Scaling from Pilot to Implementation

This paper addresses relevant hardware and software considerations that companies will have take into account when attempting to scale from a small RFID pilot to a full-blown RFID deployment.

With respect to hardware, emphasis is given to the tag value chain that users should anticipate in moving from pilot-level implementation to rollout-level implementation. In order to ensure scalability of the implementation, customers and end users should look to their suppliers delivery of high quality, highly reliable tags to provide the best performance in the intended end use application environment. Additionally, this paper describes key considerations for printers/encoders, including interoperability and migration to EPC Generation 2 solutions.

With respect to software, emphasis is placed on considerations that will drive the ability to seamlessly and on a scalable level, integrate the real-time data flowing from RFID readers and other compute infrastructure with traditional enterprise systems such as warehouse management systems (WMS) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.

Another key consideration is planning for the timely diagnosis and rectification of any compute infrastructure failure. This is quite likely in a real-world deployment where equipment may have to operate in remote harsh locations such as warehouses with no readily available IT support resources.

End users are encouraged to first, start with an assessment of the current information process for data gathering, analysis and actionable trigger process within their 4 walls, and then extend to their retailer trading partners to determine areas where RFID data capture improves the business process and ultimately the business ROI.