ABI: RFID Plug-and-Play to Accelerate Adoption

June 13, 2005

IHS Parts Solutions

Source parts, manage obsolescence, comply with regulations and speed time-to-market. For more information and a price quote, please complete the form below.

	4DOnline - Electronics DB tools
	Fasteners eCatalog - ID & sourcing
	HAYSTACK - Gov't parts & logistics
	HAZMAT - RoHS/WEEE compliance
	Intermat - MRO parts optimization
	Parts Services - Audit, cleansing, etc.
	TACTRAC - Obsolescence management

First Name:

Last Name:

Email address:

The well-documented introduction of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology into the supply chain by Wal-Mart this year was followed by a relatively slow pace in the technology's adoption, according to ABI Research. The firm noted that many of the suppliers that participated in Wal-Mart's program adopted RFID only the extent they had to to meet Wal-Mart's basic requirements.

Evidence suggest, said ABI, that the consumer goods vertical markets are adopting a "wait-and-see" attitude before moving forward with RFID.

"Leaving aside the important issues of cost and reliability, most of the RFID products available so far require a good deal of hard work for users to integrate them into their existing supply chain systems," said ABI Research analyst Sara Shah. "Companies want to be able to plug an RFID reader or printer into their network and simply have it work. They want it to coexist with their own IT systems and to be able to manage RFID centrally without massive reconfiguration, extensive training, or the need to outsource."

Thus far, solutions capable of performing those tasks have been scarce, although some RFID vendors are moving in that direction. "A few startups have begun to address this need, and new products from Symbol Technologies and Microsoft show this same trend of plug-and-play convenience," said Shah. It is that kind of seamlessness that will encourage end users to move beyond "slap-and-ship" to the point where they will see a clear business case in favor of full-scale RFID implementation, said ABI.

The company's new study, "The RFID Consumer Goods Market," examines how RFID can provide a return on investment for consumer goods companies, explores why they are unable to justify an RFID investment now, and addresses issues that may arise as wide-scale rollouts begin.

Source: ABI Research.