Quantifying the value of RFID in air cargo handling process: A simulation approach

Air cargo customers demand deliveries in a timely manner because the cargo is usually high-value and/or perishable. Any delay at the airport may result in unmet customer demand, incur high inventory-in-transit cost and damage the quality of perishable commodities. Faced with these problems, an Asia-based airline has resorted to Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) to improve the efficiency of its air cargo handling process. Before implementation, we employ the simulation approach to quantify the benefits of RFID deployment. Our study shows that the RFID system can significantly reduce the total costs with the same timing, indicating that RFID technology is appropriate for the time-sensitive industrial and commercial practices.