The Real RFID Conversation

It's been a sweltering summer for most of the country. But, it would be big stretch to say that activity in the RFID space over the past few months has been just as hot.

There was a brief uptick when Intermec announced its RFID Rapid Start Licensing Program and then subsequently named a handful of vendors who joined the program. Another lull was interrupted when an influential group of RFID vendors announced a patent pool in hopes of alleviating some of the intellectual property concerns around Gen 2 technology. In the background, of course, there was always the low-decibel buzzing of newly formed vendor partnerships and ongoing vendor disagreements.

For most enterprises looking to deploy RFID technology, however, none of these topics register much more than a casual glance. The end user companies I speak with tell me these subjects aren't even part of the conversation at their companies. Why? Simply put: If you can't affect it, why worry about it? Almost all suppliers facing mandates can't impact intellectual property decisions. They don't really care about vendor lawsuits and cross-licensing agreements. In fact, the end users I speak with aren't even talking about read rates and yield rates.

In the heat of the summer, the conversation among enterprises has really shifted from RFID technology-related topics to RFID business-related topics. And if you're talking about RFID in your business, two general categories will usually suffice. First, you're a slap-and-ship-to-meet-a-mandate operation. You've calculated your compliance costs versus potential lost business. You'll expand the technology when it's more mature. Or, second, you're developing a long-term strategy for RFID. You're evaluating the applications and partners that could potentially be affected. You're looking at your current business processes and determining how they might change. You know there's no ROI in compliance, but you're committed to the long-term benefits promised by RFID.

In both cases, notice that end users aren't talking about the technology's viability anymore. They might have wildly contrasting opinions of RFID (i.e. cost of doing business versus important strategic investment), but they know RFID is here to stay. It's this type of shift in mindset that will allow the technology to move forward. It allows smaller suppliers to adopt the technology with more certainty. It allows larger suppliers to set forth long-term visions, knowing the technology will continue to advance.

If you need an example of this shift, check out the University of Florida's Center for Food Distribution and Retailing resarch pilot - Visibility Validated (V2). Publix Super Markets and four of its produce suppliers will work with the university and additional technology partners to measure the impact of improved supply chain visibility between suppliers and retailers. Ultimately, the V2 project will focus on the ability to leverage the EPCglobal network.

The V2 project will essentially be a real test of the EPCglobal network. Its goal is to use RFID-related technologies to improve the distribution of produce between suppliers and a retailer.

It's on these types of projects and business cases that enterprises are now focusing their attention. Let the vendors worry about new product deadlines, licensing agreements, and partnership announcements. Many suppliers are moving on to bigger issues.