.e, reducing the ‘waste’ of on hand inventory. Having stock on hand - either pre-process parts, excessive work in process inventory, or finalised goods in stock – means more cash has been invested than necessary to keep the processes moving. High inventory levels are commonly a result of inaccurate or poor inventory visibility, causing (and also resulting from) poor demand planning (i.e., the “Bullwhip Effect”). This is exactly where real-time tracking of components can help! Using location information, it’s possible to begin to monitor and track part flow accurately, unveiling areas where unnecessary inventory build-up is occurring. Are there parts in non-value added areas - i.e, waiting to be processed? Are there finished goods building up in stock (Overproduction)? Is there a surplus of parts at 50% complete (preempting Overproduction)? As you can see, having accurate visibility of your process and inventory also starts to shed light on the other wastes as well.

Real-time Asset Tracking

The waste of Inventory is not just about part stock; it’s also about asset inventory, such as logistics media, specific tools or other equipment used to keep goods flowing through the process. Ubisense location-driven manufacturing solutions can also provide visibility of your asset inventory, allowing you to understand what further wastes you can reduce. Using location information gathered about tracked asset inventory, it’s possible to accurately analyse asset usage. Are assets waiting to be used, or are they used to their full capacity? With real-time tracking it’s possible to calculate the “down time” of assets and analyse if all the media, equipment, tools in stock are truly needed, which in turn can drive an inventory reduction. Additionally, real-time tracking of assets can reveal other wastes within operational processes that may not be evident until you actually see them. Think about logistic movements. Are transport flows as lean as they can be? How far are good transported and how often they are transported? Using historical location information, “spaghetti diagrams” can be built, depicting the travel paths of tracked asset. Seeing how assets are truly utilised enables the analysis of motion and transportation which paves the way for further waste reduction via flow optimisation, and perhaps even plant layout optimisation.

The few points that have been discussed are just starting to scratch the surface of how real-time location solutions can drive waste reduction and process improvements in manufacturing. Location information provides visibility, and visibility is necessary to begin to measure current the state of operations and effectively analyse areas where wastes exist.

Employee Spotlight: Corey Holland

Corey Holland

Hometown: Montezuma, Iowa
Ubisense Location: Denver, CO
Ubisense Department: RTLS Pre-sales
Education: Electrical Engineering / MBA

How long have you been with Ubisense and what is your background?
Corey: I began working with Ubisense in March of 2011. I spent the prior five years working in the on-board digital surveillance field for transit in both Bus and Rail.

What’s a typical day like for you?
Corey: If I’m in the office then a typical day begins early here in the Denver Tech Center (early enough to beat the majority of the rush hour). Once I’m settled in it’s time to catch up with the East Coast, discuss pipelines and upcoming visits before getting a chance to make it to that second cup of coffee! Staying up with the RFP distribution groups and catching up on emails can consume much of the morning. Preparing presentations, RFP completion, proposals and keeping up with Harry Pappas consumes the rest of the day!

What is the most significant trend you’ve seen in your field?
Corey: Over the course of the last few years (specifically with my previous employer) seeing the addition of RTLS in transit facilities and the fact that it continues to grow would be the most obvious and significant trend. The value of the services our product provides is unmatched when compared with wasted dollars and time savings.

How did you become interested in RTLS in Transit?
Corey: I didn’t know it but I became interested in RTLS in transit during my first visit to the Chicago garages five years ago with my previous employer. As contractors for the City of Chicago my crew and I wasted ridiculous amounts of time simply attempting to locate specific buses inside the garages.

What was your very first job?
Corey: My very first job was as an apprentice at a fiberglass/composite manufacturing company in Central Iowa. I did everything from picking up and delivering finished goods to sweeping the floor and painting the offices. I was however lucky enough to get a chance to work on not one, but two projects with the Walt Disney company building amusement park rides that are still extremely popular today.

What do you enjoy doing in your time off?
Corey: Of course spending time with my wonderful wife and three children (8, 7 and 3) as well as supporting their athletic endeavors and participating in their after school activities. I also enjoy golfing and Colorado State Football (although not so much this year…)

What is your favorite city?
Corey: This is a tough one as I’ve spent the majority of the last 15 years of my professional life traveling throughout the United States. Having been to quite a few I would have to pick Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It’s unmatched skiing and close proximity to Yellowstone National Park make it a close second to living here in Denver!

Corey with his family

Happy Holidays

On behalf of the entire Ubisense team, we would like to thank you for your support and business in 2011. We are excited for the upcoming year and look forward to sharing it with you.

All the best to you and your families during this

joyous holiday season!

Sincerely,

The Ubisense Team

Ubisense Ugly Sweater Holiday Party

Jay Cadman, Corey Holland, and Andy Schuerzinger

Peter Batty, Deb Miller, and Russ Chandler

Chris Doernbrack and son, Jack

Our magician tricking all the ladies

Peter Batty guessing how many boxes are in the one box

Americas GIS team: Lance McGee, Scott Casey, Kyle Eagen, John Fowler, Dave Harris



Our magician tricking Russ Chandler



Christian Almazan, winner of the "box game"

Scott Casey showing off his muscles and his ugly sweater

Aubree Topai (right) with friend Lyndsey

Ubisense Product Spotlight

Ubisense Series 9000 Compact Tag
Korean-certified compact location tag for personnel and assets

Specifications

Dimensions: 38mm x 38mm x 16.5 mm

Weight: 25g (0.9oz)

Temperature: Standard -20 C to 60 C (-4 F to 140 F)

Humidity: 0 to 95%, non-condensing

Overview

The Ubisense Series 9000 Korean-certified Compact Tag is a small, rugged device that, when attached to assets or worn by people, allows them to be located to an accuracy of 15cm in 3D in real time. It is designed for use in a variety of different environments, including industrial sites. In addition to its tracking capabilities, it includes additional features such as an LED for easy identification, a motion detector to instantly activate a stationary tag and a push button to trigger events.

