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Feature
of the Month:
In this issue:
| Feature:
TI Joins EPCglobal’s
Hardware Action Group
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Texas Instruments has joined the Hardware Action Group
(HAG) of EPCglobal, Inc., the technical action group
responsible for developing RFID technology standards.
TI was one of the first companies to join EPCglobal
after its formation in October 2003 as a non-profit
joint venture of the standards organizations EAN International
and the Uniform Code Council Inc.
As a member of the Hardware Action Group, TI is supporting
the development and rapid ratification of a global,
interoperable EPC standard using ultra-high frequency
(UHF) RFID technology. TI is endorsing the vision
of a new generation UHF Gen2 standard for its ability
to meet the requirements and performance needs of
the retailers and manufacturers implementing EPC in
the supply chain. Key end-user careabouts for RFID
UHF tags, including interoperability, read/write field
programmability, and global performance, are driving
the need for this new generation EPC standard. Wal-Mart
and several other retailers globally are endorsing
this same vision for this new EPC RFID standard for
pallet and case-level tagging.
“TI has been a proponent of RFID standards
and a long-time participant in global standards bodies.
We see a solid business case for RFID in the supply
chain and look forward to working with other industry
leaders and EPCglobal in driving the development and
mass commercialization of global standards-based RFID
technology to the market,” said David Slinger,
general manager, TI-RFid Systems and vice president
Texas Instruments, Inc.
For additional insight and updates on key EPCglobal
activities, member organizations can join TI (platinum
sponsor) at next week’s EPCglobal Summit, March
16-18, at the Hyatt Regency in Orlando, Florida. The
EPCglobal Summit is an exclusive EPC standardization,
education, and networking event at which executive
attendees will hear from industry leaders on the status
of their EPC implementation activities, learn about
technology standardization efforts, and gain insights
from leading consultants and integrators. More information
is available at http://www.epcglobalinc.org/.
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Wincor
Nixdorf’s Future Lab Features TI-RFid Technology
In its recently launched RFID Future Lab
retail store, Wincor Nixdorf is demonstrating how RFID technology
can improve the management of goods within the retail supply
chain, while also improving customer service by personalizing
the shopping experience and streamlining the payment process.
Working with Texas Instruments, Wincor Nixdorf designed
the Future Lab to showcase how RFID creates efficiencies
within a retail clothing store, including when a shipment
is received at the dock door, as items are labeled with
prices in the back room, for in-store merchandising, in
the fitting rooms, and at the checkout.
When merchandise is delivered to the store, the incoming
inventory, tagged with TI’s 13.56 MHz Tag-it™
smart labels, is recorded as the boxes pass through a stationary
RFID reader. Information on each item is compared in real
time with the data maintained in the store’s inventory
management system. Details on goods, such as size, color,
and style number, are automatically updated in the system
as the contents of each box are read. RFID allows multiple
tags to be read simultaneously, without line-of-sight, significantly
reducing the time it takes to manually record items as they
come into the retail location.
In the store, RFID-enabled smart shelves allow sales staff
to respond quickly and easily to questions from customers,
such as where to find an item in a specific size or color.
The shelves in the Future Lab are equipped with stationary
RFID readers, which then provide updated location information
for each item to the inventory management system as each
RFID tag is read. Because this information is available
in real time, store staff can more efficiently manage overall
inventory, making sure shelves are stocked appropriately.
Wincor Nixdorf is also showing how RFID enables targeted
advertising, greater opportunities for in-store merchandising,
and a more personalized shopping experience. A reader in
the dressing room identifies all items a customer brings
inside, and a large display shows multimedia product information,
along with suggestions for alternative or complementary
combinations of clothing and accessories.
Additionally, customers can experience what it is like
to check out quickly without waiting in long lines. The
check out process is streamlined because store staff can
tally the items without physically locating a bar code and
passing it over a reader, and they do not have to remove
separate EAS (Electronic Article Surveillance) tags, as
the security function is built into the RFID tags. Customers
can also speed the process by paying using an RFID-enabled
payment token to communicate credit information to the point-of-sale
system, completing the transaction wirelessly and securely.
