Empower Brands and Manufacturers with Factory-Level RFID Visibility

The pressure on factories is real

Manufacturers across apparel and textiles are under pressure like never before: shorter lead times, stricter compliance, rising chargebacks, and bigger sustainability expectations. In APAC, especially India, demand swings and compressed product cycles have become the norm Modernization is no longer a question of if – but how fast factories can unlock precision, proof, and agility without disrupting today’s output. That is where SML’s Factory Care Solutions (FCS) changes the game.

“Brands cannot afford delays or inaccuracies in today’s competitive environment,” said Gary Moskovciak, Vice President of Global Sales Management at SML. “Our Factory Care Solutions give companies the speed, flexibility, and accuracy they need to stay ahead. It is about turning operational pressure into competitive advantage.”

Factory-proven performance: what Factory Care Solutions deliver

FCS is not trial technology or a short-lived pilot. It is a mature, factory-proven RFID visibility solution used at scale across major sourcing regions – backed by SML’s four decades of retail and apparel experience. FCS brings real-time, item-level visibility and shipment validation into production, quality, packing, and dispatch, so managers see exceptions as they happen, act in the same shift, and ship with confidence.

The result: shorter cycle times, higher first-pass yield, fewer disputes, and margins protected from the small errors that turn into big costs at speed. From factory floor to final delivery, FCS integrates on-demand labels, packaging, and RFID data into a single automated system, cutting errors and accelerating production.

Factory Care (accuracy and visibility): Standardise and automate tagging, quality checks, pick & pack audits, and pre dispatch shipment validation to achieve 100% shipment validation, reduce chargebacks, and provide end-to-end traceability for manufacturers and brands.
In-Plant-Printing (IPP, on demand): Print product labels, POS items, and RFID tags on demand, ideal for remote or fast expanding production sites. Benefits: speed, flexibility, lower cost, and reduced waste; support rapid replenishment and small batch production with retailer standard compliance.

Why this matters now

Vendor networks must flex across seasons, styles, and regions – yet still deliver consistent standards. For apparel and textile manufacturers in APAC and India, production cycles are getting compressed, buyer demands are rising, and errors not only cost time but also hit margins hard.

The difference lies in having live insight rather than end-of-week hindsight. By standardising and automating tagging, quality checks, pick & pack audits, and pre-dispatch validation, Factory Care Solutions replaces guesswork with confidence.

The stakes are real: poor data quality costs organisations an average of US$12.9 million per year. Unplanned manufacturing downtime can reduce annual revenue by up to 11%, with some auto plants losing up to US$2.3 million per hour. Because FCS is intended to complement existing factory workflows and is not designed to replace core systems, it strengthens, rather than replaces, the tools you already rely on. It reduces fragmentation, removes manual interventions, and helps protect margins when the business can least afford errors.

What leaders gain: control in the same shift

Visibility: Real-time, item-level dashboards and alerts surface exceptions as they happen, so teams act in the same shift, prevent bottlenecks, and maintain flow even in peak runs.
Accuracy: 100% shipment validation to buyer/retailer standards before dispatch reduces disputes and chargebacks and supports complex multibrand programs across India/APAC.
Efficiency: Guided, standardized workflows accelerate tagging, quality checks, and audits, driving cleaner, more consistent operations across lines and sister facilities.
Cost saving: On-demand RFID printing cuts preprinted tag waste and freight; automation reduces rework and manual labor; fewer errors and chargebacks protect margin.

Factories using FCS report measurable outcomes:

95 to 100% shipment accuracy,
up to 80% faster tagging,
98 to 99% item-level visibility,
30 to 35% faster order processing.
up to 85% less waste and days removed from pre-printed tag lead times thanks to on-demand RFID printing

Proven at scale: Deployments using Factory Care and on-demand printing have delivered:

95% improvement in shipment accuracy
40% reduction in production delays
30% faster turnaround times.

Sustainability and compliance, with Digital Product Passport (DPP) readiness

Sustainability and compliance aren’t parallel workstreams; they stem from precise, digitally traceable operations. With FCS and IPP, we facilitate item-level digital IDs and data capture at source (tagging, quality, shipment validation) that can support evolving EU Digital Product Passport expectations. While regulations continue to develop, we invest in capabilities that strengthen traceability and enable circularity, and we expect requirements to prioritise high quality, verifiable data captured close to production.

Right-first-time tagging and on-demand printing help reduce scrap, rework, and excess inventory; localized tag production helps lower freight and emissions. Automated, standardised workflows reduce manual, energy intensive steps, embedding sustainability, compliance support, and pragmatic DPP readiness into day-to-day operations as the regulatory landscape matures.

Inside the stack: end-to-end capability that reduces risk during change

SML connects over 20 billion items annually and operates production and service facilities across more than 20 countries. Factory Care Solutions is built on a proven, integrated stack that reduces risk during change and delivers value fast.

The FCS stack includes:

Tags & Inlays: RFID tags and inlays engineered for apparel workflows, including washable options.
Real-Time Visibility: A purpose-built item-level visibility solution used in factory environments, attached warehouses, and distribution networks.
Expert Services: Services, printing, and implementation delivered by specialists with hundreds of deployments.
Built-in quality: 100% RFID quality control, tag validation, and shipment audits to prevent downstream disruption and keep orders flowing without friction
Local Presence: Engagement teams across 20+ countries, including India, to accelerate deployment and training.

Together, these elements accelerate time to value and provide a clear path from pilot to scale. By centralising data and automating workflows across multiple sites, FCS enables same-shift decisions, reduces rework, and strengthens accountability.

Why SML

Scale and stewardship matter. With 40+ years in apparel and retail and trusted relationships with hundreds of global brands, SML brings the scale, governance, and execution discipline to modernize factory networks without disruption. When Factory Care and local on-demand printing are deployed, factories consistently achieve higher shipment accuracy, fewer production delays, and faster turnaround times. Vendors that standardize this stack become the dependable partner on scorecards – shipping accurate, compliant product on time, at volume, with full traceability.

Act now to shape next year’s advantage

The right time to secure next year’s competitiveness is now. Request a live walkthrough tailored to your floor. Contact fcs@sml.com or visit https://www.sml.com/factory-care-solutions/ to see how we deliver factory-level accuracy and speed.