Qualities

• Accurate location: The tag transmits ultra-wideband (UWB) radio pulses which can be used by the Ubisense location system to find its position to within 15cm in 3D.
• Two-way communication: Ubisense tags employ a unique dual-radio architecture- in addition to the one-way UWB radio used for tracking, tags have a conventional bi=-directional 2.4 GHz radio for control and telemetry.
• Flexible update rates: The Ubisense software platform allows the tag's update rate to be dynamically and automatically varied depending on the tag activity. When stationary, tags sleep to conserve power, an inbuilt motion detector ensure the tag transmits again when moved.
• User interaction features: The tag has a button to provide context-sensitive input to interactive applications.
• Long battery life: The tag's low current consumption and power management techniques result in long battery lifetimes. It has an expected lifetime of over four years, depending on application characteristics.
• Rugged and adaptable: The Compact Tag is designed to be rugged for use in harsh industrial environments. It is mechanically robust, dust and water resistant, and can be securely mounted using a variety of attachment mechanisms.

Ubisense Support Goes Viral

Supporting our customers is a top priority at Ubisense and an area we’re always looking to improve. It became clear that many of our customers, whether new or existing, would often require refreshers with general setup and maintenance tasks but would not have access to remote desktop sessions for support. As with any phone support experience, the calls can sometimes be long and technically difficult for both the customer and the support engineer because neither party can visually see the setup.

In an attempt to both reduce support calls and to impart more knowledge to the customer, the US support team has begun developing short instructional videos on such topics as software installation, hardware installation, calibration, etc. such that customer can view specific topics at their own pace and visually see the required steps for the particular task. Many times we find that our customers overlook a very small step during setup and configuration of the Ubisense system and the videos allow them to go step by step through an entire setup with screen shots, live examples, and tips on how to accomplish key tasks. The feedback thus far has been very encouraging and more video training tutorials are currently in the works.

Please visit our support channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/UbisenseSupport and make sure to register as a user so that you can be updated as more videos become available.


Author: Chris Doernbrack, Applications Engineer, Denver Office

Employee Spotlight: Jim Stippich

Jim Stippich
Hometown: Hettinger, ND
Ubisense Location: Denver, CO
Ubisense Department: Americas RTLS Delivery Team
Education: BS in Computer Science, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Rapid City, SD

How long have you been with Ubisense and what is your background?
Jim: I started with Ubisense in July 2010. My background revolves around technology (mainly software dealing with locations) and goes like this...
1. I started with Hughes Aircraft Company working on satellite systems
2. I than moved to a GIS consulting company that specializes in utilities
3. Following that I worked at Smallworld/GE for 10 years
4. And started my own business for 3 years
5. Until I finally joined Ubisense in 2010

What's a typical day like for you?
Jim: If I'm on-site than I am usually working on installations and troubleshooting in bus/locomotive garages. If I'm in the office than my day is divided amongst conference calls, assembling/testing equipment and documenting and tracking ingoing/outgoing inventory.

What is the most significant trend you’ve seen in your field?
Jim: Applications becoming more mobile – still some room for growth, but its heading in that direction.

How did you become interested in RTLS?
Jim: I have always worked in location based technology, so RTLS looked like a space where I could contribute and learn something at the same time.

What was your very first job?
Jim: My very first job was operating heavy equipment for my grandfather’s construction company.

What do you enjoy doing in your time off?
Jim: Bicycling and rock climbing

What is your favorite city?
Jim: This isn't an exact city, but anywhere on Hawaii.

Christian and Jim working at the Denver office.

Ubisense Product Spotlight

Ubisense Series 7000 Trimode Tag
Ruggedized location tag for indoor and outdoor asset location

Specifications

Dimensions: 71mm x 64mm x 47mm
Weight: 4.5 oz
Temperature: -20 C to 85 C (-4 F to 185 F)
Humidity: 0 to 95%, non condensing
Operating range: Ultra-wideband link: Up to 160m*/2.4 GHz link: Over 300m (with directional antenna on receiver)

*Dependent on system configuration and environment

Overview

The Ubisense Trimode Tag is a small, rugged device that can be attached to assets, allowing them to located both indoors and outdoors using GPS, 2.4GHz signals (to presence-level accuracy) and/or ultra-wideband technology (to an accuracy of 15cm in 3D in real-time). It is specifically designed for use in sites where assets need to be located precisely indoors and approximately outdoors (e.g. vehicle at an assembly plant). In addition to its tracking capabilities, it includes additional features such as three LEDs for easy status identification, a motion detector to instantly activate a stationary tag and a push button to trigger events.

Qualities

• Rugged and adaptable: mechanically robust, dust and water resistant, and it can be securely mounted using a variety of attachment mechanisms.
• Long battery life: The low current consumption and power management techniques result in long battery lifetimes. Status reports and alters make maintenance easy, and batteries are technician-replaceable.
• User interaction features: The tag has a button to provide context-sensitive input to interactive applications.
• Flexible update rates: The Ubisense software platform allows the tag's update rate to be dynamically and automatically varied depending on the tag activity. When stationary, tags sleep to conserve power, an inbuilt motion detector ensure the tag transmits again when moved.
• Two-way communication: The tag's two-way 2.4GHz communication capability allows the Ubisense system to dynamically manage the tag's update rate, flash the tag's LEDs, report battery status and button presses, and wirelessly reprogram the tag to enable new features.

