In this episode of The New Warehouse Podcast, Kevin sits down with Bill Wappler, CEO of Surgere, and Dave Russler Senior Manager at Trane Technologies to discuss how their partnership is transforming supply chain visibility. Surgere, an IOT technology company, and Trane Technologies, a global leader in climate solutions, have come together to tackle one of the biggest challenges in logistics—knowing exactly where products and components are at any given moment. Their collaboration improves efficiency, reduces errors, enhances tracking, and paves the way for AI-driven solutions.
Turning Supply Chain Data into Actionable Intelligence
Many companies focus on tracking inventory within a warehouse, but Surgere takes this a step further by gathering intelligence on assets throughout their entire lifecycle. “If you knew the attributes around all of those assets from the time that they were born till the time that they leave the warehouse environment, it just makes that data so much richer,” Wappler explains. By using a mix of RFID, Bluetooth, and ultra-wideband (UWB) technology, Surgere enables companies to see what’s in their warehouses and understand the full history of each item. This approach significantly improves inventory accuracy and enables predictive analytics.
How Supply Chain Visibility is Solving the “Lost Product” Challenge
Before partnering with Surgere, Trane Technologies faced a fundamental issue—finding their products. “We just didn’t know where our products or components were, and we weren’t able to ensure that they were getting to the right place at the right time,” says Russler. Trane had tried multiple solutions, but none were reliable enough to meet their needs. By working with Surgere, they implemented a combined GPS and RFID tracking system that provides pinpoint accuracy. This has allowed Trane to locate units in their massive outdoor storage areas within minutes, rather than hours or days. “Now we have the pinpoint accuracy of where every unit is located in our shipping yard,” Russler adds, highlighting the efficiency gains.
The Future of Supply Chain: AI-Driven Decision-Making
With trillions of data points being generated, supply chain teams are often overwhelmed by information. Surgere is addressing this by integrating AI into its solutions. “We are projecting about 15 billion transactions a month. Our users are ingesting so much data that it’s overwhelming to a human,” Wappler explains. Their AI, named Sophia, will help Trane and other companies analyze data in real time, offering recommendations for optimizing operations. Russler sees this as a game-changer: “We’ve got roughly an $8 billion backlog in orders right now. We need automation, efficiencies, and elimination of mistakes. AI will help us get there.” As Trane rolls out these solutions across its 40 global manufacturing sites, the impact on supply chain efficiency will be significant.
Key Takeaways
- Enhanced supply chain visibility: Surgere’s IoT solutions provide real-time tracking and historical insights into inventory movements.
- Reduced search time: Trane Technologies cut product search times from days to minutes using RFID and GPS tracking.
- Improved efficiency: Accurate asset tracking ensures the right products are shipped at the right time, reducing costly errors.
- AI integration: Surgere’s AI-driven insights will help supply chain teams analyze massive data sets and optimize workflows.
- Scalability: Trane is expanding these solutions across its 40 manufacturing sites, demonstrating the system’s effectiveness at scale.
The New Warehouse Podcast
Episode 572: How Surgere and Trane Technologies are Advancing Supply Chain Visibility
