Wal-Mart began its long-awaited trial of radio frequency
identification (RFID) tags and electronic product codes (EPCs) at
the start of this month, and insisted that its supply chain
partners are on track to meet its 2005 target for tagging
goods.
The US retail giant, whose support for RFID has driven take-up of
the technology across the globe, is testing EPCs with eight
manufacturers, including Gillette, Procter & Gamble, Nestl' and
Unilever, at a regional distribution centre in Dallas.
The manufacturers' support, at a time when many are raising doubts
over the benefits of RFID, will be vital to the success of the
project, said Linda Dillman, chief information officer at
Wal-Mart.
"We are grateful to these companies for their commitment to
improving the supply chain process," she said. "It is not easy
being a pioneer, but that is how progress is made. These eight
companies are revolutionising the way we do business."
The trial, which will initially cover 21 products in seven stores,
will pave the way for Wal-Mart to achieve its target of having its
top 100 suppliers using RFID by January 2005, Dillman said.
The announcement followed speculation that Wal-Mart was backing off
from the deadline, rumours of which intensified when the first
round of suppliers of tightly-controlled prescription drugs missed
their deadline.
All but two of Wal-Mart's top 100 suppliers are on track to meet
the deadline, with many planning to join the trial earlier, said
Simon Langford, manager of RFID strategy at Wal-Mart.
Langford also said RFID tags would be rolled out to Asda in the UK
during 2005 as part of Wal-Mart's global implementation of the
technology.