RFID self-service storage: unmanned stores and cabinets

Challenge

Construction sites, shipyards, and industrial facilities lose working hours to material logistics: when tools or mounting materials run out, staff drive to a wholesaler or wait for a delivery while the site stands idle. The goal was an unmanned self-service storage that can be placed directly on site — a standard container or a small stock room — and serve hundreds of users without personnel on duty.

Approach

Every product carries an RFID tag. Users identify themselves with a personal RFID card at the entrance; the client software admits one user at a time into the read area so that goods movements are assigned to exactly one person. The user collects items from the shelves like in a supermarket, then steps into the checkout zone, where the goods are scanned automatically without visual contact and shown on a display for confirmation. The platform logs entry, purchase, and exit, manages per-store access rights and user roles (buying, borrowing, reservations), and generates fill lists and invoicing data from the scans.

Test Setup

On the testing side, RFID test setups were built from Moxa devices, PLCs, antennas, and readers. Hardware and software tests were planned and performed both in the lab and at customer sites, working with developers to resolve issues in an Agile CI/CD process.

On-site Testing

Testing of the self-service storage cabinets was led across multiple client deployments, from first installation to stable operation. During on-site testing, test scenarios were synchronized with the actual operating speed of the doors: entry and exit reads were validated against real door opening and closing cycles, so timing-sensitive behavior was verified under production conditions rather than assumed from lab measurements.

Outcome

Real-time inventory without manual stocktaking: the system tracks stock levels continuously, triggers restocking from turnover data, and removes shutdowns and overtime previously spent on full inventories. Per-site product ranges are tuned from actual usage data, so each store keeps the right assortment in sufficient quantity.

Article author: Andrei Olegovich