Agriculture equipment manufacturer John Deere has increased efficiency in the way it replenishes welding material as well as the way it carries out processes at its assembly stations at a factory run by its Seeding Group in Moline, Ill. That's due to implementation of a Wi-Fi-based real-time location system.
Since the system went into full production in March, the company has seen a 40-percent increase in efficiency in welding due to improvements in material replenishment and fewer delays caused by waiting for materials in its welding areas, says Shay O'Neal, John Deere Seeding Group's project manager. On the assembly line, the system provides a view into work in process, which thus far has reduced the cycle time it takes to assemble a single product by about 5 percent.
