TOSCA
Asset management that delivers value across Europe for this leading packaging solution provider
Tosca is a global leader in reusable packaging solutions with a rich heritage of over 100 years of innovation and a diverse portfolio of brands such as Polymer Logistics and Contraload. The company provides a range of returnable plastic packaging solutions that allow its customers to reduce their logistics costs, better protect the items they ship and help reduce their carbon footprint and reliance on single trip packaging.
Together with the production and provision of returnable packaging, Tosca additionally provides a range of services via their global Service Centres that help keep the items circulating and in A1 condition, including the critical need to wash and repair packaging for the grocery market properly. Their latest, Tosca’s new 2,700 m² service centre in Ingolstadt, Germany, which achieved operational readiness in just four months, is a state-of-the-art facility has been designed with various advanced technology solutions that all help to drive sustainability, innovation, and operational excellence. The launch of the new Service Centre (Tosca’s 10th) reflects the growing demand for reusable plastic products in Central Europe.
The problem
Tosca is investing heavily in their Asset IQ platform, which provides their customers with a single platform to manage their returnable packaging, and, in the future, help manage the location of their stock via automated association of the package to the contents. Critical to the success of the platform is the quality of data that is captured, which starts with unique and accurate identification of every single item of packaging.
Two key problems presented themselves to Tosca. Firstly, there was a range of different identification technologies deployed on their packaging across the world, from 2D barcodes to QR codes and RFID – largely because of several acquisitions over the last few years. Secondly, all these identifiers needed to read reliably every time and have the data securely interfaced with the Asset IQ platform.
The value we can bring to our customers if we can accurately tell them a load carrier location is huge, not only from an asset management perspective, but more importantly, for their stock management and optimisation.
corielPORTAL RFID technology powerd by Kathrein Solutions
At the heart of the project, Coriel has provided a series of its corielPORTAL long-range RFID systems to cover each of the three dock doors. The corielPORTAL systems are integrated directly with the Kathrein’s device managment tool, which handles tag reading, filtering and immediate data manipulation.
Via the corielEDGE platform, Coriel is able to send data to the Tosca back-end in near real-time, providing the business with accurate supply chain insights that significantly improve operational efficiency. The RFID system provided is responsible for recording the movement of all assets in and out of the Facility, providing:
Automated receiving
Eliminating the need for manual scanning and data entry, leading to faster processing times, reducing the risk of human error, and ensuring that inventory records are accurate and current.
Automated shipping
Every asset leaving the Facility is tracked and recorded, providing real-time visibility into asset movement and reducing the chances of shipping errors.
Monitoring of repairs
The status of each asset is tracked throughout the repair process, ensuring that maintenance activities are logged and managed efficiently. This improves the reliability and availability of assets and provides valuable statistical information.
Washline tracking
When the automated wash line is installed later this year, RFID systems will be deployed to track items through the wash process. This will ensure that all assets are cleaned thoroughly and efficiently, maintaining high hygiene and operational readiness standards.
Working with Coriel
The first phase of the project involved reliably scanning thousands of QR codes per minute, which are used as the asset identifier for packing crates in Ireland, and digitally associating these to the pallets on which the crates are stacked. This was a complex challenge that required accurate data capture with a mobile device, an intuitive user interface and reliable verification of data back to the Asset IQ system. With over 200 crates stacked on a single pallet, thousands of pallet movements every hour and only seconds to process the data, speed and accuracy of identification was paramount.
In addition to the reliable identification and tracking of packages as they move around the supply chain, the team was also challenged with reliably digitally capturing damaged products and temporarily removing these from the available asset pool while they were repaired. This allowed management to gain visibility on the number of damaged items out of circulation and where the damage has occurred – data which helps them to ensure that enough assets are still active in the pool, and work with their customers and logistics partners to understand how damage can be reduced.
Based on the success of the first phase in Ireland, Coriel then moved to work with the teams in Turkey and Germany to implement the same high-performance data capture but using item-level RFID rather than QR codes. Here the process is the same, but the team were able to deploy high-performance static reading portals to perform the data capture, which further reduced the time needed to accurately identify items.
Technology partnerships that work
This project demonstrated how the project management, implementation and technical capabilities of the Coriel team were supplemented by our choice to deploy best of breed hardware and software from our partners at Kathrein Solutions and Mojix. We have a long and strong track record of working with both of these vendors, who excel in their field.
Rapid Implementation and Setup
Achieving operational readiness in just four months is a testament to the Tosca project management team and technology partners working hand-in-hand. This rapid setup process demonstrates that high-quality solutions can be implemented within stringent timelines with the right people, technology and experience. Our team worked closely with Tosca to ensure all systems were installed, tested, and operational within the designated timeframe. This swift implementation has enabled Tosca to start benefiting from the new facility almost immediately, providing a quick return.
Conclusion
Coriel has been Tosca’s RFID partner for the past four years. This collaboration highlights our commitment to supporting our partners’ growth and sustainability goals. This latest Facility will allow Tosca to continue enhancing its operational efficiency and achieving its strategic objectives. We are proud to have contributed to the project and look forward to continuing our partnership with Tosca.