Tomorrow is NOW

RFID continues to wow industry professionals with its seemingly endless capabilities. As a result, more companies are incorporating this technology into their business practices. In fact, a study conducted by IDTechEx revealed that as of 2007, 3.752 billion RFID tags have been sold over the last 60 years. Furthermore, sales jumped an astonishing 8 percent—from 19 percent to 27 percent—between 2005 and 2006.

While RFID technology is not something companies can find success in overnight, Mark Davenport, president of Nashville, Tennessee-based Mid South Graphics, noted end-users can find positive results by investing a little patience and creativity in their business model. “Most of the customers that we deal with on a daily basis have taken RFID beyond the slap-and-ship scenario, which [has] show[n] them positive results in reduc[ing] out-of-stock products, increas[ing] top-line revenues and tim[ing] inventory control on incoming and outgoing shipments,” he said.

David Grove, technical sales for Schober USA, Cincinnati, agreed with Davenport. “RFID is limited only to one’s imagination,” he commented. “In the past, it has been seen as an aid to inventory tracking, but I believe it will find a bright future in providing security for both products and people.”

To prove how broad the imagination can be, BFL&S decided to find out the latest and most creative techniques being carried out in this ever-growing market sector.

• Since 2004, implantable RFID chips have served as an alternative to VIP membership cards for a Barcelona nightclub. Individuals opting to rid their pockets of plastic can undergo a minor medical procedure where VeriChip—an RFID chip approximately the size of a grain of rice—is injected under their skin in the upper left arm. Manufactured by Applied Digital Solutions, Delray Beach, Fla., the RFID chip can be detected through a handheld device. Therefore, when RFID-implanted VIP members order drinks, the beverages are immediately added to their bill with a quick scan of the arm.