RFID News Briefs

Best Buy to Deploy RFID Tags October 18, 2005 -- Beginning in January 2006, Best Buy will deploy its radio frequency identification (RFID) tag system designed to improve product replenishment and simplify locating products in-store.Approximately 80% of the company's suppliers will participate in the system's launch by shipping cases and pallets tagged with RFID chips to two undisclosed distribution centers (DCs). Initially, five Best Buy stores will participate in the launch. The retailer plans to launch item-level tagging as early as February 2006.Source: Management VenturesWal-Mart RFID Reduces Out-of-Stocks by 16%, Study Finds October 14, 2005 -- RFID-equipped Wal-Mart stores posted a 16% drop in out-of-stock (OOS) merchandise due to better in-store stock management, according to a study conducted by the University of Arkansas. OOS items with electronic product codes (EPCs) were replenished three times faster than comparable items using standard bar-code technology. The study also showed that RFID-enabled stores were 63% more effective in replenishing out-of-stock products than control stores not equipped with the technology.In 2006, Wal-Mart will double the number of stores that are RFID-enabled, along with distribution centers that service stores. By the end of 2006, more than 1,000 stores, clubs, and distribution centers will be using RFID. In January 2007, Wal-Mart expects the next wave of 300 suppliers to start shipping tagged cases and pallets. That will bring the total number of suppliers using RFID in early 2007 to over 600.Source: InformationWeekWal-Mart Softens RFID Compliance Deadline December 22, 2004 -- In a briefing with analysts, Wal-Mart CIO Linda Dillman said that its top 100 suppliers and 37 "volunteer" suppliers will start shipping cases and pallets by February to three Wal-Mart distribution centers. The original deadline was Jan. 1.Wal-Mart officials have softened the rollout to phase in through "early February," said Christine Spivey Overby, an RFID analyst with Forrester Research. According to Overby, one Wal-Mart executive said that some suppliers waited too long to place orders for tags, which means the tags won't ship until late January or even early February.The Wal-Mart testing hasn't been limited to its key distribution centers, according to the analyst briefing. Since April, Wal-Mart and eight of its top 100 suppliers have been testing tag and reader performance across both distribution centers and Wal-Mart stores for about two dozen products, a Forrester report said.Source: eWeekWal-Mart Suppliers Spent Minimum to Reach RFID Mandate December 20, 2004 -- The top 100 Wal-Mart suppliers invested an average of $250 million on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems to meet the minimum requirements for the January 2005 Wal-Mart mandate deadline, according to a report by AMR Research. The study suggests that the suppliers do not view RFID as a strategic investment and have patched systems together just enough to meet Wal-Mart's compliance deadline.The study cites high costs, a lack of ROI for low-value consumer products, and limited RFID implementations as reasons for the conservative spending.Wal-Mart suppliers have spent $1 million to $3 million each on RFID, which is enough to purchase tags, readers, and minimal software. In order to see any significant benefit, suppliers must integrate RFID into their applications, change existing software and enable large volumes of data to be stored. AMR Research estimates this would cost each supplier $13 million to $23 million.Source: AMR ResearchEPCglobal Ratifies Generation 2 StandardDecember 16, 2004 -- EPCglobal Inc., a not-for-profit standards organization entrusted with driving global adoption of electronic product code (EPC) technology, has ratified the royalty-free EPCglobal UHF generation 2 candidate specification. The ratification marks the completion of the UHF generation 2 air interface protocol as an EPCglobal standard. The generation 2 protocol, a consensus standard built by more than 60 of the world's leading technology companies, will be used as a base platform upon which standards-based products and future improvements will be built. An EPCglobal standard ensures interoperability and sets minimum operational expectations for various components in the EPCglobal Network, including hardware components. Commercially available products are expected the first half of 2005. Source: EPCglobal Inc.CVS to Install American Express RF Payment SystemDecember 15, 2004 -- CVS will install American Express' ExpressPay RF payment system in its entire fleet of more than 5,300 stores by mid-2005. Users simply hold a keychain fob or RF-enabled American Express card next to a reader at checkout to make purchases. Payment is authorized in seconds, and no signature is required to complete a transaction. CVS has already installed ExpressPay-enabled POS terminals in 485 stores in Arizona, Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Kansas and Missouri. Source: American ExpressMETRO Group Begins Pallet-Level RFID TaggingNovember 2, 2004 -- Starting this month, 20 suppliers to Germany's METRO Group's will equip pallets with RFID chips to improve supply chain efficiency. Selected warehouses of the METRO Group as well as outlets of the Metro Cash & Carry, Real and Kaufhof sales divisions are participating.Suppliers involved in phase one of the rollout include Colgate-Palmolive GmbH, Gillette Gruppe Deutschland, GlaxoSmithKline GmbH, Johnson & Johnson GmbH, Kraft Foods Deutschland GmbH, Nestle GmbH, Procter & Gamble GmbH, and Unilever Bestfoods Deutschland GmbH.The second phase of the the company's RFID rollout will begin as early as next year, when participating partners will include RFID chips in transport packaging, in addition to the pallet-level tagging. Source: METRO GroupAlbertsons Meets With Top 100 Suppliers on '05 RFID TestOct. 