Closed-loop RFID applications on the rise

We are all aware of the fact that RFID is making its presence felt across various sectors and seems to have moved beyond the traditional supply chain management. This is not me who supports this claim but even ABI Research which undertook study with regards to application of RFID beyond its traditional frontiers. Up till now you could see open loop supply chain applications benefiting the most from this technology but now closed loop applications such as security access control and asset management have started gaining from it. If ABI is to be believed then a number of healthcare and manufacturing companies have started to realize the benefit of RFID and if every other sector too starts changing their views towards this technology then they too can realize its immense potential. After realizing its potency companies have started using innovative and unique applications of RFID. Though the technology has witnessed growth across vertical industries but compliance has been one of the major drivers for RFID adoption. Mandates imposed by government agencies and companies have been a bit of roadblock.

Companies have started realizing the potential of RFID but still there are a number of hiccups which are making the companies think a hundred times before they implement it. Companies are worried about the success of existing automatic identification solutions, limited application relevance, return on investment plus lack of clarity is not helping the cause of it. Companies are still hesitant to adopt it and feel that barcode is still an effective solution for them and as of now meets their current requirements.

Now a number of issues seems to be cropping up with regards to the sincere implementation of RFID which is acting as a roadblock in its growth. First of all awareness needs to be created with respect to the technology since an informed customer can certainly make the right decision therefore efforts must be made by the proponents of the technology in helping it get its due credit. Secondly global standards need to be arrived at so that it can help in building confidence across all the sectors with regards to the technology and ensure its faster implementation. Thirdly prices need to be brought down significantly and though prices have come down since the nineties but still they need to be brought down to the level where its application becomes even faster.