Mar 23, 2011RFID Journal today announced additional details about a live demonstration of apparel items being source-tagged and tracked from the point of manufacture through a distribution center (DC) and to the back of a store, and then onto the sales floor and at the point of sale (POS). The demo will take place at RFID Journal LIVE! 2011, RFID Journal's ninth annual conference and exhibition, which will be held on Apr. 12-14, 2011, at the Orange County Convention Center, located in Orlando, Fla.
The GS1 US RFID Apparel Demo will show how GS1 standards can be used to ensure the efficient transfer of data among supply chain partners, and will demonstrate some of the latest RFID products designed specifically for apparel and retail applications. Jeans and other clothing items will be tagged, encoded and verified at a manufacturing station, and will then be verified against an order from a retailer. The goods will next be shipped to the retailer's DC, where they will be read automatically and checked against an advance shipping notice, after which they will be entered into inventory automatically and put away. When the DC receives an order from one of its stores, the items will be picked and packed, and the order will be verified prior to shipment.
The goods will then be received into inventory automatically at the back of the retail store. Items will be checked against the store's order, and will then be put away. As the products are sold, the store will replenish them, using RFID to confirm the proper items are on the floor at all times. This is the future of apparel retailing—and you can see it live in the conference exhibit hall.
"This live demonstration offers examples of potential business process improvements and solutions that we've learned through numerous implementations," says Michele Southall, GS1 US' implementation services director. "It's not only about how the GS1 system of standards enables supply chain visibility, but how collaboration among hardware and software technology providers helps support industry adoption of the technology."
Manufacturing
• Source tagging
• Bulk encoding of tags
• Printing on pitch and applying tags
• Exception handling
• Order verification
Distribution Center
• Automated receiving
• Cycle counting
• Pick and pack
• Exception handling
• Order verification
Retail
• Automated receiving
• Replenishment
• Locating inventory
• Cycle counting
• Smart shelf analytics
• Reticketing
• POS checkout
The demonstrations are being sponsored by Argo Wireless, Avery Dennison, Conair, Impinj, Motorola, Seeonic, Tagsys RFID and Zebra Technologies.
"RFID Journal LIVE! really is a unique opportunity for retailers and brand owners to see RFID in action, as well as hear what is happening with the technology in the retail apparel sector and meet the solutions providers that can help them use RFID to improve the way they do business," says Mark Roberti, RFID Journal's founder and editor. "There is no other place where you can see all of this under one roof."
LIVE! 2011 will feature eight industry-specific and level-of-expertise conference tracks, eight in-depth preconference seminars, fast-track CompTIA RFID+ and RFIDSCM training and certification, two co-located events and the RFID Journal Awards, as well as numerous technology exhibits and demonstrations conducted by the leading technology firms.
