Real-time Location Systems

The Real-time Location Systems (RTLS) market research report delivers current market analysis plus a five-year market and technology forecast. 

Real-time Location Systems: Growing Demand for Location Accuracy Technologies

A real-time location system (RTLS) provides information about the location of assets, objects, vehicles, and goods. The system comprises tags or beacons that are physically attached to the object, receivers, and gateways for signal detection, and a software location engine. This report covers real-time location technologies that utilize radio signals derived from asset tags that generate Bluetooth low energy (BLE), radio frequency identification (RFID), ultra-wideband (UWB), Wi-Fi, and other location technologies. Coverage in this report is limited to real-time location systems used for indoor, oil & gas, and mining applications. Further segmentation of application types includes asset tracking, manufacturing operations, robots/automated guided vehicle (AGVs), intra logistics, and tool management. 

The year 2020 was supposed to be a very good growth year for RTLS, as the benefits of real-time location technologies were getting recognized and the awareness or importance of RTLS technologies have rapidly been gaining momentum in manufacturing areas in the recent past. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the market expectations in terms of growth. Many user companies have delayed their planned investments for RTLS to 2021, as installation of RTLS infrastructure became a key challenge in 2020 due to no access to sites as per COVID-19 safety measures or lockdowns across the globe.  

However, the RTLS market has been supported by some factors that helped the market not experience strong declines in 2020. Some of the key drivers include quick recovery from China, increasing digitalization to optimize processes and gain more efficiency, concerns of workforce safety, and COVID-19 containment measures: social or physical distancing and contact tracing. Looking at 2021, the RTLS market is already back on its growth path.

Real-time Location Systems Market Trends and Strategic Issues

In addition to providing a five-year market forecast, the RTLS market research provides detailed quantitative current market data and addresses key strategic issues as follows.

Strategic Recommendation for Users: Know and Examine Various RTLS Technologies

Though RFID, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, UWB, ultrasonic, infrared (IR), and ZigBee (based on IEEE 802.15.4) are commonly used RTLS technologies, RTLS characteristics depend on a specific technology being involved. Therefore, the selection of the RTLS is a multi-criteria decision-making strategy, which includes both qualitative and quantitative criteria. Detailed infrastructure may differ depending on a specific technology and the location accuracy that users are looking for. 

Strategic Recommendation for Suppliers: Foster Interoperability

Lack of true interoperability among various systems is one of the major concerns in user industries. Through investments in new RTLS systems that communicate with other enterprise software systems and share information needed to react in time, suppliers are adding flexibility to their product offerings and offering open platform solutions that foster interoperability with the tags from other vendors and other enterprise systems. Going forward, suppliers offering better interoperable product solutions are more likely to gain a larger market share. 

Strategic Recommendation for Suppliers: Have a Couple of Different Locating Technologies in the RTLS Portfolio or Build Partnerships with Other Vendors. 

As more users adopt locating solutions, they push more different use cases and find the limits of where their particular technologies do not work well enough. Together, it leads customers to want a platform to both insulate them from technology change and allow them to better manage a mix of various locating technologies.