RFID APPLICATIONS IN CONSTRUCTION AND FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

SUMMARY: Construction is following the general industry trend towards the introduction of hard and soft automation for many aspects of materials identification and tracking. Recent developments in RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) tagging provide the hardware solution and cyber-agents are part of the software scheme employed. The agents – programs that can make autonomous decisions and take necessary action when required – are totally dependent upon sensors (rather than human intervention) to provide real-time information on parameters such as location, condition and timing: RFID tags are seen as an appropriate sensor type for providing this kind of information. The potential of RFID tagging technology in the construction and management of facilities is assessed in terms of value chains, a number of applications for improving efficiency are reviewed, and others are proposed. Although there is little evidence presently of RFID adoption in the wider construction sector, the paper concludes that a breakthrough will result from applications that emphasise the management of the building or facility, in particular energy consumption.