Jan 03, 2007This article was originally published by RFID Update.
January 3, 2007—3M today announced the successful pilot of an RFID-based track and trace solution for Mayo Clinic, the well-known medical practice with diagnosis and treatment facilities scattered across the US. The RFID system will allow medical practitioners to better manage the specimens of patient tissue.
It was deployed at Mayo's endoscopy facilities in Minnesota, where tissue samples are taken from patients. The samples are tagged and tracked from the moment they are collected through until they are delivered to the pathology laboratory for analysis, a series of steps characterized as "crucial".
The pilot lasted five months, and the results were praised by Mayo, which cited accurate data communication and verification, as well as improved efficiencies in specimen management as a few of the benefits. The plan now is to rapidly phase in an expansion of the pilot, aiming for completion in the early part of this year.
3M is a $57 billion conglomerate and producer of such household consumer brands as Scotch tape and Post-it notes. Historically the company's two most visible RFID initiatives were HighJump Software, a subsidiary focused on supply chain software solutions, and file tracking, for which the company has publicized deals with the US government (see US Government Expands RFID File Tracking and 3M and the Appeal of RFID File Tracking).
By contrast, the company's Track and Trace solution of today's announcement is focused on all manner of asset tracking applications in the healthcare, mining, and manufacturing industries.
Read the announcement
