William Frick & Company, a producer of custom identification products, announced three industrial-strength Radio Frequency Identification or “RFID” tags.

The company is specialized in RFID tags, barcode labels, utility markers and signs. The new RFID tags include an all-steel weldable WoW tag (News - Alert), the rubber FRAC tag, and Sling/Hang tags.

WoW tag can be welded to any metal part, making it useful in oil and gas production, drilling, heavy industry, construction, transportation, mining and any other industry that needs to identify its important assets in a harsh environment.

Theoretically an RFID tag completely encased in steel shouldn’t be able to work, but this tag provides exceptional readability and durability, company officials said.

The technology uses an MSOP chip with frequency that is UHF Class 1, Gen 2 / ISO 18000-6c compliant. It can be read from every direction due to the spherical readability of the tag’s innovative antenna.

FRAC Tag, according to company officials, is an exceptionally rugged RFID tag made of vulcanized rubber encasing a durable chip on-board electronics design. The tag snugs up tightly around pipes and other tubular objects.

The Sling/Hang tag is the same as the FRAC tag except that its braided attachment cable is a loop sized to go through a small opening like chain links or equipment handle, according to the company. It also features an anodized aluminum plate that can be etched with a 2D barcode, serial number, logo and other information for identification redundancy.

The three tags are designed for rugged applications like subsea operations. They can survive extremely harsh environments and are resistant to impact, pressure and water. They can be read at long ranges, according to the company.

The tags were conceived by Technologies ROI or “TROI” and are being distributed in North America exclusively by William Frick & Company.

The steel tag, according to the company, is unique because it is the first RFID tag that can be welded to the object it is intended to identify. The innovative attachment mechanisms of the other two tags are nylon-coated, braided steel loop or cable. The system offers them extreme durability so they can be securely fastened to whatever asset needs to be tracked.

The tags can also be laser-etched so information is easily readable with the naked eye, the company said.

The tags were field-tested over 24 months by the five largest oil and gas producers, the company claims. Because of the tags’ superior performance, they were designated RFID Tags of Choice for harsh-environment operations by the Oil and Gas RFID Solution Group Consortium.

“For the first time, oil and gas companies and others in heavy industry have RFID tags tough enough to withstand the rigors of extremely harsh operating conditions,” Evie Bennett, vice president of William Frick & Company, said.

“By tagging pipelines, cables, chains and other important assets, companies can become more efficient at managing inventory in the field and knowing when equipment needs to be serviced or replaced,” Bennett added.

The Oil and Gas RFID Solution Group Consortium has found these tags survived even the most challenging environments, such as down-hole, sub-sea and high-chemical exposures and treatments, according to Sam Falsafi, co-founder of the Oil and Gas RFID Solution Group Consortium.

“They met the needs and standards of the oil and gas industry in real-world settings, thereby earning credibility for RFID applications beyond just supply chain management,” Falsafi added. “This substantiates RFID’s importance deep into oil and gas exploration, production and refining operations.”