New Inside Positions Available

Dear readers,

It seems that each edition of Inside Positions begins with the words "the last few months have been eventful ones for Ubisense" and that is never truer than now. Ubisense has once again been expanding in all dimensions, delivering over 40% growth over last year, adding an operating division in France and winning more business with blue-chip customers. If that wasn't enough to keep us busy, there was also the small matter of taking the company public in June of this year.

On June 22nd Ubisense was listed on London's AIM market in a significantly over-subscribed initial public offering. At a time of very few successful IPOs, the over-subscription is a strong endorsement of Ubisense's position as the leading location solutions provider. The IPO puts us on a very strong footing for supporting existing customers while expanding our customer base and bringing new location solutions to market.

Momentum continues to grow in our core manufacturing and public transportation markets, and exciting milestones have been achieved both with our military training solution and by our many research partners. With our second annual User Conference, and further announcements to be made, one thing is certain: the next few months will definitely be eventful ones for Ubisense!

Sincerely,

Richard Green

CEO, Ubisense

If you would like to recieve a hard copy of our latest Inside Positions Magazine, please contact aubree.topai@ubisense.net with your name and address.



GIS Case Studies: What are people doing with our systems?

1. Black Hills Corporation
Project: Electric Office Implementation

Challenges: The rapid growth of the business left BHC with many overlapping information technology systems. As a result, BHC commissioned multiple projects to consolidate the various systems into a single corporate standard based on the GE Smallworld Office Suite platform.

Ubisense Solution: Ubisense completed a system upgrade evaluation phase which concluded that the GE Office Suites (EO and GDO) were the best option for BHC. Ubisense is currently working with BHC to implement Electric Office and Gas Distribution Office. The new solution has been successfully deployed in multiple regions.

Results: "Standardizing all business units on one platform and database is a critical priority for Black Hills," said Matt Seidl, Manager of GIS Support at Black Hills Corp. "The Ubisense team brought a tremendous amount of experience to the project, which as helped us make decisions quickly. We were impressed by Ubisense' professionalism, organizational and management skills, and Smallworld experience."

2. First Energy
Project: Electric Office Project Development
Challenges: First Energy, a long time PowerOn customer, was having issues with the quality of GIS data that was being fed to PowerOn.

Ubisense Solution: Ubisense worked closely with customer to identify the root cause of the data quality issues, and developed the PowerOn Integrity Checker application to identify and resolve data quality issues that impact OMS.

Results: The PowerOn Integrity Checker has greatly improved the quality of First Energy's OMS data. Our solution included automated data repair actions and a logging mechanism to identify areas where manual fixes are required.

3. Duke Energy
Project: Electric Office Implementation

Challenges: The merger of Duke and Cineregy left Duke with many overlapping information technology organizations and systems. Duke commissioned multiple projects to consolidate the various systems into a single corporate standard based on the GE Smallworld Office Suite platform. Duke was the first Electric Office customer.

Ubisense Solution: Ubisense is providing project management, development support, and day to day operational support for Duke's Office Suite implementation. Currently we have 8 consultants assigned to this project, working on EO, GDO, and GTO.

Results: With the support of Ubisense, Duke has successfully rolled out the GE Office Suite projects to several regions.

How can Ubisense help?

• Extensive experience with enterprise GIS for utilities and communications industries
• Trusted partner to mare than 25 customers around the world
• Currently over 400 customers in 30 countries
• Most of our team has more than 15 years experience with the full Smallworld project suite across a broad range of industries and applications
• Founders Richard Green (CEO) and David Theriault were founders of GE Smallworld. Team includes Peter Batty, Terry Phebey, Jorg Poswig, Russ Chandler, and Dave Harris
• Our team has direct experience with all the major GIS technologies: GE Smallworld, Intergraph, ESRI, AutoCAD
• We can provide strategic advice and coaching for business and technical direction, merging utilities, and for data integrity business impact analysis
• We are leading the way in bringing emerging technology to our customers: MyWorld, Google Maps, OpenStreet Map, Field and Web based tools to bring the most out of geospatial information investment.

RTLS Case Studies: What are people doing with our systems?

1. Metro Transit Bus Depots

Minneapolis, MN, USA
Sensors: 450
Accuracy: 100cm in 2D
Solution: Transit Yard Manager (TYM)

Problem: Buses were being manually located and their location input into the Scheduling and Dispatching System using a paper mark-up sheet which was often out of date.

The Ubisense Solution: Each bus of the 1000 buses of Metro Transit is tagged allowing the Ubisense platform to determine an exact bay, lane, and position of each bus, as soon as it is parked inside the garage and in some outdoor areas. Dispatchers have real time visualization of vehicles for assignment.

Results: Elimination of need for dedicated search personnel in each of the five Metro Transit garages.
Faster and more reliable information about bus location.
Assistance in determining bus departure and arrival times and time spent in maintenance.


 2. BNFL Nuclear Power Facility
Sellafield, UK
Sensors: 8
Accuracy: 30 cm in 3D
Solution: Ubisense Location Platform for personal tracking & radiation dosimters for radiation measurements.

Problem: Sellafield is one of the 20 aging U.K. nuclear facilities being decommissioned. Employees involved in decommissioning and clean-up within the facility are exposed to fluctuating radiation. It is vital to ensure that the amount of radiation to which they are exposed during any one work period remains below the specified limits.

