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27Oct/08Off

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RFID Advantages for the Retail Segment

Radio Frequency ID or RFID was initially utilized in retail operation in Wal-Mart and subsequently additional retailers are attempting to utilize this program outside the warehouse. RFID programming utilizes radio tags as a way to identify services and products, and Wal-Mart utilized them to keep account of everything that was kept in storage. This began as improvement in accounting programs and became a more effective manner of handling stored items. Based upon this positive result, Wal-Mart then made the decision to utilize RFID systems on the sales floor too. The Wal-Mart idea was copied by other prominent retail stores too. This also caused more financial allocations to implement this system and suppliers of RFID promoted the improvements it offered in comprehensive tracking of merchandise. So, RFID then increased in positive reputation as a means of bettering management of supply chains and control of inventory, which would show improvement in costs over the long term.

The University of Arkansas joined with Sam Walton College of Business to demonstrate through research an average correct level of 62% for inventory of clothing and putting in RFID technology increased this percentage to 95%. Correctness in inventory directly results in sales increase due to specific detail of stocks is apparent. The Head of RFID Research, Dr. Bill Hardgrave assembled statistics that indicated that RFID assisted sales to improve by 2 to 5 percent. It also helps retailers find misplaced and stolen product and immediately know when theft has occurred. This shows the helpfulness of the technology in increasing item and product visibility.

A list of the best radio tag makers includes Texas Instruments, Alien Technology and Motorola. Radio tags are usually as small as a pin head and different kinds of these can be placed on garments, sewn into the garment or placed onto the garment with tape. These are then followed with readers much like bar code scanners. These are some of the many manners in which RFID systems may be used in a retail store.

RFID Potential

The advantages of RFID are not fully known and analysts think that these systems are in a young stage and it hasn't discovered its proper niche yet. It is as yet new to retailers who do not completely comprehend its complete potential. With RFID customers are given benefits such as being able to contact sales associates while in the fitting room and being able to go on Facebook while in a store.

The retail establishment can utilize RFID tags to obtain more customer feedback by finding out what products they reach for, pick up and put on. Soon they can give out customer reward bonuses that can be given all kinds of data about the person that would be relevant to the store.

Xterprise has been using RFID technology for one year at American Apparel in Los Angeles. The outcome is excellent but many beginning loopholes are being dealt with prior to the technology being totally accepted.

What is obvious is that RFID technology has arrived in the retail sector but has not reached its complete potential. So far they are certainly heading into the future. As the system improves cost effectiveness will go up. For example the cost of radio tags has come down from 30 cents to 9 cents, as discovered by IDC Retail Insights. Accepting the RFID technology and putting it in however is still the province of more wealthy corporations with greater money to spend. This is due to the fact that the price will vary between two thousand and twenty thousand dollars. The cost is recouped within a year with all the found merchandise. The system will be applied by all when the price becomes one penny for a radio tag. Until then, it will still be a luxury for the wealthiest of retail stores.

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The type of barcode reader that you decide to acquire will be dependent on a number of factors including the distance between the scanner and the products, the type of barcodes that need to be deciphered and the work setting where the scanner will be deployed in.