New Functionality at QAD Explore 2015

As part of Eagle's ongoing commitment to investing in the RF Express product, our developers have been hard at work over the winter, and we are pleased to announce some that some of the new functional advancements will be available to see at our booth at QAD Explore 2015, May 3-6, at the Gaylord National Resort in Washington DC.

 

This includes;

• Eagle .Net SSH Client for Windows based PCs 

• Machine Integration into QAD Enterprise Applications 

• Visual Item Validation

• Android and iOS Interfaces

 

Please come and visit us for more information.

For more about Explore please go to the QAD Explore Blog here

Curious about The Internet of Things?

The Internet of Things (IoT) is where objects, animals or even people are provided with unique identifiers. While the IoT is still taking shape, it’s already making incredible strides as a new frontier for the connected world in which people, devices, environments and virtual objects are all connected and capable of interaction using wireless technologies, micro-electromechanical systems and the Internet. There’s a new wave of technology platforms targeting the need to bridge these sophisticated communications, as well as hardware manufacturers producing physical devices and sensors to power the IoT.

 

A thing, in IoT, can be a person with a heart monitor implant, a dog with a biochip transponder, a smart parking sensor -- or any other natural or man-made object that can be assigned an IP address and provided with the ability to transfer data over a network. So far, the Internet of Things has been most closely associated with machine-to-machine (M2M) communication in manufacturing and power, oil and gas utilities. Products built with M2M communication capabilities are often referred to as being smart. (e.g. smart label)

 

However this is just the beginning. Pockets of “Internet of Things” solutions will occur in high-value manufacturing floors as the emergence of technology in that industry has changed the face of operations. Supervisory control and data acquisition systems in industrial processes in conjunction with IoT will introduce significant cost reductions in manufacturing operations, utilizing WLAN for interconnectivity, manufacturing and distribution. As reported by Gartner, the IoT-installed base will reach 26 billion by 2020, with incremental revenue exceeding $300 billion. 

 

A new era of computing technology is here and will offer connectivity to a vast number of smart “things” interacting and communicating with each other on manufacturing floors to generate a tremendous volume of useful data with the potential to increase efficient operations and positively impact every aspect of the manufacturing life cycle. This interaction and exchange of data between machines is no longer pivotal on smartphones alone. Rather, any object and appliance on the manufacturing floor, once connected, will generate data to streamline every aspect of the manufacturing process. The objects on a manufacturing floor can become smart with the integration of embedded processors, and once they become smart, the next step is the need for remote communication. Wi-Fi is among several connectivity technologies such as NFC, Sub-Gig, ZigBee, GPS, BT/BTLE, RFID and cellular. Once the connectivity is established, the automation of processes will follow.

Useful Links:
RCR Wireless 2015 Predictions
Zebra - IoT in Healthcare

iOS Interface for Eagle

How have Vascutek invested in technology to improve operations?

 

Vascutek, a Glasgow based medical device manufacturer, have utilised Eagle and iOS technology to trace materials more effectively, including the use of the Eagle iPad interface on mini iPad's within the clean rooms.

 

Find out more on the following link

NEW GS1 HEALTHCARE GUIDELINES - ARE YOUR MANUFACTURING PROCESSES COMPLIANT?

With complex supply chains that cross national and international borders, healthcare is by nature, classified as a global sector. This classification has led to the need for a global standardised system for traceability of products from point of manufacture, right through to patient treatment, to be able to comply with increasing legal requirements.

Through its implementation of standards, the GS1 System facilitates the ability of the healthcare industry to maintain an efficient supply chain worldwide due to uniquely identified products, logistic units and locations. The standards that they set are global, neutral, non-ambiguous and non-significant.

Their purpose is to allow product and data flow between the various partners along the supply chain including suppliers, manufacturers, wholesalers, logistics providers, transporters and hospitals just to name a few. Their processes and procedures also help automate data capture and data management, increase data flow, reduce cost and secure the supply chain.

Last month saw the release of Version 3 of the Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) Healthcare Implementation Guideline which updated its standards and added new sections on Human Readable Interpretation (HRI) and updated Direct Part Marking (DPM) which will be implemented across the industry over the coming months.

The full document can be found here.

AIDC Standards for Healthcare trade items have also been incorporated within the GS1 General Specifications. The outcome of this will have huge implications on the Healthcare industry by providing stakeholders with a shared set of data and data carriers to be applied to medical products at every packaging level. The AIDC Standards also offer specific guidance for manufacturers on the selection and use of:

·        Suitable GS1 Product Identification Keys

·        Additional product and production data (batch/lot numbers, expiration dates and serial numbers)

·        GS1 Data Carriers, which include linear bar codes, two-dimensional bar codes and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags

The Application Standard for AIDC in Healthcare was developed to target approximately 80% of the Healthcare products currently in the global marketplace. Future efforts will target additional AIDC marking needs.

The AIDC Healthcare Standards support the ability for sector-wide implementation of AIDC systems which are aimed at improving patient safety, reducing medication errors, facilitating anti-counterfeiting and enabling effective product recalls. The approved systems will also aim to address inefficiencies throughout the global Healthcare supply chain and allow stakeholders to improve and integrate their processes.

Eagle are experts in ensuring compliance and safety throughout the supply chain in your medical manufacturing. To speak to us regarding the changes to the GS1 / AIDC Standards, or for any other issue relating to life sciences manufacturing, please get in touch with a member of our team.

Android Interface

Eagle already has interfaces for Windows and iOS based devices. Many mobile devices are now taking advantage of the Android  operating system including many tablet devices. 

Eagle are pleased to announce that a new and fully updated version of the .Net interface will be available for Android and will be available at Explore 2015. This will allow our customers to take advantage of many of the latest cost effective data collection devices.