The Ubisense Solution: Employees carrying out work assignments at the power plant wear both Ubisense Tags and WiFi dosimeters, which measure radiation levels. BIL Solutions' software provides views of the facility, which radiation levels depicted in different colors combining location data from Ubisense RTLS with the radiation readings. Workers' dose histories are monitored real-time as an aid to scheduling their work in the plant.

Results: The radiation maps and real-time exposure records significantly improve worker safety and efficiency of the operation.

3. Posco Finex Plant

Pohang, Korea
Sensors: 80
Accuracy: 100cm in 3D
Solution: Ubisense Location Platform for personnel tracking and identification

Problem: In a huge processing plant like this blast iron furnace with multiple floors and complex processing units, worker safety is a prime concern.

The Ubisense Solution: Workers have Ubisense Tags attached to their safety helmets. A combination of precise tracking on five floors of the plant and presence detection on seven other floors improves the safety of each person- help can quickly be guided to lonely workers in case of an emergency. The Ubisense system is integrated with the IBM WebSphere Premises Server solution LAS to bring real-time location information to the plant control room.

Results: Greatly improved worker safety in the plant.

We're going to need a bigger wall...

A recent VIP visit to the Ubisense office in Cambridge, UK, prompted us to refresh the display of customers in the foyer. We talk about growth and look at spreadsheets of revenue increasing 40% over last year, number of employees up to 170 so far, and many more indicators of the great health of the company. But none of those numbers is really very tangible until you perform the simple task of framing copies of your key customers’ logos, and hanging them in the foyer. When you stand back and look at that, you can’t help but smile to yourself and think, “this is what success looks like.”

In 2012, as our existing customers roll out our solutions throughout ever more of their facilities, and as new customers come on board, one thing is for certain: we’re going to need a bigger wall.

Latest News

Ubisense Solutions Help Children Explore Swedish Technology Park

Denver, CO (PRWEB) November 02, 2011

A science center in Sweden is using a precise real-time location system (RTLS) from Ubisense (AIM: UBI) to offer children and adolescents a playful introduction to the world of science and technology.

In the visitor area at the Innovatum Technology Park Science Center in Trollhattan, children of all ages can explore the world of technology in an exciting and stimulating environment full of interactive exhibits. Visitors can play in virtual worlds on giant projection screens creating fire-spitting dragons in the setting of a computer-generated medieval castle or indulge in classic family favorites such as ‘Memory’ – turning cards over to find pairs on a screen based on movements in the real world.

Within the center’s gaming environment some of the interactive exhibits come to life thanks to a wireless location solution from Ubisense. Upon entry to the interactive area, visitors are given a large cube enabled with Ubisense’s real-time location system.

Each cube works like an oversized computer mouse. When taken into the ‘play’ area, a network of Ubisense sensors picks up the cube’s 3D location wirelessly. Every real-world motion made with the cube is immediately translated and turned into a virtual action. Based on the way they move their cubes, players can compete and test their skills moving counters, objects or cards on a giant projection screen.

Each tagged cube generates an ultra-wideband (UWB) location signal. Sensors in the gaming area pick up this information in real time and within 30 centimeters of accuracy. For accurate tracking the sensors can take up to 10 measurements per second. Information is then processed through an integrated software system.

Since the Ubisense system was installed, nearly 25,000 enthusiastic visitors of all ages have used the cubes and the center has deemed the project a great success.

Daniel Palmqvist, principal engineer at Innovatum Technology Park, is thrilled to be using Ubisense system. "Ubisense RTLS has never been deployed in this way but we were convinced that this system was just what we needed to realize this project," said Palmqvist.

Adrian Jennings, vice president of marketing at Ubisense, said: “Our location solutions are unique. No other company is deploying UWB quite the way we are. Our solutions are extremely popular in manufacturing environments where items need to be located quickly and efficiently – for example, parts and tools in the automotive industry. However, the project at the Innovatum Technology Park proves that our solutions can be fun as well as offer serious commercial benefits.”

Innovatum Technology Park spans 4,400 square meters of exhibition space, offering a wide range of activities for children of all ages. Every year up to 30,000 children visit the center with their family or on a school visit. Originally, the facilities used to be a production site for steam locomotives and turbines. Apart from its Science Center, Innovatum also offers a Business Incubator and Project Arena. For more information go to: http://www.innovatum.se

(ends)

Cheers to Ubisense going public!

Even though Ubisense went public 5 months ago, we thought these pictures deserved to be posted!



Cheers!! Ubisense Americas team


 
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Ubisense UK team celebrating on the river

 

Peter Batty, Ubisense Americas team

Ubisense Delivery Team on site



Adrian Jennings, Ubisense Americas team

Ubisense France team

Ubisense Americas Delivery team



Picture: Better Visibility, Better Process



Without Ubisense you can't see the entire picture....



But with Ubisense you can see exactly where everything is located in real time.

Better visibility = better process.



Photo: Inside the Cambridge Office

Case Study: University of Illinois- Assisted Living Research

Assisted Living
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have been designing, implementing, and evaluating with test hypothesis an assisted-living supportive software architecture that allows technologies, software components, and wireless devices to work together, dependable, and secure and enable elderly people to regain their capability of living independently. The experiment architecture is called I-Living and has been built to meet several requirements highlighted in the ’blue-box’ above.

RFID and Ubisense technology is used to help elderly people to interact, and make sense, with the environment. Tests will be carried out as well as user group assessments for clear testable hypothesis.
 
