RFID Technology: The Future of Retail

by | Aug 2, 2016 | Retail

ATTENTION ALL RETAILERS: We know what you’re probably thinking…. What the heck is RFID anyway? If you’re new to retail, or haven’t heard of RFID, let’s start off by reminding you what RFID is all about. RFID stands for radio frequency identification (RFID) technology. This technology uses a method of identifying items through radio waves. The RFID device works much like a barcode and scanner, except it is far more efficient and cost-effective! The technology utilizes a reader and tag that work simultaneously allowing for optimal service at the quickest pace.

RFID technology isn’t a new concept either. It has been around for nearly seventy-six years and has experienced significant advances in the past decade, and most particularly in recent years. These advances include a lower cost of ownership, improved reader form factors, greater global standardization, and innovations in passive ultra-high frequency (UHF) tags, which are all furthering RFID interest and adoption.

While all of these advancements are great, the single-most convincing argument for implementation of RFID devices in retail stores, can be found in the proven return on investment (ROI) that item-level tagging provides throughout the entire supply chain process. If you haven’t had a chance to look at the many benefits of RFID technology recently, consider these five great reasons why you should implement RFID in all of your retail stores:

  • Increased Inventory Accuracy. Studies have shown RFID technology offers the best solution to track merchandise for stocking and marketing purposes.
  • Reduced Inventory Management Labor. Both apparel and footwear retailers utilizing RFID in their stores have reported inventory labor reductions of 75 to 92 percent. In tests prior to the introduction of RFID technology, only 200 items per hour were counted using a manual process. Following the introduction of RFID technology, 5,000 items per hour were counted.
  • Reduced Inventory Carrying Costs. With RFID technology, retailers have been able to sustain leaner inventory levels, while reducing associated carrying costs more than ever before.
  • Improved Sales. Item-level RFID has shown an increased sale of items per transaction because the technology is fast and is cost-effective.
  • Protection Against Theft. We all know that shoplifting occurs more regularly than we would like to admit in retail. It’s been estimated that shoplifting alone costed U.S. retailers $32 billion last year. By using RFID to support electronic article surveillance (EAS), retailers are notified in real time when items are being stolen.

Almost all of the benefits listed above apply directly to a retailer’s in-store operations, yet, in today’s fast-paced world, retailers understand now more than ever, that being able to distribute items and fulfill orders from inventory located in any part of the supply chain is more efficient, more cost-effective, and more likely to result in greater satisfaction and an enhanced customer experience. Furthermore, nearly all retailers agree that the key to accurate inventory management is technology, most notably RFID.

Throughout the entire the supply chain, RFID technology allows retailers to maximize their inventory control and maintain flexibility from initial manufacturer orders through direct-to-customer shipping. Today’s RFID devices help increase the level of productivity in every retail store, by operating as both a sales channel and a fulfillment center. Additionally, this device helps enhance customer satisfaction and ultimately, improve end-to-end supply chain ROI.

This system of technology works and we are confident that its level of usage will only continue to grow in the future! If you have any further questions regarding RFID placement in retail stores, please do not hesitate to visit us at: http://informsinc.com/.

RFID vs. NFC: The differences you should know about

by | May 14, 2015 | Retail

Radio frequency identification (RFID) has been around for a while. The technology has matured, and has spun off a newer technology: near-field communication (NFC). The emergence of NFC seems to have also sparked confusion.

What’s the difference between RFID and NFC?

RFID is a one-way process. Information is transmitted from an encoded memory chip (known as a “smart tag”) via an antenna to an RFID reader. There are two types of RFID tags: active and passive.

Active RFID tags contain a power source, so they can broadcast a signal, up to 100 meters away. This capability makes RFID a strong choice for asset tracking.

Passive RFID tags have no power. They’re activated by an electromagnetic signal sent from the RFID reader. The signal doesn’t travel as far as active RFID, so they’re used for short read ranges. Passive RFID falls into one of three frequency ranges:

  • Low frequency: 125-134.2 kHz
  • High frequency: 13.56 MHz
  • Ultra-high frequency: 856-960 MHz

RFIDvsNFC

NFC is based on RFID protocols. The devices run at passive RFID’s high frequency. NFC reads smart tags because, like RFID, it features a read/write operation mode.

But NFC goes farther than RFID. The technology has two-way communication—unlike RFID’s one-directional limitation—using one of two modes: card emulation and peer-to-peer (P2P).

For example, a smartphone enabled with NFC (and many of them are nowadays) can pass information back and forth to another NFC device. Contactless payment is an example of card emulation mode. Any time you redeem rewards points via your phone, you’re also using NFC’s card emulation feature.

P2P comes into play when you “bump” your mobile device with another one to share information. Maybe you’re passing music back and forth, swapping special deals, or playing a game with the friend sitting next to you. You can even tap your device with a router, to get on that network without having to use a password.

NFC will soon likely replace QR codes in some advertisements and promotional materials. Consumers will no longer have to scan a QR code to get to the intended location, but can simply use the NFC mode to instantly get the information that the advertiser wants them to have.

There is still plenty of space across today’s industries—from retail to manufacturing, transportation to healthcare—for RFID’s one-way communication, but NFC is paving another path along the ever-winding information highway.