Transparency in RFID Tagging May be the Next Big Thing in Supply Chain Management

Apparel vendors have traditionally had few resources with which to confirm RFID ticketing compliance, but that will soon change. While nominated service bureaus can supply tags that operate with nearly 100 percent reliability, there has been no overarching system to ensure they will remain that way throughout the supply chain. Things can happen to damage the tags during handling and shipment and during the application process. Tags can also be attached to the wrong items. And these are just a few examples of RFID ticketing failure. 'To successfully use RFID for inventory accuracy, you must first ensure that each product has a properly encoded RFID tag attached to it,' according to retail and RFID specialist John-Pierre Kamel of RFIDsherpas, a consulting practice focused exclusively on the retail sector. 'This is critical. And there can be financial consequences beyond your own internal supply chain if you get this wrong.'