Research

The increase of population of elderly people is a social and economic challenge for many countries. According to MIT’s magazine Technology Review, August 2003, ‘’In the United States alone, the number of people over the ages of 65 is expected to hit 70 million by 2030, doubling from 35 million in 200 million, and similar increases are expected worldwide’. The cost of senior care is an area for concern and is recently being reduced by technological means. Because the deteriorating capabilities to sense and interact with the environment, elderly people often live with significantly degraded life quality. This is where I-Living aim to help improve such difficulties.

With the use of Ubisense tags and sensors and other embedded devices such as actuators and Bluetooth-enabled medical devices, elder people can be more self sufficient and independent.

There is an Assisted Living Service Provider (ALSP) which provides web-based interfaces to allow caregivers, healthcare providers and medical experts, to monitor the environment, retrieve/analyse data, and issue feed back. I-Living’s goal is to provide applications to its users which are explained in the ‘green-box’. 
 
I-Living Applications

• Activity Reminder - Wireless enabled devices (e.g., TV’s mobile phones, active tags) send reminder messages when it is time for the elderly person to take his/her medication or any other infor-mation.

• Vital Sign Measurement - The patient can transmit his/her vital signs (such as glucose level, blood pressure etc.) via Bluetooth enabled devices and then to the ALSP server. Should the readings suggest any abnormal health situation, medical instruc-tions will be given to the patient.

• Personal Belonging Localisation - Personal belongings such as eyeglasses, hearing aids etc, are attached with a Ubisense tag. If the person cannot find his/her belonging, with simple vocal command, Ubisense sensors will locate the object.

• Personal Behaviour Profiling - The assisted living environment can profile the movement of an elderly person and detect early warning signs for depression and/or other chronic diseases such as Parkinson's disease.

• Emergency Detection - In case of the need for an emergency (e.g. person has been immobile for a long time), communication channels can be established to notify the relevant care taker and facilitate transmission of electrocardiogram (EKG) in Real-time.

Latest News: RTL in Longueuil Selects Bus Yard Management Solution Provided by Solotech, ISR Transit and Ubisense

Turn-key system will automate assignment, placement and scheduling of 450 buses that provide transportation to more than 120,000 customers per day.


DENVER — Oct. 4, 2011 —The Réseau de transport de Longueuil (RTL) public transportation service in Longueuil, Quebec is implementing a fully integrated parking automation and automated driver assignment system based on the Ubisense Transit Yard Manager (TYM) solution for the precise positioning of its buses. RTL’s new fully automated bus management system will improve fleet management of its 450 buses that provide rides to more than 120,000 customers per day across five cities. Solotech and ISR Transit formed a partnership to deliver this solution to RTL and chose the Ubisense TYM solution for the RTL deployment which is scheduled to be completed in March 2012.

The solution will be comprised of:

•Bus Depot Management (BDM) Core Application, integration with RTL’s existing software and project management provided by ISR Transit;

•Digital display, PC panels, card readers, and hardware installation and integration provided by Solotech;

•Transit Yard Manager solution provided by Ubisense, with augmented functionality for RTL.

“The benefits provided by this automated solution will enable us to further streamline our operations so we can optimize the use of our resources and provide our customers with even better transportation services,” said Suzie LeHouillier, director of projects, RTL. “By investing in this leading-edge technology and delivering better service to our community, we are investing in the long-term future for our organization.”

The Ubisense TYM solution utilizes an ultra-wideband (UWB) real-time location system (RTLS) to provide precise location tracking. The Ubisense TYM solution will provide RTL with multiple benefits that will improve fleet management efficiencies and costs. Benefits include decreased human errors due to manual bus-finding, reduced search times, improved pullout-times and increased fleet availability through reduced maintenance down-time.

“Solotech and ISR Transit decided to partner with Ubisense for this project because it supplies the only location solution we have found that provides highly reliable and precise bus location,”said Youval Abenhaim, vice president of business development for ISR Transit. “That is very important for this deployment as ISR’s Driver Assignment Automation software has to give the right bus to the right driver to the right route, all the time.”

“The RTL contract reflects Solotech and ISR Transit’s continued expansion into the Intelligent Transportation System North American market and the continued trust given ISR and its partners by our valued customers.”

How it Works

ISR Transit will install the Ubisense RTLS solution, comprising industrialized bus location tags and a network of sensors, throughout RTL’s three garages. The Ubisense TYM solution will determine the precise position of each bus based on this sensor data and transmit the information to the BDM Core Application.

The location of each bus will be updated in real-time and published to a database so that anyone in the organization can see the status and location of a vehicle. Using a map-based display, dispatchers can view the location and other critical information, such as bus type, equipment options, seating capacity and maintenance status when making vehicle and operator assignments. Buses can be assigned to the bus driver in real-time by touching the distribution console with their smart card. The assigned driver is then given an exact location by the distribution console and screens displayed throughout the garage facilities provide updates.

“We believe RTL has an industry-leading vision of the future of transportation yard automation and we are proud to have been selected to deliver this vision with our partners in Montreal,” said Adrian Jennings, vice president of technology, Ubisense.

Notes to Editors
About ISR

ISR Transit builds solutions for transportation industry such as Automatic Vehicle Location, Computer Aided Dispatch, Operations and Fleet Management, Real-Time Passenger Information System, Trouble Ticket Management System and Mobile Video Security Systems based on ISR hardware, software and from selected 3rd party manufacturers. ISR products enable transit and fleet agencies to improve the operational efficiency, information dissemination, transportation demand management, and security of the public and private transportation systems.
With over twenty three years of R&D and over 60,000 units installed and deployed across the world, ISR is committed to providing world-class software and hardware for transit intelligent transport systems based on quality product and upmost service to our customer. ISR will bring to the table the latest technology while providing reliable delivery and services to the customer.

