The Inditex group , one of the largest fashion distribution groups in the world, has always been known for researching and including the latest technology in its stores and logistics centers. In recent months, the creators of Zara have incorporated a garment tracking system with the latest technology into their stores . The system allows garments to be accounted for quickly and controlled throughout the distribution and sale process. Although this system already existed, Inditex has managed to incorporate it into the garment alarms , thus allowing it to be reused.
Although it seems a very complex system, its operation is quite intuitive. The alarms on the garments arrive without information at the company's logistics center, located in a town in La Coruña called Arteixo . Once there, the alarm is activated and all the information related to each product is recorded: model, size, color, etc. In other words, the alarm incorporates all the data of the garment to which it has been hooked .
This system allows that when the garments arrive at the stores, the employees can scan them quickly by simply swiping the digital reader, without having to open the boxes. On the other hand, the system is complemented by an application that is installed on the iPods carried by the employees. This application allows to know immediately the stock of the store , thus being able to check if they have a specific size quickly, without having to enter the warehouse. Once the garment has been sold, the alarm is deactivated and all the information it contained is erased, thus leaving it blank for reuse with another garment.
As the company has commented, each alarm has a useful life of about 100 uses . In addition to the advantages mentioned for controlling the stock once the garments are in the store, this system also allows the garments to be monitored throughout the distribution process . The difference with other systems of this style is that the data is stored in the alarm and not on the label . This allows for the reuse we mentioned earlier.
It is not the first time that the Inditex company incorporates the latest technology into its stores. A few years ago they introduced the RFDI (Radio Frequency Identification) system . It was a very similar system to the one mentioned, but using another type of technology. This innovative technological system allowed the unique identification of each garment through radio frequency waves recorded on a chip inside the alarm, which provided greater agility in distribution and greater precision in the management of garments in stores.
The new alarm system, which by the way has been developed by the company itself, is already fully operational in more than 1,500 Zara stores around the world. The system has been tested for three years and has offered very good results, so the company expects that by the end of the year it will be incorporated into 2,000 company stores.
Via | The world