Yoke Har Lee: Small firm plays tag with the big boys

Antony Dixon shows off a bicycle tag and baggage-scanning equipment. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Bicycles and baggage are two key markets for technology company Times-7.

Formed in 2006 by people with experience in engineering and telecommunications, Times-7 specialises in using radio frequency identification (RFID) technology.

The company quickly cornered a significant share of the Australasian cycling niche, and riding on that success, is now aiming to build sales in the United States, after a series of demonstrations and roadshows.

Chief executive Antony Dixon is excited about the company's prospects. "We are a typical company with Kiwi ingenuity, using the rapid development approach," he says.

Despite the drab economic environment, revenue for the three months to the end of June was three times the amount achieved in same period last year.

The RFID technology which forms the basis for Time-7's business uses high-frequency radio waves to send and receive signals.

Times-7 uses "passive" tags which rely on small barcode-like chips and antennas to communicate. Those tags carry information about the object to which they are attached, and that information can be read at a distance.

"We saw opportunities to focus on technology using ultra high RFID for sports timing, and looked at cycling as a niche," says Dixon. "One of the technical issues we had to overcome was identifying a large group of bikers coming. Bikers go through the finish line at high speeds, often at over 70km/h. The challenge is to read all the bikes in an accurate manner."

The passive RFID tags do not need batteries. Instead, the tag receives a signal and "wakes up" to respond.

As well as building a niche in sports, Times-7 has also been working on solutions for the logistics industry.

Over the past three years it has been testing its system for airport baggage handling. "We have installed our system in Lisbon and Milan [airports]," says Dixon, and it is also being trialled at Amsterdam airport.

Typical airport baggage-handling systems using barcode identifications are imperfect in that they depend on high-quality printing.

Times-7's system - using an embedded RFID chip and antenna - can be incorporated into an airport's existing baggage-handling system with no visible difference to the end customer, says Dixon. Another plus is that its code can be read in different orientations for accurate tracking.

Patrick Teo, chief executive of airport solutions company BCS Group, says Times-7's innovative offering is unique compared with others in the market.

"Lost baggage is a significant cost to airlines and the use of RFID technology is being used increasingly to reduce this. Over and above the use of RFID to reduce lost baggage, we have worked closely with Times-7 to investigate other innovative ways to utilise RFID technology in the aviation market that improves passenger servicing and baggage sortation methods for our clients."

Teo says although the cost of using RFID tags is high, the technology is becoming more viable because of high-volume manufacturing. Airlines also recognise that this system can add value to their business, he says.

Times-7 has also been using the RFID system to help airports with biosecurity clearance. Baggage is scanned ahead of retrieval, so biosecurity officials can be alerted to bags that need checking.

Dixon says Times-7 has also just clinched a new deal to work with a French company, Hub telecom, to participate in the trial of its airport baggage-handling portal.

Another application for Times-7's technology is tracking airline equipment, such as catering trolleys.

Warehouse management and tracking of forklifts are also areas where its technology is being applied.

Putting RFID tags in the concrete in warehouses, for example, can help track forklift positions to lift productivity, says Dixon.

He would like to see the company take on more people, ahead of the hoped-for recovery in the economy. The company, which has offices in Wellington, Hastings and Sydney, is exploring the possibility of bringing in either private funding, venture capital or strategic investors.

Unlike large system integrators with deep pockets, Dixon says Times-7 has finite resources and a limited ability to fund R&D from other product lines. That means it needs to be highly focused.

Times-7 founders aren't particularly concerned by the prospect of losing their majority shareholding. "Don't be scared of diluting capital to be adequately funded," says Dixon. "There seems to be a psychological barrier in New Zealand. You can either be controlling a small company going nowhere or be an executive in a well-funded company that has the potential to become highly profitable."

Over time, as opportunities increase, there is a need to work on lowering its manufacturing costs and to find people with greater depth in technical skills.

For now, Times-7 is working on staying tuned to industries where it wants to build inroads, so it does not spread itself too thinly, says Dixon.