About Solotech
Solotech specializes in the integration of intelligent transportation systems through the use of various audiovisual and electronic technologies. We propose global solutions that optimize the use of transportation infrastructures and maximize those networks. Our solutions allow our clients to better control their operations and to improve security while at the same time offering better customer service to public transit passengers.

Our field of activity consists of: RFID detection, GPS and video monitoring, network communication between the various components of the systems, operational and control rooms, operational system and data broadcast software, video display and public announcement systems.


(ends)


Released: 4 October 2011

Ubisense in the News

Collection of recent articles:

CambridgeFirst
Oct 6, 2011
BMW rolls out Ubisense tracking system

MarketWatch
Oct 5, 2011
IBS and Ubisense Revolutionise Car Manufacturing with Real-Time Location Identification System

GrowthCompany
Oct 5, 2011
Ubisense gains Realworld

Cambridge Business News
Oct 5, 2011
Ubisense buys its neighbour for 2.4m

Mandadeals
Oct 5, 2011
Ubisense gets busy on AIM

Cambridge First
Oct 5, 2011
Ubisense acquires geospatial firm for 2.4m

Cambridge Business Media (Cabume)
Oct 5, 2011
Ubisense acquires Cambridge neighbour, Realworld

Tech Market View
Oct 5, 2011
Ubisenses the Realworld

Ubisense in the News: Business Weekly

BMW rolls out Ubisense tracking system globally

05 Oct 2011
By Tony Quested

A new deal has been forged between BMW, IBS and Ubisense, extending the deployment of a real-time Location Identification System (LIS) across the global vehicle manufacturer’s production facilities.

The LIS system comprises a communication platform from IBS and identification tags and sensors from Ubisense.

IBS and its software partner Ubisense will expand the roll-out of LIS, which is already delivering significant productivity improvements at two of BMW’s eight vehicle assembly plants. The solution will now be implemented at three additional BMW assembly lines in Asia, Europe and the US.

The LIS integrated real-time location system (RTLS) solution, developed specifically for BMW, combines best-in-class ultra-wideband (UWB) radio tags and sensors with advanced quality management and traceability software, bringing the production process a step closer to Six Sigma and the vision of complete traceability.

The technology tracks individual vehicles through on-line and off-line final assembly. It determines the identity and location of each car in the assembly facility and, based on the proximity of the vehicles to both fixed and mobile equipment such as tools and scanners, programs and controls the devices.

Delivering unprecedented levels of accuracy and reliability for an RTLS-based solution, the system improves quality and enables line operatives to work more efficiently, achieving time-savings, process safeguarding, zero defects and cost reductions.

In 2008, Ubisense and IBS deployed LIS on a 1.8km long assembly line at BMW’s Regensburg plant in Germany. In 2010, LIS went live on the new X3 assembly line at BMW Spartanburg in South Carolina – home to the company’s SUV range.
The solution will now be deployed at plants in Shenyang, China; on the X5 and X6 production line in Spartanburg; and at the dedicated Mini plant in Oxford, UK.

How the technology works

Vehicle assembly is a complex process – particularly at plants where different models are manufactured on the same line. At BMW Regensburg, Series 1 and Series 3 vehicles are assembled alongside Z4 Roadsters. With each model built to exact customer specifications and travelling along the production line, more or less in the order of purchase, assembly line operatives have to identify the next vehicle at their station quickly and accurately in order to select the right component or tool setting and complete the work necessary in the seconds they have available.

Previously,operatives identified vehicles using hand-held scanners and paper barcode labels, which were attached to the bonnet of each car. They then had to take their Direct Current (DC) tool to the correct location on the vehicle and wait for the correct settings to load before starting work – a time-consuming process in a manufacturing environment where every second counts.

Working with BMW, IBS and Ubisense have automated this process within the BMW IT environment, shaving valuable seconds off assembly line operations. The RTLS tags now replace the barcodes on car bonnets and have been fixed to DC programmable tools.

As the cars move through the plant, the tags communicate their location via UWB radio to sensors located along the production line. The sensors instantly relay this data via a local area network (LAN) to LIS, which is integrated with the BMW IT environment. Running under SAP, the BMW IT environment comprises a so-called “communication machine” (KM), the Integrated Production System (IPS) and the Automotive Production System (APS).

LIS determines when the tools enter the pre-defined work zones around each moving vehicle, identifying the vehicle and generating a “positive event.” This prompts the APS to automatically load the correct vehicle-specific program to the operative’s tool so the next job can be performed.

Ubisense CEO, Richard Green, said: “Extending our agreement with BMW via IBS is a major endorsement of the Ubisense solution, demonstrating the quality improvements as well as time and cost savings it can deliver.

“Working with IBS, we are delighted to have forged a long-term partnership with BMW and look forward to working with the company to drive forward new efficiencies at its global manufacturing sites.”

http://www.businessweekly.co.uk/automotive-general-news/12830-bmw-rolls-out-ubisense-tracking-system-globally?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Ubisense automates rail yard management with new Real-Time Location System

Transit Yard Manager for Rails precisely and reliably locates locomotives to improve rail yard operations

DENVER - Oct. 3, 2011 – Ubisense (AIM:UBI)today introduced Transit Yard Manager for Rails,a real-time location system (RTLS) that automates yard operations and improves efficiencies and productivity. By precisely locating rolling-stock in both indoor and outdoor areas, operators gain an unprecedented level of visibility into workflow which helps to improve all areas of rail yard operations.

