Survey Says: More Talent Is Needed

CompTIA

Dave Sommer

CompTIA's third annual survey of the RFID industry revealed that 68.8% of its respondents do not believe there is a sufficient pool of RFID talent from which to hire. This lack of skilled labor is having an impact on the industry, even considering that the adoption rate hasn't been as quick as many had predicted.

That percentage is down from previous years. In 2006, 75% of respondents said there was a lack in skilled labor. In 2005, 80% made the same claim. So there does seem to be some improvement. CompTIA Vice President of e-Business and Software Solutions Dave Sommer says that the relatively slow adoption of RFID technology lessened the impact the skills shortage has had on the industry. But he also believes that usage continues to grow at a modest, steady pace, and the shortage of RFID talent will continue to affect further implementation of RFID technology.

A majority of respondents to the survey agree. Nearly 70% of respondents who believe there is a lack of workers skilled in RFID will impact the adoption of the technology, which is a smaller percentage than those who felt that way last year (80%).

CompTIA and its members are addressing the skills shortage through its professional, vendor-neutral certification course, CompTIA RFID+ designed to validate a technician's competencies and skills in RFID solutions. More information on CompTIA RFID+ is available at http://certification.comptia.org/rfid/default.aspx.

METRO Group and Checkpoint Systems Partner to Help Suppliers 'Tag It Easy'

Checkpoint Systems, Inc. — a manufacturer and marketer of identification, tracking, security, and merchandising solutions for the retail industry and its supply chain — announces its participation in METRO Group's "Tag It Easy!" pilot. The pilot is part of the initiative "Advanced Logistics Asia" (ALA), which the METRO Group started in order to jointly enhance the logistical processes with its Asian suppliers by using RFID. The "Tag It Easy" pilot enables the consumer goods industry to apply RFID labels on the shipments from Hong Kong to Germany.

With this pilot, METRO Group enables its Asian suppliers to participate in its RFID-driven supply chain. Most of METRO Group's suppliers in this region have limited technology capabilities at their production sites, and so require assistance in printing RFID labels to affix to their export packages. Through a partnership with Checkpoint Systems, METRO Group has established a platform to allow these suppliers to place label order requests and receive pre-printed labels.

The METRO Group expects that the RFID pilot will optimize efficiency and transparency in the international flow of goods. Access to more-accurate, real-time shipment data will help the retailer improve control over its international supply chain, resulting in lower warehousing costs and reduced out-of-stock situations.

METRO Group has standardized on UHF EPC Gen 2 tags for compliance to all regional requirements: 917-922 MHz for China; 920-925 MHz for Hong Kong; and 865.6-867.6 MHz for Europe. The RFID tags on the labels provided by Checkpoint will store the Serial Shipping Container Code (SSCC), which will be read at several points along the supply chain from Hong Kong to Unna, Germany. The METRO Group will receive an electronic delivery note in advance of the shipment, detailing the container content. The supplier also benefits, by gaining detailed proof of package delivery.

The pilot will run for three months, and the METRO Group expects to extend the project to include several other Asian suppliers at a future date if the concept proves to be feasible. Visit METRO Group at www.metrogroup.de and Checkpoint Systems at www.checkpointsystems.com.

Practical RFID Reader with USB Link from Brooks Automation

RFID system provider Brooks Automation (www.brooks-rfid.com) has created a new, compact HF reader. The electronic RFID circuitry is housed in a package measuring about 11 cm x 7 cm and works on a frequency of 13.56 MHz. A USB 2.0 interface simply connects the RFID reader to a PC or laptop. This compactness and simplicity make the reader especially suitable for temporary use because it can be installed and packed away quickly. Hot-pluggability allows you to connect and disconnect while a computer is running.

The reader will communicate with transponders using standards or protocols like ISO 15693, EPC, and I-Code. Powering is over the USB link so no separate cable is needed. Integrated in the reader is a loop antenna producing a read and write range of about 5 cm to 15 cm, depending on the transponder that is used. An external antenna can be added for more range. The reader comes with a Windows XPTM driver and configuration software.

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