1, 2004 -- Albertsons met last week with its top 100 suppliers at its Boise, Idaho, headquarters to lay plans for a pilot of RFID technology slated to begin next April, according to John Raudabaugh, vice president of system implementation, Albertsons. Raudabaugh referred to a meeting at the EPCglobal U.S. Conference 2004 in Baltimore. The conference, hosted by EPCglobal U.S., focused on the adoption of RFID systems.Mark Engle, senior director, IT, Campbell Soup, another speaker at the conference, told Supermarket News Albertsons' RFID pilot will take place in the Dallas area, where Wal-Mart has launched a similar pilot and where sources said Target will run an RFID pilot. All pilots have suppliers shipping pallets and cases marked with RFID tags to facilitate real-time tracking through the delivery stream. "We want to be fast followers in [RFID] implementation," Raudabaugh said. "[The technology] still has a lot to prove, and we want to give it time to settle down."Source: Supermarket NewsTesco Begins RFID RolloutSept. 28, 2004 -- U.K. supermarket chain Tesco has begun work to roll out an RFID network to track shipments from its central distribution center to all 98 of its Tesco Extra superstores in the U.K. by Christmas this year. The retailer will attach RFID tags to its own shipping trays and dollies at its national distribution center in Milton Keynes before they are loaded and sent through its supply chain to retail stores. Contents of the trays will include perfume and aftershave, beauty products, packs of razor blades, pharmaceuticals, batteries, electric toothbrushes, cameras, phones and computer accessories. Throughout 2005 and 2006, the company plans to broaden the rollout to include all of its 2,000 stores and distribution centers. Source: RFID JournalBest Buy Announces RFID StrategyAug. 31, 2004 -- Best Buy Co. Inc. today announced the rollout of its radio frequency identification (RFID) technology strategy designed to increase its supply chain efficiency over the next several years. Best Buy's major suppliers are expected to begin applying electronic product code-compliant tags to product cases and pallets by Jan. 2, 2006, with all product cases and pallets tagged by May 2007. In preparation for these changes, the company also expects to test several applications of the technology in select stores and distribution centers in the coming year.Best Buy plans to team with Accenture to further define its RFID program strategy, manage rollout and implementation, and assist suppliers with meeting its integration and compliance requirements.Source: Best Buy Co. Inc.Target RFID Project to Kick Off in TexasAug. 10, 2004 -- Target Corp. held a meeting with several hundred suppliers in Minneapolis earlier this week to discuss requirements for its radio-frequency identification technology plans.The company reportedly told suppliers that its RFID project will begin with one distribution center in Texas and 10 nearby stores in the Dallas/Forth Worth area in the late fall, with plans to expand to more than 50 stores by June of next year. It's not clear how many suppliers initially will participate in the first wave of RFID deployment. Requirements identified to date include applying RFID tags to cartons and pallets shipped to regional distribution centers and using 96-bit tags based on EPCglobal standards.Source: InformationWeekMETRO Group Opens RFID Innovation CenterJuly 7, 2004 -- Germany's METRO Group, the world's fifth-largest retailing group with more than 2,300 locations in 28 countries, has opened an RFID Innovation Center in Neuss. The 1,300-square-meter warehouse provides the company's partners a working platform that perfectly simulates actual retail environments in which to test the hardware and software necessary for RFID rollout.The METRO Group will be the first retail company in the world to use RFID throughout the entire logistics process chain. The first phase of the rollout will begin in November 2004 with around 20 suppliers. Later it will gradually be extended to about 100 suppliers, eight central warehouses and 269 locations. Suppliers participating in the first phase of the rollout include Colgate-Palmolive GmbH, Gillette Gruppe Deutschland GmbH & Co., GlaxoSmithKline GmbH & Co., Johnson & Johnson GmbH, Kraft Foods Deutschland GmbH, Maggi GmbH, Nestle Erzeugnisse GmbH, Nestle Purina PetCare Deutschland GmbH, and Procter & Gamble GmbH.Source: METRO GroupWal-Mart Expands Electronic Product Code GoalsJune 17, 2004 -- In a series of briefings this week with its top 300 suppliers, Wal-Mart unveiled expansion plans for its electronic product code (EPC) initiative based on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology. Wal-Mart's top 100 suppliers and 37 volunteers are working to go live in the North Texas area by January 2005. Following that, the retailer outlined its next