Transit Yard Manager (TYM) is a complete integrated solution that measures the location of rolling-stock using best-in-class sensors and translates that into actionable business intelligence through an intuitive software application. Because rail yards significantly impair the performance of most location systems, TYM is built on Ubisense’s ultra-wideband (UWB) real-time location system (RTLS) which is specifically designed to provide accurate, reliable location data in very challenging circumstances.

“Transit Yard Manager for Rails was developed as a direct result of customer demand,” said Adrian Jennings, vice president of technology, Ubisense. “Rail operators consulted with us to explain their long-time challenges associated with manual rail yard audits, and asked Ubisense to develop a solution that could help automate operations. We developed Transit Yard Manager for Rails to meet their needs, and it is already being used in operations as diverse as commuter light rail and national heavy freight.”

TYM for Rails provides rail operators with several real-time location benefits, including:

•Location of rolling-stock anywhere in the yard, indoors or out

•Reduced number of personnel required for yard auditing

•Real-time visibility of assets to operations and scheduling departments

•Integration of all existing software such as maintenance, dispatching and scheduling into a unified dashboard view

•Precise dwell-time measurements in the maintenance shops and in the yard

•Improved staging to reduce late pull-outs

•Real-time consist assembly

•Real-time view of available tracks

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Ubisense now offering downloadable podcasts

Ubisense Transit Yard Manager Podcast featuring Jay Cadman
Download  here: http://www.ubisense.net/en/media/downloads/38267_tym_podcast.mp3


Ubisense Manufacturing Solution Suite Podcast featuring Adrian Jennings
Download here: http://www.ubisense.net/en/media/downloads/76940_manufacturing_suite_podcast.mp3

Latest News: Ubisense Launches FTTx Planning System in North America

Proven Product Reduces Capital Costs and Shortens Time to Revenue for Fiber Rollouts

 DENVER, Sept. 28, 2011 – Ubisense and atesio announced today the North American release of the Ubisense FTTx Planning System. The product automates the strategic planning of fiber access networks and significantly reduces the time and capital investment required for service providers to deliver fiber connectivity to homes and businesses. The solution is in regular use at Deutsche Telekom, one of the largest telecom operators in the world with approximately 40 million access lines.

The Ubisense FTTx Planning System reduces the time it takes to analyze, plan and estimate a cost-optimized, structurally sound network design and configuration from several weeks to a few hours. The solution quickly analyzes multiple planning alternatives to find the scenario that balances revenue and capital costs across dozens of variables. It uses available infrastructure data to produce an optimized network plan that includes equipment and cable material quantities and cost estimates for various deployment scenarios such as greenfield and brownfield.

“We wanted to bring our customers a solution that would get them to market faster, with the best possible network configuration,” said Scott Casey, Ubisense Vice President of Telecom Solutions. “Planning a cost optimized fiber access network with manual methods is daunting – there are simply too many factors and alternatives to process efficiently. With our solution, network operators can quickly create plans based on their existing infrastructure and business requirements.”

Ubisense partnered with atesio on the development of the FTTx Planning System. The solution uses atesio’s powerful computation engine and high-end mathematical optimization algorithms to ensure designs minimize total network deployment costs. Planners quickly get a comprehensive view of the economic efficiency of various planning options, can adjust input parameters and rerun calculations as often as needed to arrive at the optimal network design.

The Ubisense FTTx Planning System integrates with Ubisense myWorld to allow planners to perform desk survey verification of the proposed network layouts against real world conditions using Google Maps API Premier and Street View for Google Maps. The product is also fully integrated with GE’s Smallworld Core Spatial Technology.

Ubisense will demonstrate the FTTx Planning System at the FTTH Expo in Orlando, September 28-30, 2011.

For more information visit http://www.ubisense.net/en/consulting/geo-solutions/ubisense-fttx-planning-system.html


About atesio
atesio turns state-of-the-art mathematical optimization technology into industrial solutions for the telecommunications industry. Leading fixed and mobile operators take strategic decisions (3G, LTE, NGN, FTTX) on the basis of custom-made techno-economic studies by atesio. They also master network optimization and configuration tasks (2G, 3G, SDH, MPLS) by means of atesio's award-winning and powerful network optimization software. atesio was founded in 2000 as a spin-off of a world-wide leading mathematical optimization research institute. For more information, visit: www.atesio.com.



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Photo: GIS team at the Smallworld User Conference




Ubisense's booth at the Smallworld User Conference

 

Latest News: Ubisense acquires InMaps

Acquisition of US geospatial location solutions business

Ubisense Group plc (AIM: UBI, "Ubisense" "the Group"), the market-leading location solutions company, has acquired Integrated Mapping Services Inc (“InMaps”), a US-based company focused on delivering geospatial business solutions to electric and gas utilities, for $700,000 in cash.

InMaps' provides a suite of products, integrated with GPS and geospatial products such as GE Smallworld, to help utilities improve reliability and comply with industry regulations.

The acquisition of InMaps strengthens Ubisense’s offering in the electric and gas industries and solidifies the Group’s position as one of the world’s leading location solutions companies. InMaps will become part of the Group’s Geospatial division and will operate under the Ubisense name.

In the year to 31 December 2010, InMaps had revenues of over $1m.
Richard Green, Ubisense CEO, commented:
“The products that InMaps has developed for the gas industry are a perfect fit with our own offering and the direction we are taking our Geospatial business.

“System safety and reliability are increasingly complicated and critical issues for gas and electric utilities. With the acquisition of InMaps, we will now be able to deliver a comprehensive suite of geospatial business solutions which will help our customers meet these challenges with the best available technologies.”


