PlantQuest implemented a cutting-edge tracking and monitoring system designed not only to locate IBCs in real time, but to provide comprehensive visibility into all key mobile assets and their usage status. The system included:

• ‍Real-Time Asset Location: Advanced tracking capabilities to pinpoint the exact location of each IBC and every other tagged asset (MEWPs, ladders, scales, cameras, etc.), ensuring seamless coordination across buildings and departments.

• Dynamic Alerts for Campaigns: Alerts for IBC clean campaign durations and hold times, enabling proactive management of clean/dirty status. (For example, staff receive notifications before an IBC exceeds its allowed hold time after cleaning, preventing compliance deviations.)
• Status & Condition Monitoring: Tools to monitor the condition and readiness of assets. Operators can instantly see which IBCs are clean and available, which MEWPs are in use or due for inspection, or whether a scale is calibrated and ready – reducing delays caused by uncertainty about an asset’s status.
• Comprehensive Analytics & Traceability: A unified data platform that logs asset movements and usage, providing valuable analytics for strategic decision-making. The facility can analyze patterns (e.g., peak times for IBC usage or how often a particular MEWP is idle) and maintain an audit trail for each asset’s history, supporting continuous improvement and regulatory traceability.

This solution established a streamlined operational framework where assets across the entire site can be easily located and managed in real time. By bringing all mobile equipment into one visible network, the facility minimised downtime, improved compliance readiness, and maximized production capacity.

• 50% Reduction in Waiting Times: Wait times for critical mobile vessels were cut in half. By eliminating time spent searching or waiting for IBCs to become available, the site saved approximately €45,000 annually in labor and idle time.
• Improved Clean Campaign Compliance: Instances of IBCs exceeding their allowed clean campaign or hold times dropped by ~50%. This proactive compliance averted up to four deviation investigations per year (previously triggered when cleaning intervals were missed), avoiding an estimated €100,000 in related costs annually.
• Enhanced Production Capacity: With bottlenecks removed, the facility recovered significant lost production time. The increased asset availability enabled an additional 37 batches to be manufactured per year, translating to roughly €925,000 in extra revenue from improved throughput.
• Greater Audit & Maintenance Efficiency: The facility dramatically improved its audit readiness and maintenance efficiency. Staff no longer lose time trying to locate a piece of equipment during audits or routine tasks – every MEWP, ladder, scale, or camera can be pinpointed instantly. This heightened visibility strengthened compliance (no audit findings for “missing” assets) and contributed to a safer, more organized working environment.

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Beyond this single site’s success, the impact of PlantQuest’s technology has resonated across the client’s global network. This Irish facility became a model for asset tracking excellence, prompting the organisation to expand PlantQuest solutions to three other manufacturing sites in its network. These include a large-scale biotechnology production plant, an integrated aseptic production and packaging facility, and a state-of-the-art biotech site handling both vaccine intermediates and gene therapy products.