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Staples' Canadian Unit Plans RFID Trial
Kamel says the length of the second phase has not yet been determined. Acco, Fellowes, Unisource and UPS Supply Chain Solutions will handle the tagging at their respective distribution centers, which are in and around Toronto, using Shipcom Wireless software to commission the EPCs to the tags. Some pallets will carry a single SKU, while others will be loaded with a mixture of SKUs. "Each pallet will have an advance shipment notice (ASN) associated with it. As each shipment is received, we will do a comparison of what was brought through the portal reader with what was listed on the ASN," says Kamel. Staples will attempt to capture both the pallet tag and the case tags as each pallet passes through the reader.
Bell Enterprise Group is striving for read rates as close to 100 percent as possible on the pallets of goods that enter the Staples DC and store. Many products from Fellowes have high metal content, which could cause interference with the RF signal. Another possibly problematic product is paper. Pallets full of printing paper are so dense that the interrogators might not be able to excite the tags attached to the inner cases.
In addition to systems integration services, Bell Enterprise Group will also analyze the workflow within the participants' facilities, both before and during the trial. The goal will be to see how disruptive the RFID tagging operation is to present business processes, and to suggest how these processes might be adjusted to accommodate RFID.
Kamel says he is hoping the manufacturers and UPS will begin tagging goods for the trial during February or March of next year. Once the project is completed, Bell Enterprise Group will work with Staples and the Supply Chain Network Project to evaluate the results. Staples might decide to follow up with another RFID field trial, involving more of its suppliers. It might also move forward with some type of tagging initiative with its suppliers, either on a voluntary basis or also as a mandated requirement, says Kamel.
Though Bell Canada's Enterprise Group has done some work with RFID technology in the past including an early-stage evaluation of how it might use RFID within the carrier's telephone equipment supply chain—this is the first end-to-end RFID project the group has led. RFID and other wireless technologies are a strong focus for the Enterprise Group. "We seek to develop and acquire best-of-class expertise [in RFID]," says Mitchell. "We've recently acquired two companies based in Canada. One, called The Createch Group, focuses on supply chain solutions, and the other, Popware, provides asset-management solutions. Both organizations have expertise in their industries and RFID and wireless technologies."
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Bell Enterprise Group is striving for read rates as close to 100 percent as possible on the pallets of goods that enter the Staples DC and store. Many products from Fellowes have high metal content, which could cause interference with the RF signal. Another possibly problematic product is paper. Pallets full of printing paper are so dense that the interrogators might not be able to excite the tags attached to the inner cases.
In addition to systems integration services, Bell Enterprise Group will also analyze the workflow within the participants' facilities, both before and during the trial. The goal will be to see how disruptive the RFID tagging operation is to present business processes, and to suggest how these processes might be adjusted to accommodate RFID.
Kamel says he is hoping the manufacturers and UPS will begin tagging goods for the trial during February or March of next year. Once the project is completed, Bell Enterprise Group will work with Staples and the Supply Chain Network Project to evaluate the results. Staples might decide to follow up with another RFID field trial, involving more of its suppliers. It might also move forward with some type of tagging initiative with its suppliers, either on a voluntary basis or also as a mandated requirement, says Kamel.
Though Bell Canada's Enterprise Group has done some work with RFID technology in the past including an early-stage evaluation of how it might use RFID within the carrier's telephone equipment supply chain—this is the first end-to-end RFID project the group has led. RFID and other wireless technologies are a strong focus for the Enterprise Group. "We seek to develop and acquire best-of-class expertise [in RFID]," says Mitchell. "We've recently acquired two companies based in Canada. One, called The Createch Group, focuses on supply chain solutions, and the other, Popware, provides asset-management solutions. Both organizations have expertise in their industries and RFID and wireless technologies."
