Customer Case · Aerospace & Defense

Embraer: tracking production parts, automating tool checkout

Aerospace has a traceability problem other industries do not. A part that cannot be located is a production sequence that cannot advance and an audit trail with a gap in it. And a tool left unaccounted for inside an assembly is not a loss — it is a liability.

Industry
Aerospace & Defense
Solutions
RFID · WIP · Smart Cabinet
Region
Brazil
The Challenge

Certainty, not speed

Production planning depends on knowing that a given part is where the sequence expects it to be. When that answer comes from a spreadsheet updated at shift change, planners work from a picture that is several hours old — and the audit trail has to be reconstructed after the fact from separate systems.

Tool control carries a different weight. In aerospace it is a safety control, not a convenience: a tool that does not come back is a tool that may still be inside something that flies. The weakest link in that control is a person remembering to write something down under time pressure.

The Solution

A centralized platform for automated WIP control

SmartX HUB was deployed as a centralized platform that automates the collection, processing and analysis of data about critical items and WIP on Embraer's production lines — turning the factory floor into a live, data-driven view.

RFID + Distributed Sensors

RFID technology and distributed sensors for continuous, automated monitoring.

Precise Real-Time Tracking

Components and assemblies tracked in real time throughout the production process.

Intelligent Alarms

Alerts triggered automatically by anomalies or delays in the production flow.

Centralized Dashboard

Complete production visibility for operations managers in one place.

Why RFID for aerospace WIP

RFID reads many components at once, without line of sight, so tracking keeps pace with a complex build instead of slowing it down. Combined with distributed sensors and intelligent alarms, it means a missing or delayed part is flagged automatically — before it can cascade into a line stoppage.

Implementation & Results

Measurable, transformative results

Seconds
to complete audits
Real-time
component tracking
No line-of-sight
bulk RFID reads
  • Rapid audits completed in seconds, without manual scanning or line-of-sight requirements.
  • Precise real-time tracking of all critical components on the production floor.
  • Enhanced data accuracy through centralized analytics and automated inventory management.
  • Optimized production flow, with intelligent alerts preventing bottlenecks and delays.
Conclusion

Peak performance, when the stakes are highest

With SmartX HUB, Embraer strengthened its production control, gaining the real-time visibility and automated intelligence needed to keep one of the world's most complex manufacturing operations running at peak performance. When the stakes are as high as aerospace manufacturing, SmartX HUB delivers the reliability and precision required.

Explore related capabilities: WIP Production Control, Aerospace & Defense 4.0, and Real-Time Asset Tracking.

Bring real-time control to your production line

See how SmartX HUB tracks work-in-progress with RFID and intelligent alerts — so a missing part is flagged before it stops the line.