Intelligent Network Services Can Make RFID More Productive

By Michael Crane

Intelligent Network Service in Action
As such government entities as the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and major retailers such as Wal-Mart require suppliers to use RFID, more suppliers are turning to intelligent network services to address this obligation efficiently. The telecommunications division of Vtech, a leading supplier of corded and cordless telephones, is using an RFID solution from Cisco Systems and Intel. This solution incorporates an intelligent network service as part of its pilot participation in the Hong Kong EPCglobal Network initiative directed by EPCglobal Hong Kong (see RFID's Silk Road and Largest Global Pilot Yet' in the Works for EPCglobal). By implementing this solution, VTech became the first firm in the Asia Pacific region to participate in EPCglobal Hong Kong’s EPC network and fulfill Wal-Mart’s request that its main suppliers and supply chain business partners become RFID-compliant.

The Hong Kong EPCglobal Network project lets VTech use RFID technology to track telecommunications products from its factory in the city of Dongguan, located in southern China’s Guangdong province, to Wal-Mart's U.S. distribution centers. Using the EPC Information Service (EPCIS) and EPC-based RFID tags and readers, VTech has created a technology infrastructure that will increase warehouse efficiency through better inventory management, as well as improve global supply chain visibility. Until now, information between manufacturers in China and retailers around the world was communicated through electronic data interchange (EDI), or via phone and fax.

Like VTech, businesses implementing RFID with an intelligent network service component can expect to achieve practical, end-to-end supply chain visibility. This powerful benefit is helping RFID gain momentum as a critical technology for helping manufacturers of all sizes maintain a competitive posture.

Smart Networks Critical to RFID Future
As RFID becomes a standard element of global supply chains, the ability to transform raw RFID data into meaningful business information cost-effectively, and to deliver that information securely to appropriate recipients, will become critical. Intelligent network services can meet this need by creating an efficient partnership between the raw transport mechanisms of the network and the logical communication of the EPCglobal Network.

This combination can cost-effectively increase supply chain visibility by providing an enterprise-wide view into RFID events across distributed deployments. Using this view, organizations will be able to respond more quickly to RFID events throughout the supply chain, while maintaining high network performance and streamlined business operations.

Michael Crane is the director of advanced services for Cisco Systems.