In the course of my writing over the last twenty years, I've covered the rise of the Internet for Computer Weekly, written about failed IT projects with Tony Collins in Crash, and now through work I've done with GS1 UK (formerly e.centre) through its GSQ Magazine, I'm interested in the practical application of radio frequency identification (RFID).
I believe the next few years will see RFID becoming as ubiquitous as the bar code or the Internet have eventually become, albeit from struggling beginnings, where there was initial suspicion of the technology, and question marks over the business case surrounding its adoption.
RFID is destined to follow the same course. The technology has been proved to work (though, yes, there are still some physical limitations to overcome regarding metals and liquids); the key standards for RFID tags and data-sharing in the retail/consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry are in place; household names in many sectors - Wal-Mart, Tesco, BA, Virgin, Unilever, Marks & Spencer, paper and hygiene products specialist Kimberly-Clark, and DHL - to name but a few - have trialled it, and the technology is on the cusp of take-off.
What has yet to happen is that equipment costs still have to fall enough to lock down the business case for implementation, and there are still some issues over RFID read-rates compared with bar codes. However the engine for adoption is less about the costs of tags or readers, and more about seeing a return on investment (ROI). And with that ROI driver in mind, even some of those in the vanguard of RFID adoption admit their systems are not yet ready to make the most of the opportunity.
Although we have had pilots across most sectors, RFID needs more business-critical, full-strength implementations that can be demonstrated to offer a competitive advantage. That will then create solutions to the next problem: how to effectively manage all the data generated to offer the maximum business benefits.
What I hope this blog will do is track the progress of real-world RFID developments, demonstrating who is using the technology, what business value they're gaining from it, why there may be some hiccups, and how we can overcome them.