This article was originally published by RFID Update.
November 2, 2004—Probably the biggest RFID industry news to occur during the EPCglobal US conference back in September was IBM’s $250 million five-year allocation to its newly formed Sensor and Actuation Solutions division, of which RFID opportunities were the predominant component. While such a serious committment from such an important technology leader was indeed exciting to all of us in the industry, it is important to note that Big Blue’s Sensor and Actuation (S&A) division is not an RFID pure-play; sensor technology is also a strong focus. According to the S&A division VP Robert Mayberry, IBM anticipates strong demand for sensor-based hardware, software, and consulting services from industries as varied as biometrics, chemicals, petroleum, and manufacturing. The fact that RFID and sensors fall under the same organizational umbrella at IBM reinforces an important emerging trend as the industry contemplates RFID’s future role beyond simply replacing the barcode: as RFID and sensor technology both become cheaper and more sophisticated, they will increasingly be used together as complementary technologies in single systems.
Read the article at eWeek
