Hardware
RFID Asset Tags
Unpowered, but never out of sight
For equipment without its own power supply, there are the RFID Asset Tags. Attached to a piece of equipment, they provide not only its location but also usage data such as operating hours, for up to eight years on a single battery. RFID technology means: no expensive GPS module, no SIM card, no heavy battery. Our tags transmit a signal that easily reaches ten times the range of an industrial Bluetooth signal. This also makes it easier for the signal to penetrate steel, concrete and glass, exactly the materials you deal with in the field.
2,000+ industry leaders trust our technology
RFID Asset Tag features
- Battery life: up to eight years.
- Memory: buffers data when out of range.
- SmartRange: range up to ten times stronger than Bluetooth.
- Easy mounting: screws, adhesive or cable ties.
- Motion sensor: remembers the last location when stationary.
- Hybrid IoT ecosystem: all data visible in Flowter.
- Cargo recognition: sees which equipment goes along on transport.
- Cost-saving: fast ROI through full control.
A tag for every situation
The Asset Tag
The core tag in the range, suitable for machinery, tools and trailers. Range up to 1,500 metres in open terrain, battery life up to eight years.
The Mini Tag
For tools and smaller equipment that are difficult to tag with the standard Asset Tag. Compact size (38 × 38 × 15 mm), range up to 800 metres, battery life of three years.
The Pro Tag
For equipment located further away from a gateway, or behind thick structures of steel, concrete or glass. Range up to 4,500 metres, more than three times further than the standard tag, battery life up to eight years based on the HACCP profile. (→ Download specifications)
The Temperature Tag
For temperature-sensitive cargo such as vaccines, fresh produce, flowers or refrigerated transport. Continuously measures temperature and reports in line with HACCP and GDP guidelines, with a battery life of more than eight years.
The Temperature and Humidity Tag
For applications where humidity also matters, such as pharmaceuticals or climate-controlled storage. Measures both values simultaneously, with a range of up to 4.5 kilometres in open terrain and a battery life of more than eight years.
The ID Tag
The ID Tag brings your employees into Flowter alongside the rest of your operation. The tag is compact, so your employees can easily carry it with them. With one press of a button, they indicate themselves that they are on their way to work, have arrived or are leaving. If they fall or have an accident, the man-down function registers it immediately. That way, everyone works more safely.
Advanced gateway technology
As soon as a tag is attached to an asset, it starts collecting data: the location and, where relevant, usage data such as operating hours. An algorithm sends that information to the nearest gateway: your own XT-4 or one of the tens of thousands of other GPS-Buddy gateways that drive through the Netherlands every day.
SmartRange
With SmartRange, the tag automatically adjusts its transmission power to the distance from the nearest gateway. If an asset is far away or behind obstacles, the signal is boosted. If a gateway is close by, the tag scales back for more accurate positioning.
Accurate location thanks to the motion sensor
Ein eingebauter Bewegungssensor erkennt, wann Material stillsteht, und speichert automatisch diesen letzten, genauen Standort. Sobald es sich wieder bewegt, sucht der Tag ein neues Signal und überträgt die aktuelle Position.
Cargo assets
The software automatically recognises which equipment is being transported in which semi-trailer, trailer or low-loader. That way you can see straight away whether the right load has been taken along, or whether something is missing or has been left behind in the wrong place.
Alerts for equipment with an Asset Tag
Equipment with an Asset Tag can also be linked to Alerting in Flowter. You decide which situations trigger an alert and who receives it. Think of an alert when equipment enters or leaves a location, such as a generator that disappears from the construction site outside working hours.
Real impact for our customers
No more lost laser levels
Beentjes GWW works on infrastructure projects across North Holland with more than a hundred employees. The biggest frustration was small, expensive equipment. Laser levels costing over €1,200 were left behind in a site cabin or van, while new ones were being ordered. Beentjes therefore started by tagging the laser levels. Containers, site cabins, generators and attachments followed. The XT-4 units in vehicles and machines pick up the signals. That delivered immediate results: no more lost laser levels, and three new site cabins turned out to be unnecessary.
“We’ve saved tens of thousands of euros on purchases because we can deploy our equipment more efficiently.”
Sonny, equipment management, Beentjes GWW
Forty transport barges in view on the water
City Barging transports building materials, waste and heavy equipment by water, right in the heart of Amsterdam. It does so with seven push boats and forty unmanned transport barges. The barges have no power supply of their own and sometimes lie idle for weeks. Every push boat carries an XT-4 as a gateway, every barge an RFID Asset Tag. When a push boat passes by, the barge’s location is updated in Flowter immediately. That makes searching across the water and manual registration in Excel unnecessary. The team fitted the tags themselves, using mounting adhesive.
“The difference is like night and day. Where we used to be busy chasing things down, we’re now looking ahead.”
Willem Post, Maritime Manager, City Barging
Control over emissions and driving behaviour
Van Werven Infra wanted to know not only where vehicles and machines were located, but also how they performed and what they emitted. With Flowter, vehicle tracking and trip registration are combined with driving behaviour analysis through Driver Intelligence and emission reporting. Geofencing automatically links fuel use and emissions to specific projects, with reports ready for use in tenders and permits.
"What appealed to us about GPS-Buddy is that they don't think in separate boxes, but in a complete ecosystem. Everything that moves, we can track, measure and improve."
Harry Hertsenberg, Director Infra, Van Werven Infra B.V.
The first hybrid IoT ecosystem
Whichever tag you choose, the data reaches Flowter via the gateway. There, it forms a single overview together with the rest of your fleet and equipment. With Asset Intelligence, you can manage efficiency, compliance, sustainability and safety.
Read more about GPS-Buddy RFID Asset Tags
Frequently asked questions and answers. Is your question not listed? Then contact us.
What is RFID?
RFID stands for Radio Frequency Identification: a tag independently transmits a radio signal that is picked up by a nearby receiver, in this case a GPS-Buddy gateway. This means no SIM card or GPS module is needed, which keeps the tag small, energy-efficient and affordable.
Which RFID Asset Tag suits my situation?
That depends on the application. The Mini Tag is designed for tools, the Pro Tag for longer distances or dense structures, and the Temperature (+ Humidity) Tag for temperature-sensitive cargo. The standard Asset Tag is the choice for most machinery, trailers and other equipment.
Do the tags need a SIM card?
No. The tags use RFID technology and communicate via a signal that is picked up by a gateway, such as the XT-4 or one of the other GPS-Buddy gateways.
What happens if there is no gateway nearby?
Every tag has a built-in memory and buffers the data until a gateway is back within range.
Can the tags also be used outdoors?
Most tags have an IP68-rated housing and can be used both indoors and outdoors. The Mini Tag is rated IP42 and is mainly suitable for drier conditions.
What is the difference between RFID and Bluetooth?
RFID tags do not need a SIM card or an expensive GPS module and communicate two ways with the gateway. The signal is also up to ten times stronger than an industrial Bluetooth signal, which makes it easier to penetrate steel, concrete and glass. That makes RFID better suited for use in and around heavy structures and over longer distances.
