Selmark, a well-known brand specializing in lingerie (and bridal wear), has been operating in Vigo, Spain since 1975, dedicated to meeting the diverse needs of customers around the world for women's underwear. Over time, the company has expanded from initially producing a small number of models and colors of lingerie to now producing 15 lingerie and corset products, covering more than 8,000 different sizes, colors and designs, with an annual production of more than 2 million pieces. As the family business enters a new stage of development, management is more focused on enhancing the brand's modernity and injecting new vitality and dynamism into the products.
In recent years, Selmark has faced the challenges of improving inventory accuracy, improving supply chain visibility, reducing labor costs, and optimizing picking and distribution processes. To meet these challenges, the company decided to deploy an UHF RFID solution. This innovative initiative was made possible by a partnership with Spanish technology company JSV and printer and software support provided by SATO Europe.
The RFID solution, which officially went live in March 2024, is centered on using SATO's CL4NX Plus printer and Vamos cloud software to manage the unique ID of each item and its movement in the supply chain. As goods are produced, SATO cloud software encodes RFID tags, associating each tag’s unique ID with the product SKU and manufacturing details. This high-quality RFID tagging is essential for accurate tracking and management of inventory throughout the supply chain.
By tagging goods at the point of manufacture, Cermak’s RFID system is able to automatically track these goods, which are monitored by RFID readers from the earliest stages of the supply chain to final delivery. Each tag read updates data about the product’s status in the cloud-based software, ensuring real-time and accurate information.
In distribution centers, Cermak uses fixed entry readers, handheld readers, and RFID tunnels to capture data about arriving goods, arrival times, supplier information, shipping dates, and error detection (such as misplaced items or discrepancies between actual inventory and records). Real-time updates of this information allow Cermak to pick, pack, and ship orders for customers faster, increasing its capacity by 30%. At the same time, RFID technology also reduces labor time previously spent on manual inspections, further improving efficiency.
It is worth mentioning that Cermak does not operate its own physical stores, but works through strategic distributors. Some of these distributors have also used RFID technology to enhance their inventory management, further expanding the benefits of RFID in the supply chain. This innovation ensures precise and agile management of the supply chain from production to final delivery to customers, reducing the risk of errors.
Cermak currently maintains about 250,000 tagged items in its warehouses. Since implementing RFID technology, the company has achieved significant improvements in inventory turnover and management, reducing overstock and understock situations. At the same time, the company has optimized the product distribution process, accelerated the verification process of goods, and automatically generated shipping documents.
Looking ahead, Cermak plans to continue to deepen the application of RFID technology, implement cycle counting and verify the availability of products in real time. The company's long-term goal is to expand this innovative solution to all production plants to standardize processes and ensure maximum efficiency throughout the supply chain.
The successful deployment of this RFID technology is inseparable from the support of JSV and SATO. The installation and integration services, middleware and software solutions provided by JSV ensure the seamless operation of the RFID system. As the first stand-alone printer directly connected to Vamos Cloud RFID, SATO's CL4NX Plus printer can achieve real-time data transmission and processing without the need for additional equipment. This combination provides Cermak with an efficient and reliable RFID solution to help it modernize and optimize its supply chain.
This paper is from Ulink Media, Shenzhen, China, the organizer of IOTE EXPO (IoT Expo in China)
