Sam's Guide: Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Letter From the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Sam's Club's Tagging Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Five Approaches to Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

• Slap and Ship
• Slap, Verify and Ship
• Integrate and Wait
• Automated Tagging
• End-to-End Integration

The Electronic Product Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Step 1: Assemble a Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

• The Steering Committee
• The Implementation Team

Step 2: Examine Your Products and Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

• How RF-Friendly Are Your Products?
• How Much Benefit Will You Achieve From
  Tagging Your Products?

Step 3: Consider Your Tagging Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

• Manual Application in Your DC During Shipping
• Manual Application in Your Warehouse During Picking
• Application by a Third-Party Logistics Provider
• Application by a Third-Party Packager
• Application by Your Corrugate Supplier
• Automated Offline Tagging
• Automated Inline Tagging
• Integrating a Tag Into Your Product

Step 4: Consider Your IT Integration Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

• Standalone System: No Integration With IT Systems
• Offline EPC RFID System: Minimal Integration
• Semi-Automated WMS Integration
• Full Integration With WMS
• Front-End Integration
• End-to-End Integration

Step 5: Create a Rollout Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

• Move Beyond Slap and Ship
• Choose Your Technology Partners

Step 6: Create a Budget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

• EPCglobal Subscription Fees
• Labor Costs
• Computer and Software to Associate EPCs with Products
• Tags
• Interrogators
• Label Printers
• Middleware
• Application and/or Analysis Software
• Consulting and/or Systems Integration

Step 7: Test and Deploy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

• Testing Inline Tagging

Step 8: Look for Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

• Reducing Out-of-Stocks
• Managing Product Introductions
• Reducing Charge-backs
• Improving Order Reconciliation
• Optimizing Inventory Management
• Minimizing Internal Shrinkage
• Improving Reverse Logistics
• Improving Stock Rotation

Reading and Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

• Case Studies: Getting Compliant
• Choosing the Right Vendors and Technology
• How-To Articles
• Best Practices

How to Tag Sellable Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

• Choose the Right Tag
• Choose the Right Reader Antenna
• Reading Tags in Your Operations

Products Sold in Paper and Plastic Bags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59

• Bread and Pastries
• Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
• Frozen Foods
• Paper and Plastic Products
• Processed Foods
• Other Products

Products Sold in Glass or Plastic Bottles or Jars . . . . . . . . . . .65

• Liquid or Semi-liquid Products
• Non-liquid Products

Products Sold in Corrugate or Cardboard Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . 69

• Appliances and Power Tools
• Bottled Products
• Canned Products
• Computer and Consumer Electronics Products
• Dried Foods
• Exercise Equipment
• Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
• Frozen Foods
• Furniture
• Kitchen and Cookware Products
• Paper, Wicker and Wood Products
• Plastic Products
• Powdered Products

Products Sold in Plastic Buckets or Tubs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89

• Candy
• Dried and Granular Products
• Frozen and Refrigerated Products
• Powered Products
• Spreads

Products Sold in Metal Cans or Drums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94

• Cans
• Drums

Products Sold as Multipacks of Glass or Plastic

Bottles or Jars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

• Glass and Plastic Bottles
• Cans

Products Sold in Molded Plastic Containers . . . . . . . . . . . . .100

• Baked Goods
• CDs, DVDs and Computer Games
• Computer Peripherals and Consumer Electronics Products
• Fruits and Vegetables
• Glass and Plastic Products
• Meat
• Tools and Other Metal Items

Beverages Sold in Corrugate or Cardboard Flats . . . . . . . . . .105

• Glass or Plastic Bottles and Metal Cans
• Bricks

Products Sold Without Packaging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109

• Aluminum Ladders
• Anti-fatigue Mats
• Apparel and Linens
• Books and Magazines
• Brooms and Snow Shovels
• Tires
• Wicker Baskets

Company Profiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .113

• Alien Technology
• Avery Dennison
• Domino Integrated Solutions Group
• Motorola
• Mühlbauer
• Retail Solutions
• Ship2Save
• Venture Research
• Xterprise