About InMaps

Since 1996, InMaps has been creating geospatial business solutions for natural gas and electric utilities. The Company is an acknowledged expert in deploying, customizing, and managing Smallworld systems.

InMaps’s newest product, VeroTrack® Automated Survey Tracking (AST) automates record keeping for natural gas leak surveys. Developed in conjunction with the Gas Technology Institute, VeroTrack AST is a unique solution that integrates with multiple GIS platforms.

Photo: Location Driven Manufacturing Solutions

Ubisense's Location Driven Manufacturing Solutions improve productivity by providing real-time visibility for a smarter production flow. By tracking the location of critical assets, Ubisense Manufacturing Solutions provide unequalled information about current and past production activities. This data, delivered by best-in-class ultra-wideband sensors, supports lean manufacturing goals by identifying new efficiencies and opportunities for continuous improvement, and making it easier to monitor and enforce stringent quality control.


To learn more visit: http://www.ubisense.net/en/ubisense-manufacturing-solution-suite.php

Ubisense in Action: Asssembly & Automative Expo

Frank Roberts, Senior Technical Sales Engineer, setting up the Ubisense booth at the Assembly and Automative Expo in Chicago, IL.

Ubisense in the News: Business Weekly

Honeymoon continues as Ubisense revenues soar 41%

Cambridge location solutions company Ubisense posted a promising set of maiden results on London Stock Exchange with first-half revenues 41 per cent higher.
The UK Real Time Location systems business said H1 revenues were up from £8m to £11.3m year-on-year.

Operating profit for the six months to end-June held steady but the loss was halved to £0.1m. The company had net cash of £8.1m.

The company picked up several new and major orders in the period and also established a French subsidiary.

Chief executive Richard Green, just back from his honeymoon on Skye, is confident the market’s love affair with Ubisense will continue.

Looking at a growing order book, he predicted the momentum would be continued into the second half.

He said: “We have delivered a robust set of results, our first, as a listed company, with a strong increase in revenues, a substantial order book and growing opportunity pipeline.

“Admission to AIM marked an important landmark in the Group’s development. It has provided us with a strong platform to support the rapid growth of our business and to leverage existing customer relationships with global leaders such as Aston Martin, Atlas Copco, BMW, Deutsche Telekom and EADS.

“With good momentum in the business and a growing order book, we remain confident that this robust performance will continue in the second half of 2011.”

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Ubisense in the News: Sharecast

Ubisense impresses with first listed result

By Michael Millar

LONDON (SHARECAST) - Software firm Ubisense topped analysts' expectations as revenues increased 41% to £11.3m in the first half of 2011.

However, the company reported a loss before tax of £0.32m after factoring in AIM admission cots. It will not pay an interim dividend.

Ubisense, whose technology allows companies to track assets, such as tools, vehicles and people in real time, raised £5m on AIM and listed in June.

The company said its RTLS tracking technology division continued to grow during the first half, winning business from both new and existing accounts, resulting in record first half revenue of £3.9m.

During the period it signed a global licence agreement with BMW to provide its RTLS solution to all assembly plants across the BMW Group.

It added that its Geospatial mapping division delivered significant growth in the first half, led by the sale of a newly developed product - FTTx Planning System - to Deutsche Telekom.

Chief executive, Richard Green, said Ubisense had strong momentum going into the second half of 2011.

"Revenue for the first half was 64% of the revenue for the whole of 2010 financial year," he said.

"With a strong order book and pipeline, this performance is anticipated to continue in the second half of 2011, in line with board expectations."

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http://www.sharecast.com/cgi-bin/sharecast/story.cgi?story_id=4525118



Ubisense in the News: Cabume (Cambridge Business Media)

Major revenue growth for Ubisense, Cambridge's first IPO in almost 6 years

By Lautaro Vargas
Ubisense, Cambridge's first technology IPO in five and a half years, showed strong revenue growth across divisions in its first results since listing on the London Stock Exchange's AIM.

Revenue was up 41 per cent to £11.3m (H1 2010: £8.0m) though a pretax profit of £131k in H1 2010 became a loss £320k this year, largely as a result of the £320k cost of listing on AIM.

Ubisense operates two divisions, one the ultra-wideband real time location system (RTLS) and Geospatial.

The continued large-scale roll-outs of installations with BMW and Airbus underpinned 83 per cent revenue growth for the RTLS division, up to £3.9m (H1 2010: £2.1m), 35 per cent of Group revenue. Geospatial provided the balance as its revenues increased by 26 per cent to £7.4m (H1 2010: £5.9m).

Gross margins were up a point to 32 per cent while gross profit reached £3.6m, an increase of £1.1m, the same amount that administrative expenses increased by (H1 2011: £3.4m) as a result of larger staff numbers.

Ubisense CEO, Richard Green, said admission to AIM had marked an important landmark in the company's development, providing it with a strong platform to support the rapid growth of the business.

At the time of its IPO in June this year, Ubisense raised £5m, which has not only allowed it to repay its debts, but also to invest in R&D, equipment and installing a platform to fund organic and, potentially acquisitive, growth.

"We have delivered a robust set of results, our first, as a listed company, with a strong increase in revenues, a substantial order book and growing opportunity pipeline," said Green.

"With good momentum in the business and a growing order book, we remain confident that this robust performance will continue in the second half of 2011."

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http://www.cabume.co.uk/software/major-revenue-growth-for-ubisense-cambridges-first-ipo-in-almost-6-years.html#.TnhRXvTTSIg.twitter