With the price of its basic ingredient, crude oil, surging, the petroleum industry is feeling the pinch of increased production costs. Companies are searching for ways to cut costs and improve efficiency, and some industry leaders are looking at RFID technology to gain insights into their operations.
The Oil & Gas RFID Solution Group has been organized to look at ways RFID technology can improve the petroleum industry, from streamlining procurement and production operations to improving worker safety and automating equipment. The group is a multidisciplinary collection of experts, including researchers from several Texas universities, members of the petroleum industry, and representatives from leaders in RFID technology including Avery Dennison, Motorola, and Merlin Concepts.
The solution group is intended as a think tank and R&D center to build the next-generation of RFID systems for the petroleum industry, synchronizing efforts at product and standards development and helping to unify the industry. The group plans to look at all stages of production in the industry, starting with exploration and drilling for crude oil and following the supply chain through to final products. The organization also will look at how environmental and industrial conditions unique to the industry–such as the corrosive chemical cocktails used to speed drilling–can affect the performance of RFID devices.
The group is currently collaborating with EPC Global to establish international RFID standards for the petroleum industry. ![[end]](/resources/bullet/rfidnews-4.gif)