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Marks
& Spencer Extends Largest RFID Supply Chain Rollout
 Marks
& Spencer, one of the UK's leading retailers of clothing,
foods, house wares and financial services, has expanded
its refrigerated food supply chain RFID rollout, ordering
more than one million additional Texas Instruments Tag-it
13.56 MHz inlays to be embedded in reusable trays, dollies,
flower boxes, roll cages, and other containers.
Originally targeted for three million tagged-trays to be
implemented over three years, beginning in 2002, UK-based
systems integrator Intellident has completed the initial
phase of the rollout well ahead of schedule and continues
to work with Marks & Spencer to extend the project.
The additional one million tagged containers, bringing the
total used in this supply chain application to more than
four million, further enhance the accuracy in reconciliation
in Marks & Spencer’s distribution channel, as
more fresh foods are moved in less time from dispatch, to
receipt, to sort, to pick, and through distribution to each
of its 350+ store locations.
This innovative Marks & Spencer RFID project also won
the “Best in Retail Award” at the 2003 VICS
Conference in Chicago. The Voluntary Interindustry Commerce
Standards Organization includes prestigious member organizations
such as Wal-Mart, IBM and FedEx, and is dedicated to promoting
the improvement of product and information flow throughout
the retail supply chain on a global basis. Surpassing finalists
Best Buy Co. Inc, and Federal Department Stores, the award
was presented to Keith Mahoney, logistics controller at
Marks & Spencer, for an “outstanding example of
strategic thinking and leadership resulting in more effective
supply chain partnerships.”
Marks & Spencer wanted a significant cost and speed
advantage in tracking and managing its food products, from
production to purchase, as well as enhanced features of
RFID versus barcode technology. In order to move these fresh
foods more quickly, the company needed a solution that could
more quickly capture data, improve supplier production windows,
easily and accurately adjust data while in transit, and
lower costs. The implementation of  this
RFID technology, in combination with Intellident’s
Multi Reading solutions, have provided an 83% reduction
in data collection time at the intake point at the Marks
& Spencer distribution center, which in turn has lead
to a 15% growth in distributed volume, per year.
For more information, visit the Intellident Web site at
www.intellident.co.uk
or call +44 (0) 161 436 9950.
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RFID
World 2004 on Track to Break Last Year’s Numbers
With six weeks to go before the Second Annual
RFID World, the show has already surpassed last year’s
exhibitor numbers (60 at time of writing) and has signed
on a series of high-profile speakers including super session
keynotes from Texas Instruments and Microsoft.
With eight breakout tracks over two days, more than 30
educational sessions and case studies as well as two pre-conference
events – the RFID Bootcamp for business managers and
the InformationWeek CEO/CIO Summit, RFID World is the place
to gather for practical, in-depth strategies for implementing
RFID and EPC solutions.
Don’t miss RFID World, April 20-22 at Adam’s
Mark Hotel in Denver, Colorado. For information and updates
related to these events, additional details or to register,
contact show producer Shorecliff Communications at 1-800-608-9641,
info@scievents.com,
or visit http://www.rfid-world.com/rfid04/default.asp.
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TI
Kicks Off First EPC Boot Camp
More than 100 consumer goods manufacturers,
distributors, retailers, software solution providers and
other executives attended the first EPC Boot Camp hosted
by Texas Instruments in Dallas, Texas on February 12. This
one-day program provided participants with the RFID technology
and business case basics to help them make decisions about
deploying EPC-compliant solutions within their enterprise.
The event featured sessions from the leading companies
in RFID including Accenture, Avery Dennison, Bearing Point,
GlobeRanger Corporation, SAMsys Technologies, Texas Instruments
and Zebra Technologies.
Participants learned about the basics of RFID technology,
its applications, what’s behind the new EPC standards,
and how to integrate EPC into existing infrastructure.
If you missed our event in Dallas, make plans to attend
the next EPC Boot Camp. For additional information, contact
Shorecliff Communications at 1-800-608-9641, or visit http://www.shorecliffcommunications.com/rfidepc/default.asp?showid=RA07&info=812.
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