steps: June 2005: Live in up to six distribution centers. Live in up to 250 Wal-Mart stores and Sam's Club locations. October 2005: Live in up to 13 distribution centers. Live in up to 600 Wal-Mart stores and Sam's Club locations. January 2006: Next top 200 suppliers begin tagging cases and pallets. The retailer is currently working with suppliers to determine in which geographical region the expanded EPC implementation will occur. Wal-Mart launched its initial implementation on April 30 in the North Texas area. Cases and pallets of 21 products from eight suppliers are being shipped to Wal-Mart's Sanger, Texas, distribution center and then onward to seven local Supercenters with RFID tags attached. This technology allows retailers greater inventory visibility from supplier to distribution center to a store's backroom. Wal-Mart initially announced its EPC initiative in June 2003. The primary consumer benefit expected during initial EPC adoption is better merchandise availability. Source: Wal-MartRFID Hype Exceeds Current Planning, Survey FindsMay 20, 2004 -- Despite well-publicized goals for RFID compliance from some of the world's largest retailers, less than 10% of retailers overall and less than 40% of manufacturers have target dates and goals for their RFID implementation, according to a survey of executives from 90 companies conducted by Deloitte, the ePC Group and the Retail Systems Alert Group, a research and events company.Among other results of the survey, which were presented at the Retail Systems trade show in Chicago:Manufacturers had allocated some of the largest budgets to RFID deployments, but more than half had "very low" expectations that their RFID deployments would boost their revenue within the next five years. 21% of retailers reported "low" expectations, while 26% had "high expectations" of increased revenue from RFID. Overall, 30% of respondents had "very low expectations" of increased revenue from RFID within the first five years of implementation. 40% of the manufacturing companies surveyed plan to be tagging fewer than 50 product SKU's by the end of the year while 48% will not be tagging any.Source: RFID JournalWal-Mart to Share Lessons From RFID PilotMay 18, 2004 -- Wal-Mart will share early lessons from its RFID pilot in the Dallas/Fort Worth area when it brings its top 100 suppliers together in Arkansas next month.The private gathering is another in a series of group and individual meetings Wal-Mart has held with suppliers to assist them in implementing electronic product codes (EPCs). The meeting will be followed days later by a gathering of the next 200 largest suppliers to discuss their upcoming participation."We want to make this information available to our suppliers early on so that they can incorporate it into their efforts to meet the readability goals we've established," said Linda Dillman, executive vice president and CIO for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. "From the start, we will be targeting 100 percent readability of pallets at dock doors and 100 percent readability of cases on our distribution center conveyor systems."No major glitches in the system have been discovered in the initial 18 days of testing, Dillman noted."During this test phase, we're experimenting with various tag types and tag placements to see how they impact readability on various products in a non-laboratory environment," she said.Source: Wal-MartWal-Mart Begins RFID Trial in Dallas/Fort Worth AreaApril 30, 2004 -- Wal-Mart and eight product manufacturers begin a trial of a radio frequency identification (RFID) system at select Supercenters and one regional distribution center in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.The trial follows extensive testing at the company's RFID lab and months of collaborative preparation by Wal-Mart and its suppliers. Wal-Mart has set a January 2005 target for its top 100 suppliers to be placing RFID tags on cases and pallets destined for Wal-Mart stores and Sam's Club locations in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Since announcing the initiative nearly a year ago, 37 additional suppliers have voluntarily chosen to meet the same date. The eight manufacturers participating in the first phase of the trial are The Gillette Company, HP, Johnson & Johnson, Kimberly-Clark, Kraft Foods, Nestle Purina PetCare Company, The Procter & Gamble Company and Unilever.Source: Wal-MartAlbertsons Launches RFID ProgramMarch 5, 2004 -- Albertsons announced that it is launching a radio frequency identification (RFID) program and will be using the technology to improve efficiencies in consumer demand chain management. The company is currently testing RFID technology with select partners at the case and pallet level. Albertsons expects its top 100 suppliers to be participating in the RFID program at the case and pallet level by April 2005.Albertsons is a founding member and an active participant in the EPCglobal standardization process for retail consumer demand chain management. EPCglobal, a newly formed not-for-profit organization, will develop and oversee commercial and technical standards for the Electronic Product Code Network.Albertsons said it will provide support for adoption of the EPC Network and in the creation of industry standards for RFID technology. Source: AlbertsonsTarget Spells Out RFID Goals for VendorsFebruary 20, 2004 -- Target expects top vendor partners to apply tags to all pallets and cases and start shipping to select regional distribution facilities beginning in late spring 2005, according to a letter to the retailer's vendors from Paul Singer, senior vice president/chief information officer.Target's intent is to accept RFID tags from all vendors as a supplement to the current barcode markings at the carton and pallet level by spring 2007. The company sees RFID as a complement to current barcode and EDI technologies and supports a retail industry migration approach. For the foreseeable future, the current carton marking requirements for shipping containers will remain unchanged.Target is an active participant in the EPCGlobal standardization process for the retail supply chain. As part of this process, Target is testing proof of concept RFID technologies at the pallet and case level with selected vendor partners. An RFID Frequently Asked Questions document is available from Target's Partners Online Website.Source: TargetGroup to Evaluate RFID's Value in Pharmaceutical IndustryFebruary 18, 2004 -- A group of manufacturers, distributors and retailers that includes CVS Pharmacy, Rite Aid, Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, Pfizer, Abbott Laboratories and others will work together to evaluate RFID technology's potential to enhance pharmaceutical product manufacturing, distribution and retail operations.Consulting firm Accenture will serve as program manager. The Healthcare Distribution Management Association (HDMA) and National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) are also supporting the group by providing their members with additional information and educational opportunities for the program.The project will explore the application of EPC and RFID and technologies to three areas: enhancing the safety and security of the pharmaceutical supply chain; improving the process of pharmaceutical returns management; and increasing the efficiency of distribution operations. The group also plans to help encourage use of the new electronic product code (EPC) digital identification standard throughout the pharmaceutical industry.The group plans to test how RFID technology can improve expiration date management; lot and batch tracking; returns management processing; shipping and receiving accuracy; operational integrity; and product security and consumer safety, among other areas.Source: AccentureTesco Unveils RFID TimelineNovember 11, 2003 -- U.K. retailer Tesco has announced a timeline and roadmap for RFID tagging of all case-level products:November 2003: Suppliers to start own R&D activities (if not already underway).April 2004: Standards review undertaken by Tesco (Timeline that follows depends on a successful review).April 2004: Tesco requirements, and initial products to be radio barcoded announced.July 2004: Test orders of radio barcoded cases arrive at Tesco distribution centers.September 2004: Begin rollout of case-level radio barcoding to phase 1 products.September 2006: Begin rollout of case-level radio barcoding to all remaining products.January 2007 onwards: Rollout of case-level radio barcoding complete.The announcement follows Tesco's earlier tests of RFID tags used on Gillette Mach 3 razors and DVDs.Tesco will follow relevant RFID standards, including European regulations on frequencies and power levels. The company has selected selected Class 1 tags and the UHF band for pallets, cages, trays and cases.Source: TescoTesco Starts RFID TrialOctober 28, 2003 -- Tesco, the U.K.'s leading retailer, is launching an RFID trial from its non-food distribution center in Milton Keynes.The trial involves attaching a radio barcode to Tesco transportation cases to improve supply chain visibility between the distribution center and two stores at Peterborough and St Neots. It follows item-level trials on DVDs at Tesco stores in Sandhurst and Leicester which run until early next year."This new trial is helping us to gain better visibility in the supply chain from when the products leave our distribution centre until they arrive at the store. It is also helping us to improve product availability for customers and makes life simpler for our staff," said Colin Cobain Tesco's IT director. The Radio barcodes and readers are being supplied by Alien Technology, with applications and systems software provided by IBM Business Consulting Services. Source: TescoGiant Eagle Supply Chain To Leverage RFIDJuly 28, 2003 -- Giant Eagle plans to install a new supply chain management system that will utilize RFID technology to boost operational efficiency within its five distribution centers and supply chain.The technology will be deployed at the five Giant Eagle distribution centers, with the first site scheduled to go live in the second quarter of 2004. Giant Eagle selected Manhattan Associates as the supplier for its suite of supply chain solutions. "We are very impressed with Manhattan Associates' early commitment to RFID, a key driver to achieving even greater levels of supply chain efficiency and productivity," said Larry Baldauf, Giant Eagle's senior vice president of distribution. Giant Eagle operates 131 corporate and 83 independently owned and operated stores throughout western Pennsylvania, Ohio, north central West Virginia and Maryland. Source: Manhattan Associates

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